due to the ongoing leadership crisis in the new york state senate, in which the senate tied with 31 democratic votes and 31 republican votes, with no presiding officer to break the tie, paterson announced on july 8, 2009 that he would appoint richard ravitch, a former chairman of the metropolitan transportation authority, to be lieutenant governor. on august 20, 2009, however, a four-judge panel of the new york state appellate division, second judicial department ruled that paterson had no legal authority to name a lieutenant governor, and that the lieutenant governor position could not be filled in any way other than via an election. on september 23, 2009, the new york court of appeals reversed the appellate division's decision, holding paterson's appointment of ravitch to be constitutional.