BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — It’s been nearly four months since a judge threw out the results of a Democratic mayoral election in Connecticut’s largest city over allegations of voter fraud, repeatedly sending voters back to the polls and thrusting Bridgeport into an unflattering national spotlight.
Many frustrated local voters say they just want it to be over.
A reconsideration of the general election on Tuesday will mark the fourth time registered Democrats have voted for the city’s next mayor, after a judge nullified the first primary because of surveillance footage showing a supporter of incumbent Mayor Joe Ganim placed multiple absentee ballots in a mailbox.
For those counting, there have now been two primaries and one general election that didn’t count.
“It’s very embarrassing,” said Luis DeJesus, 56, a lifelong Bridgeport resident who had previously voted for the leading challenger in those races, John Gomes.
DeJesus said he was “really tired” of past results, in which Ganim appeared to have won and is unlikely to vote again on Tuesday.
“I’m very sorry. I can’t do it,” he said. “I can’t do it for just one person.”
Ganim went to prison for corruption during his first stint as mayor and was given his old job back eight years ago in a remarkable political comeback. The mayor has denied knowledge of the alleged ballot box stuffing and called for statewide election reforms.
Gomes, who had worked as acting head of administration at Ganim, successfully sued to overturn the September 12 primary, which showed him losing to his former boss by 251 votes out of 8,173 cast. That meant that the results of the subsequent general election in November did not count and another primary election was held in January, which was again won by Ganim.
Gomes will now work as an independent for the fourth confrontation.
It is just the latest election controversy in the working-class Democratic stronghold of more than 148,000 residents. Allegations of absentee ballot tampering date back to at least 1986, when five Democrats were arrested in Bridgeport for collecting and possessing other people’s ballots.
However, this scandal became a national talking point when the surveillance videos were first made public. The videos are now the subject of multiple investigations and have fueled skepticism about the security of US elections, as well as conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election, even as election experts argue that what happened in Bridgeport is unique to the city and should not be seen. as evidence of widespread problems.
Voter turnout has been relatively stable, albeit low, over the previous three elections. But Nick Roussas, owner of Frankie’s Diner, a Bridgeport institution since 1946, said many of his customers are simply tired of the ongoing saga.
“There is election fatigue,” said Roussas, who says he likes both Ganim and Gomes and allows them to campaign in his restaurant.
Although he can’t vote because he doesn’t live in Bridgeport, Roussas said he believes the “city is moving in the right direction.” development.
To date, there have been no charges or arrests related to the ballot mishandling allegations that led to this drawn-out mayoral race. That lack of accountability has only exacerbated voter apathy, cynicism and disenfranchisement, said Callie Gale Heilmann, founder, president and co-director of Bridgeport Generation Now, a local social action network supporting Gomes’ candidacy.
After recently sending text messages to supporters urging them to vote for the fourth time, the group received responses like “I’m not going to vote,” “I voted the other times, and it doesn’t matter,” and “Gomes must accept that he is lost.”
“There’s a sense that it doesn’t matter,” said Gemeem Davis, vice president and co-director of the organization. “The people who get up on Election Day and walk to the polls to make their voices heard, they don’t matter. And that’s because the political culture here, around absentee ballots, has dehumanized people. … Because it’s not even about what they want. It’s about how they can get their ballot.”
Bridgeport Generation Now reminds voters that the court ruled there was sufficient evidence to order a new primary and “reintroduce democracy,” Heilmann said.
‘And aren’t we so lucky that we can do that? Because that is certainly not possible in authoritarian dictatorships,” she said. “The election was stolen and that’s it.”
Despite the controversy surrounding his campaign, Ganim, who accused the Gomes campaign of committing electoral violations, has managed to consolidate important support for a new term in the closing days. Lamond Daniels, a former Democratic rival for mayor, recently endorsed Ganim.
Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont has announced he is also supporting Ganim. Last week, Lamont, who defeated Ganim in a 2018 Democratic primary for governor in every community except Bridgeport, publicly endorsed his former rival, citing their “strong working relationship.”
“For me he is a good mayor to work with. We get a lot done together. I hope he gets four more years,” Lamont said at a ceremony for a new technical high school in Bridgeport.
In addition to Gomes, Ganim faces Republican David Herz in Tuesday’s elections.
Brian Carey, 70, a Bridgeport resident for more than three decades and an independent, has now voted for mayor in two general elections, as only Democrats can vote in the primaries. Last week he filled out his absentee ballot at City Hall.
“If you don’t vote, you can’t complain,” said Carey, who declined to say who he voted for.
He hopes the elections in Bridgeport will change for the better after being in the spotlight.
“You go through phases and you have issues with certain politicians, both locally and nationally,” Carey said. “I hope we won’t experience anything crazy after this round.”