Democratic Primary Set for Court-Ordered Redo at Bridgeport, Connecticut, Amid Ballot Harvesting Allegations

A Democratic primary is set for a do-over at corruption-plagued Bridgeport, Connecticut, next week after a state judge tossed the results of a September 12 primary in a ruling late last year.In November, Judge William Clark ruled the results of the original Democratic primary for mayor of Bridgeport null after a video surfaced that appeared to show supporters of Mayor Joe Ganim, himself a convicted felon, depositing papers in absentee ballot boxes. The new election is scheduled for January 23.The election will be a rare instance where recent allegations of election irregularities have held up in court and stands in stark contrast to the myriad claims made by President Trump and his supporters in the wake of the 2020 election.An Associated Press analysis in 2021 of every potential instance of voter fraud in six battleground states where the election results were disputed by Mr. Trump found that fewer than 500 votes were determined to be fraudulent. Mr. Trump said he disagreed with the AP’s conclusions, and expressed concerns that the increased use of mail-in ballots in 2020 had led to voting irregularities, but “offered no new evidence that specifically contradicted the AP’s reporting,” the news agency said at the time.At Bridgeport, the primary election went to Ganim by about 251 votes, but Judge Clark found that there was sufficient evidence of voting irregularities that he would not determine who the legitimate winner of the election was.In Connecticut, voters using collection boxes must deposit absentee ballots themselves or name a family member, police officer, local official, or caregiver to do it for them.In his decision on the case, Judge Clark wrote that the number of “mishandled ballots” left the court unable to figure out the legitimate winner of the primary and that the only remedy was to rerun the election. There have been no allegations of false ballots in the election. Rather, the case centered on a practice known as “ballot harvesting,” in which campaigns or volunteers persuade voters to fill out absentee ballots and then deliver said ballots to a collection box.While the practice is legal in other states, ballot harvesting is illegal in Connecticut. Some states where ballot harvesting is allowed put restrictions on the practice, such as requiring voters to name the designee who will be dropping off the ballot in writing.Officials at the State Elections Enforcement Commission in Connecticut have been aware of the ballot harvesting issue at Bridgeport since at least 2019, when the Secretary of State, Denise Merrill, asked the commission to investigate the issue.After the issues with the mayoral primary last year, the commission said that their investigation, which began in 2019, was delayed by the Covid pandemic.In 2019, the State Election Enforcement Commission had flagged issues with a primary election at Bridgeport, also concerning Ganim.In a statement to the AP, Ms. Merrill said that older voters at Bridgeport have grown accustomed to having other people drop off their absentee ballots for them and that allegations have been hard to prove in the past.“We have been in court several times with the same issues, but it’s very difficult to interpret the evidence,” Ms. Merrill said. “This time there is an actual video, which certainly helps the court decide whether there should be a new election.”Ganim has a history of corruption as well, being convicted of racketeering, conspiracy, extortion, mail fraud, bribery, conspiracy, and filing false income tax returns in 2003. After serving seven years in prison, Ganim eventually made a return to politics and has served as the mayor of Bridgeport since 2015.In the case resulting from the allegations of ballot harvesting, Ganim demanded that Judge Clark declare a winner of the election. In the disputed primary results, Ganim won by 251 votes out of fewer than 8,200 cast. Ganim’s opponent, John Gomes, ultimately won the suit, resulting in the new primary election to be held next week.

Democratic Primary Set for Court-Ordered Redo at Bridgeport, Connecticut, Amid Ballot Harvesting Allegations

Democratic Primary Set for Court-Ordered Redo at Bridgeport, Connecticut, Amid Ballot Harvesting Allegations

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