A long-simmering investigation into allegations of widespread absentee ballot fraud that went viral in an online video has finally resulted in election fraud charges against four Democratic campaign workers.
The charges, announced Tuesday by Connecticut’s Chief State’s Attorney Patrick J. Griffin, represent a dramatic escalation in the protracted election fraud controversy that has raised serious doubts about the integrity of the city’s electoral process.
The charges stem from an election in 2019, and the investigation picked up steam after video during Bridgeport’s 2023 mayoral Democratic primary went viral over alleged “ballot stuffing” by staffers of Democratic incumbent Mayor Joe Ganim.
Those charged include City Councilman Alfredo Castillo, 52, as well as Democratic Town Committee Vice Chair Wanda Geter-Pataky, 67, and campaign workers Nilsa Heredia, 61, and Josephine Edmonds, 62. All were hit with felony counts of unlawful possession of absentee ballots.
HERE ARE THE BRIDGEPORT BALLOT FRAUD ARREST MUGSHOTS: City Democratic Party Vice-Chair and city operations specialist Wanda Geter-Pataky, City Councilor Alfredo Castillo, and campaign operatives Nilsa Heredia and Josephine Edmunds. They will all be in court June 24th. @FOX61News pic.twitter.com/7HJF1gcCZF
— Matt Caron (@MattCaronTV) June 11, 2024
But the allegations go far beyond simply mishandling the absentee votes improperly. Geter-Pataky, Heredia, and Edmonds were also charged with tampering with witnesses, while Castillo, Heredia, and Geter-Pataky face counts of misrepresenting eligibility requirements for absentee voting.
According to arrest warrants, the campaign workers are accused of actively convincing voters to obtain absentee ballots under false pretenses, then filling out the ballots themselves without the voters’ permission or knowledge.
One voter claimed Geter-Pataky collected her unsealed ballot after pressuring her to vote absentee, while another said Castillo promised to “take care of” their ballot after they signed it.
The charges culminated after a 5-year investigation sparked by Ganim’s 2019 primary opponent, State Senator Marilyn Moore. Moore had publicly accused the mayor’s campaign of soliciting absentee votes from senior citizens and public housing residents in exchange for rent rebate applications – a highly illegal act.
Moore celebrated this week’s arrests as “long overdue,” stating bluntly: “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.”
The scandal took a surreal turn earlier this year when surveillance footage of the 2023 primary went viral. The video appeared to show Geter-Pataky herself stuffing pile after pile of absentee ballots into drop boxes during Ganim’s Democratic primary battle against fellow Democratic candidate John Gomes.
The stunning video was pointed to by Republicans as proof of mass voter fraud, and quickly prompted a judge to throw out the initial election results and call for a new primary.
While Ganim denied the election fraud and downplayed the video, his political opponents – including Gomes and state Republican leaders – have argued the case exposes deeper systemic failures in Connecticut’s electoral procedures and lack of deterrents.
Republicans have warned for years that mass absentee ballot voting leads to the exact type of blatant voter fraud the charges alleged, but on a nationwide scale.
Both major political parties traded barbs this week, with Republicans calling for abolishing ballot drop boxes altogether and Democrats defending the charges — while also insisting the system is fundamentally sound, despite the rerun election.
But the bipartisan consensus appeared to be that the long delays in the investigations by the State Elections Enforcement Commission and prosecutors was unacceptable.
Gomes lamented that “we cannot wait another five years for actions to be taken” on the more than 20 complaints of voting irregularities from the 2023 mayoral race.
For longtime observers of Bridgeport’s bare-knuckle political culture, the charges only solidify the Democratic-controlled city’s reputation for corruption.
Watch the 2023 viral video here —
BREAKING: Four Democrat officials in Bridgeport, Connecticut have been charged and arrested for the mail-in ballot fraud committed in the city's primary election
City Councilman Alfredo Castillo, Vice Chair of Bridgeport’s Democrat Party Wanda Geter-Pataky were charged with… pic.twitter.com/q9OIYTLrD2
— George (@BehizyTweets) June 11, 2024