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July 18, 2024

SEEC refers complaint involving another Bridgeport councilwoman

BRIAN POUNDS / HEARST CONNECTICUT MEDIA/POOL PHOTO Bridgeport Democratic candidate for City Council Eneida Martinez, center, watches video of her placing absentee ballots into election drop boxes during Bridgeport Democratic Primary Mayoral candidate John Gomes' challenge of absentee ballots in Superior Court in Bridgeport, Conn. on Friday, October 13, 2023. Geter-Pataky was advised by her lawyer John R. Gulash, right, not to answer questions regarding the absentee ballots to avoid self incrimination. At left is Judge William Clark.
By Andrew Brown, CT Mirror

Connecticut’s State Elections Enforcement Commission continues to refer allegations of absentee ballot abuse in Bridgeport to state prosecutors for potential criminal charges — and the latest referral could ensnare another sitting Bridgeport city council member.

The case that was forwarded to the Chief State’s Attorney Office on Wednesday deals with allegations involving Eneida Martinez, a city councilwoman and the Democratically endorsed candidate for the legislature’s 124th House District.

The investigation into Martinez stems from a written complaint that was filed last year immediately following the local Democratic primary between Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim and his challenger John Gomes.

In the complaint, Ana Morales, a resident at a senior apartment complex on Grant Street, alleged that political operatives who were working with Ganim and Martinez had collected multiple absentee ballots from voters.

That type of activity is illegal in Connecticut unless the person handling the ballot is a family member, caregiver or designee for that voter.

Morales recounted multiple instances in which she witnessed campaign workers in her apartment complex asking voters if they needed assistance filling out their absentee ballots or returning the completed ballots to city hall.

According to the complaint, Morales became concerned enough about the activities that she called city officials to ask if campaign staff were allowed to handle voters’ absentee ballots. The city staff explained that they were not.

After that call, Morales allegedly confronted one of the campaign workers — a woman named Margaret — and explained that political operatives were banned from possessing anyone’s absentee ballots. But the campaign worker continued to insist that it was legal.

“Since the election is next week, we’re trying to speed things up,” the woman allegedly told Morales.

According to the complaint, Morales then asked which candidates the woman was working for. The woman responded by stating that she was was “campaigning for Ganim but was working with Ernie Newton and Eneida Martinez,” two of the city council candidates vying for seats in the city’s 139th voting district.

During a phone call on Wednesday, Martinez declined to discuss the complaint or the referral that was made to the Chief State’s Attorney.

“I’m not aware of it. So I’m not giving you no comment,” Martinez said. “Thank you for calling.”

The SEEC staff did not disclose during the meeting on Wednesday all of the evidence they collected while investigating the complaint. But they noted that Martinez was one of several people who were captured on video surveillance footage allegedly depositing stacks of absentee ballots into a drop box in the city ahead of the 2023 primary.

Taken together, the SEEC said, the written complaint and the video surveillance footage warranted a referral to state prosecutors, who are responsible for deciding whether to file criminal charges.

Martinez was already questioned under oath about her appearance on the city surveillance footage as part of a civil lawsuit that eventually overturned the results of the primary between Ganim and Gomes.

But during her time on the stand, she declined to answer questions by invoking her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Martinez is the third Bridgeport city council member to be tied up in the ongoing criminal investigations involving alleged ballot harvesting in Bridgeport.

Alfredo Castillo, who has served on the city councilman since 2013, is currently facing criminal charges for his role in Bridgeport’s 2019 Democratic primary. And Maria Pereira, another current city councilwoman, has also been referred for potential criminal charges for mishandling absentee ballots in last year’s election.

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