Connecticut authorities have charged four campaign workers with absentee ballot misuse, stemming from their involvement in the Bridgeport Democratic mayoral primary scandal that occurred in 2019.
On Tuesday, Bridgeport City Councilman Alfredo Castillo, 52, and the vice chair of the city’s Democratic Party leader Wanda Geter-Pataky, 67, along with two 2019 campaign workers, Nilsa Heredia, 61, who worked for Mayor Joe Ganim, and Josephine Edmonds, 62, who worked for Ganim’s primary rival Marilyn Moore, were charged with Unlawful Possession of Absentee Ballots. Each of them faces additional charges.
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According to investigators, the group was accused of mishandling absentee ballots during the mayoral primary race in September 2019. The primary race was closely contested, with incumbent mayor Joe Ganim winning by a narrow margin of just 251 votes over John Gomes.
Afterwards, Gomes filed a lawsuit, claiming mishandling of absentee ballots. To support his case, he presented video evidence that showed Geter-Pataky, a member of the Democratic Town Committee, dropping absentee ballots into drop boxes multiple times or passing them to others who did the same.
The evidence presented in court was so conclusive that the judge ruled in favor of Gomes, stating that a redo primary election was necessary.
In November 2023, the superior court judge stated that the mishandling of a significant number of ballots raises serious doubts about the legitimacy of the primary election result. The volume of improperly handled ballots is so significant that the court is unable to determine the true winner of the primary.
In 2019, mishandling of absentee ballots led to allegations that prompted the Secretary of State’s office to take action by sending a referral letter to the State Elections Enforcement Commission.
According to investigators, the commission initiated a civil investigation that led to a vote on June 7, 2023, to refer evidence of criminal conduct to the Division of Criminal Justice. The Office of the Chief State’s Attorney accepted the referral.
Chief State’s Attorney Griffin emphasized the importance of maintaining the integrity of the voting process in our democracy. He expressed his gratitude towards the Statewide Prosecution Bureau for devoting their time and effort to investigate these cases. Griffin hopes that the prosecutions will serve as a warning against any attempts to tamper with election results in Connecticut.
In addition to the aforementioned charges, the accused individuals are also facing other election-related charges. Among these are charges of tampering with a witness, misrepresenting eligibility requirements for voting by absentee ballot, and failure to maintain an absentee ballot distribution list, among others.
The quartet was set free with a pledge to appear in the Bridgeport Superior Court on June 24th.
