Don’t Sweep Tuesday’s Mess Under the Rug

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Tuesday’s uncontested primary – with minimal turnout – was a mess.

That’s not exactly a surprise.

New rules, new procedures, public ballot boxes and a broad shift to absentee ballots – it was bound to cause problems, without adding in the worry of fraud in Bridgeport or slow mail delivery.

But let’s not beat around the bush, it’s never a good sign when election workers are spotted dumpster diving for ballot mailers, missing or discarded accidentally, because no one quite agreed on the exact procedures for counting or for disqualifying votes.

To be clear, we heard strikingly different stories on and off the record about the vote. 

And I get it.

No one wants to throw their co-workers under the bus or get caught up in broader efforts to discredit November’s election outcomes.

But by sweeping this mess under the rug, we are courting a disaster on November 3, when the stakes and the number of votes are immensely higher.

I would strongly urge the Office of the Secretary of the State and the Office of the Governor to have in place any necessary correctives well in advance of Election Day and to allow the political parties and courts to have their say well before, not during or after, the election.