BRIDGEPORT — Newly released warrants shed light on the charges brought against four local campaign workers for absentee ballot fraud during the 2019 mayoral election.
A five-year investigation into election fraud claims against Democratic Mayor Joe Ganim’s supporters during his 2019 mayoral primary bid election against State Sen. Marilyn Moore ended Tuesday with the arrests of City Councilman Alfredo Castillo, Bridgeport Democratic Town Committee Vice Chair Wanda Geter-Pataky, campaign officials Nilsa Heredia and Josephine Edmonds.
Geter-Pataky, an employee of the city, is the subject of recent absentee ballot fraud allegations, after she was seen in city surveillance footage seemingly placing stacks of absentee ballots into drop boxes ahead of Ganim’s 2023 primary election against John Gomes. That footage prompted a state Superior Court judge to overturn the initial round of elections.
Geter-Pataky was reelected as vice chair of the city’s Democratic Party this year after being placed on paid leave by the city last September.
On Tuesday, the Chief State’s Attorney charged the four with unlawful possession of absentee ballots — only a family member, caregiver, police officer, registrar of voters or assistant registrar can lawfully possess another voter’s absentee ballot.
The four warrants, obtained by CT Examiner, allege that the campaign workers persuaded voters to cast absentee ballots instead of voting in-person, and then filled out both their absentee ballot applications and their ballots without permission.
According to the warrants, April Keitt claimed that Geter-Pataky had been distributing and collecting absentee ballot applications at her house for the past 10 years.
According to Keitt, Geter-Pataky repeatedly called and messaged her to confirm receipt of her ballot, then visited her house to collect it, instructing her not to seal the envelope before taking it.
Another voter, Kadeem Graham, claimed that Castillo, who ran alongside Ganim in 2019, provided him with an absentee ballot. Graham claimed that before completing the ballot, the city councilman requested him to sign it, and promised to “take care of it.”
Three of the campaigners — Geter-Pataky, Edmonds and Heredia — were also charged with tampering with a witness.
Geter-Pataky, Castillo and Heredia were also accused of misrepresenting eligibility requirements for absentee voting, while Castillo, Edmonds, and Heredia were charged with failure to maintain an absentee ballot distribution list. Geter-Pataky and Castillo were charged with failure to sign as an assister on an absentee ballot, and Edmonds and Heredia were accused of being present during the execution of an absentee ballot by an applicant.
“Long overdue“
In a written statement following the arrests, Ganim said that he believes in protecting voter rights and fair elections, and is concerned by the allegations.
“Whether its people accused from the Moore campaign or my campaign — any irregularity is unacceptable,” the mayor said. “We all agree that the integrity of the voting process is vital to our democracy.”
Meanwhile, Ganim’s former opponents celebrated the arrests on Tuesday.
Both sides said they wished the state had taken action sooner.
Moore, who filed a complaint with the State Elections Enforcement Commission in 2019, had claimed she witnessed the Ganim campaign offering senior and public housing residents applications for the rent rebate program in exchange for voting by absentee ballot.
Reacting to Tuesday’s arrests, Moore said the arrests were a long time coming.
“Finally, the state’s attorney is taking action,” she said in a written statement. “While I feel it’s long overdue, I am glad that the individuals who abused absentee ballots in 2019 are being called to justice. It is important for the community to see that no one is above the law and that there are consequences when you break the law. Hopefully this will bring an end to ballot fraud in Bridgeport that has been a part of the culture to win at any cost.”
The investigation by the state’s attorney took about a year, but it followed a four-year probe by the SEEC. That investigation, the agency claims, was delayed in part by the pandemic.
Gomes, who ran for mayor with the Independent Party, told CT Examiner on Tuesday that many of the issues surrounding the 2023 race could have been avoided had the four individuals been charged a year ago.
“These were the key players making the same alleged mistakes,” he said.
Gomes said that to make any progress the state needs to institute stronger penalties for those who violate election laws. Current law treats such violations to be class D felonies, punishable by one to five years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.
Gomes also said the SEEC should speed its investigation of the more than 21 complaints stemming from the recent election when he challenged Ganim for mayor.
“We need to do it in a quicker timeline because we cannot wait another five years for actions to be taken,” he said.
Asked about potential election law reforms and confidence in the state elections, neither the state Democratic Party and nor the Secretary of the State would respond directly, and instead sent general statements.
Nancy DiNardo, chair of the Connecticut Democrats — who endorsed Ganim ahead of the February re-run of the general election — said current law is “very clear” about the handling of absentee ballots.
“As we have said, if people have broken the law, they must face consequences. The Connecticut Democrats respect the findings of the State’s Attorney’s office and the legal process. The four individuals involved will have their day in court,” she said.
The Secretary of the State’s office recommended that Bridgeport residents vote in person rather than by absentee ballot in the run up to the election do-over. In a Tuesday statement, Tara Chozet, director of communications for the office, backed the arrests and recent legislative reforms.
“We’re encouraged by the progress in this case, as accountability is vital for maintaining trust in our election system. In supporting legislation last session that now streamlines the investigatory timeline, we are hopeful the investigation into 2023 allegations will move through the process swiftly,” she said.
But state Republican Party Chair Ben Proto warned that current state law provides little accountability for those who commit election violations, in a statement to CT Examiner.
Following Ganim’s February win, Republican legislators proposed a bill to require minimum one-year sentences for violating state election law. That bill ultimately failed in the Judiciary Committee with 18 legislators opposed and 12 in favor.
On Tuesday, Proto said he hoped the four campaign workers would be convicted, but expressed doubt that the current penalties would deter future violations.
“It’s against the law in the state of Connecticut to murder somebody … but people still commit murder,” he said. “A law doesn’t stop people from doing things. It imposes a punishment.”
To minimize the likelihood of election violations, Proto said the state needed to get rid of ballot boxes.
On Tuesday, Bob MacGuiffe, a Republican challenging Rep. Jim Himes, urged the removal of ballot boxes and Chris Peritore, a Republican state House candidate for the 135th District, backed a failed Republican effort to remove ballot boxes in Bridgeport alone.
“I think the ballot boxes invite problems. They invite fraud,” MacGuiffe said.