Four Democratic operatives are charged with election offenses including one caught 'ballot-stuffing'

Four Democratic operatives in Connecticut were charged with election fraud months after one was seen in shocking footage that allegedly showed evidence of ballot stuffing. 

Two campaign workers in Bridgeport, along with Bridgeport City Councilmember Alfredo Castillo and the town's Committee Vice Chair Wanda Geter-Pataky, were charged this week with election offenses. 

The charges relate to the Democratic primaries in the 2019 Bridgeport mayoral election, with three of those charged reportedly supporting the eventual winner, Joe Ganim. 

The charges come months after footage also alleged to show Geter-Pataky ballot stuffing in the 2023 mayoral primary, with the surveillance footage leading a judge to order the election be re-held last November. 

Bridgeport Committee Vice Chair Wanda Geter-Pataky was seen in surveillance footage allegedly ballot stuffing in the 2023 mayoral primary election. She is among four operatives charged with election fraud related to the 2019 election 

The charges have been presented almost five years after an investigation was launched into the alleged misuse of absentee ballots in the 2019 mayoral election. 

The Connecticut Attorney General's Office arrested Castillo and Geter-Pataky alongside election workers Nilsa Heredia, 61, and Josephine Edmonds, 62, for alleged offenses in the contentious election. 

They are charged with unlawful possession of absentee ballots, and Edmonds, Geter-Pataky, and Heredia are also charged with tampering with a witness, per the Stamford Advocate. 

According to prosecutors, the latter three misrepresented eligibility requirements for constituents to be allowed to vote by absentee ballot in the election. 

The four accused are also charges with a litany of other election fraud-related crimes, including Geter-Pataky and Castillo allegedly failing to sign as an assister on an absentee ballot. 

It is unclear if they entered pleas, as all four were released and are scheduled to be back in court on June 24.  

Geter-Pataky, left, and Bridgeport City Councilmember Alfredo Castillo, right, are among four Democratic operatives accused of election fraud 

Campaign workers Nilsa Heredia, left, and Josephine Edwards, right, allegedly mishandled absentee ballots during the 2019 election

While unrelated to the charges, the Bridgeport mayoral election previously made national headlines in 2023 when a state judge sensationally overturned the primary election following the emergence of surveillance footage. 

In the footage, Geter-Pataky and another woman were allegedly seen making several trips around the city to stuff absentee ballots into drop boxes. 

At the time, Superior Court Judge William Clark said the surveillance 'calls the result of the primary election into serious doubt and leaves the court unable to determine the legitimate result of the primary.' 

The judge cited statistics showing that abnormally large numbers of absentee ballots were cast in certain voting districts and video evidence shows multiple people shoving stacks of ballots into drop boxes, in violation of state law. 

Ganim won the original election by just 251 votes out of 8,173 cast, but went on to win more convincingly in the re-count and the subsequent general election. The Bridgeport Mayor has denied any knowledge of the alleged ballot stuffing. 

Following the charges related to the 2019 contest, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont insisted that 'justice will be served.' 

'This has gone on too long and I'm really glad the state’s attorney stepped in,' Lamont said. 

'I think the fact that the state's attorney is bringing charges... I think that's going to make any of those that want to commit fraud like this think twice. We're going to hold them accountable.' 

Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim won both the 2019 and 2023 elections by razor-thin margins, and has denied any knowledge of the alleged election fraud 

Wanda Geter-Pataky, center, seen giving testimony in court during a challenge to the 2023 primary election results, where she was accused of ballot stuffing 

Connecticut's Chief State's Attorney Patrick Griffin added in a statement on Tuesday that the 'integrity of our voting process is vital to our democracy.' 

'I appreciate the attention and time the Statewide Prosecution Bureau put into these investigations. I hope these prosecutions will send a message that deters tampering with election results in the future in Connecticut.'  

Mayor Ganim - who previously served seven years in prison on federal corruption charges - said in a statement following the charges that the alleged offenses were 'unacceptable.' 

'We all agree that the integrity of the voting process is vital to our democracy. Charges that question that integrity are of concern,' he said.

'I always stand for maintaining the rights of the voters and a fair election. The investigations pertaining to both 2019 campaigns are now in the hands of the courts and will be addressed through the justice system.'