ALBANY – Supporters of Ralph Nader’s independent presidential campaign said yesterday they had filed enough petitions with the state to put him on the New York ballot.

In New York, independent candidates for statewide office must submit petitions containing the signatures of at least 15,000 registered voters to qualify for the November ballot.

“The campaign submitted more than 27,500 signatures,” said a state Green Party leader assisting the Nader effort, Mark Dunlea.

Should the petitions for Mr. Nader be certified as valid on September 27 by the state Board of Elections, he would be on the state ballot as the candidate of the specially created Peace and Justice Party.

Unlike some battleground states, Mr. Nader is not expected to be a factor in the New York election where polls show Democratic challenger John Kerry with a large lead over President Bush in the battle for the state’s 31 electoral votes.

As the Green Party’s candidate for president in 2000, Mr. Nader collected just 244,030 votes in New York, compared to 4.1 million for Democrat Al Gore and 2.4 million for Bush.

[The New York Times reported on its Web site that Mr. Nader’s effort to put his name on the ballot in many swing states was being challenged by Democrats, who want to prevent him from becoming a factor in the election this November. He faces legal challenges in several key states. Polls show Mr. Nader could draw 2% or 3% of the vote in states where he could affect the outcome, most likely hurting John Kerry, the Democratic candidate.]