The Secretary of the State's Office has filed a complaint to state election officials over allegations that absentee ballots applications were illegally circulated prior to the Jan. 23 special election.
In a statement released Friday, Secretary Stephanie Thomas said her office has filed a formal complaint to the State Elections Enforcement Commission (SEEC). Officials said a photo appeared to show a person, who isn't registered with the Town Clerk's Office, circulating absentee ballots.
An election monitor brought the incident to Thomas' attention after being alerted by a member of the public, according to the Secretary of the State.
“I greatly appreciate the willingness of others to be a part of the solution by saying something after seeing something,” Thomas said. “This demonstrates the importance and effectiveness of engaging the public as partners in building secure elections.”
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The Secretary of the State is urging Bridgeport residents to vote in person in the upcoming special primary election between Democratic incumbent mayor Joe Ganim and his challenger, John Gomes.
A judge previously ruled the primary be done over following a slew of fraud allegations centered around video appearing to show absentee ballot fraud. The date for the new primary is Jan. 23.
Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas said that her office is changing their approach to the primary do-over to "ensure a daily presence in the Town Clerk's office and include direct outreach to the community."
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“Our monitors cannot do it all, and we encourage anyone who can do so to vote in person on January 23rd. If someone voted by absentee ballot, but is unsure if they should have done so, they may withdraw their absentee ballot by going in-person to the Town Clerk’s office before 10 a.m. on Election Day, and they may then vote at their assigned polling place," Thomas said.
The Secretary of the State's Office said they've increased training of election officials in the city to include deeper training on electoral and absentee ballot processes.
Thomas said the daily presence of interim election monitors Tim De Carlo and Peggy Reeves has "already yielded positive changes for residents in the city."
The Secretary of the State also noted an additional supervised absentee balloting location which is aimed at providing support for voters who live in places such as senior living facilities and congregate care settings.
“Our ability to be in the Town Clerk’s office every day has helped us identify where processes can be fine-tuned to get ahead of potential issues,” Reeves said. “We have engaged with elections officials, campaign staff, community organizations and the public to help educate them about absentee balloting and to correct known problems.”
The Secretary of the State hopes the updates will benefit all Connecticut voters, not only those in Bridgeport. Thomas said she will continue working with the election monitors on identifying possible process improvements to further enhance the absentee ballot process.
Below is a detailed calendar of events relating to the do-over primary.
The Secretary of the State's office is also reminding voters if they see or hear anything that could be misconduct, it should be relayed to the State Election Enforcement Commission by calling 860-256-2940 or by creating a complaint here.
