The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Tuesday upheld a Manhattan federal judge's decision to reinstate New York's already-delayed Democratic primary next month.

In a case brought by former presidential contender Andrew Yang, a three-judge panel of the appeals court said it agreed that the move to scrap the June 23 primary amid the COVID-19 pandemic had violated the rights of candidates, their delegates and voters to participate in the election, despite the fact that only one candidate for president would appear on the ballot.

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres of the Southern District of New York ruled May 5 that while there was an "important state interest" in protecting the public from the pandemic, she was "not convinced" that canceling the primary was the way to do it.

She noted that New York had already expanded access to absentee ballots, which could help increase social distancing at voting sites. Also, Torres said, elections other than the presidential primary were still scheduled for 42 out of New York's 62 counties, and New York had been the only state in the country to completely call off its primary as a result of the virus.

In a 30-page opinion, Torres ruled that the move to nix the primary not only deprived Yang and his delegates of their opportunity to influence Democratic Party politics, but also stripped voters of the right to send like-minded representatives to the convention.

In a short order, the Second Circuit panel on Tuesday affirmed the ruling for "substantially the reasons given" in Torres' decision earlier this month. A written opinion explaining the panel's reasoning was expected to follow.

The state Board of Elections said in a statement that it would not appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court "so we can focus all of our attention on the daunting tasks of managing the primary election in a way that minimizes the risks to the public and to election workers."

The BOE added that it would "continue to urge" voters to use absentee ballots during the ongoing public health crisis.

Yang's lawsuit, which was joined by seven delegates, alleged violations of the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, and sought a preliminary injunction directing the primary to move ahead.

Yang, who is now a political commentator with CNN, suspended his presidential campaign in February after he said it became clear that he no longer had a viable path to winning the Democratic Party's nomination. However, he said that he planned to keep his name on the ballot in the hope that his delegates would be able to exert some influence over the party platform at its planned convention in Milwaukee later this summer.

Since then, Gov. Andrew Cuomo delayed the state's primary election from April 28 to June 23, and New York amended its election law to allow the state BOE to remove primary candidates from the ballot once they publicly announce they are no longer seeking the nomination or officially suspend their campaigns.

The BOE's commissioners adopted a resolution on April 27 to remove Yang and nine other primary candidates who had also suspended their campaigns. With only former Vice President Joe Biden remaining on the ballot, the election was canceled as an operation of law.

The decision, the BOE said, was made out of concern for public health and safety, as well as the fact that the results would not change the primary's outcome.

Jeff Kurzon, who represented the plaintiffs, said in an emailed statement that he was "happy that New Yorkers will have their right to vote in the Democratic presidential primary election" and "grateful to the four judges who upheld our constitution and that democracy wins the day."

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