Ganim Cruises To Big Win Over Moore–Examining Moore’s Democratic Divinity

Ganim addresses crowd on election night win.

Climaxing a kooky election cycle, Mayor Joe Ganim has won another four-year term in convincing fashion over closest rival write-in candidate Marilyn Moore running up large pluralities across the city, according to unofficial returns. Ganim ran ahead of Moore by roughly 2 to 1.

The unofficial results, according to the website of the Connecticut Secretary of the State, shows Ganim received 9,592 votes, Moore 4,735, Republican John Rodriguez 1,583, write-in Ethan Book 52, write-in Jeff Kohut 27, write-in MaryAnn McLaine 8.

See unofficial returns from select precincts below. Does not include absentee ballots.

Hallen, Ganim 387, write-in 199.

Johnson, Ganim 298, write-in 99

Barnum, Ganim 272, write-in 130.

Winthrop, Ganim 734, write-in 371.

Blackham, 134 district Ganim 437, write-in 154

Blackham 133 district Ganim 486, write-in 224.

Read, Ganim 154, write-in 70

Central Ganim 364, write-in 297

Harding, Ganim 482, write-in 149

Aquaculture, Ganim 340, write-in 212

Wilbur Cross, Ganim 496, write-in 310

Bassick, 369, write-in 135

Marin, Ganim 525, write-in 131

Dunbar, Ganim 486, write-in 256

Harding, Ganim 482, write-in 149

Hooker, Ganim 425, write-in 281

JFK, Ganim 546, write-in 224

The only area that write-in Moore won convincingly is Black Rock School 690 to 369.

Ganim chats with a voter on election day. At left, City Councilwoman Jeanette Herron. Photo courtesy of Frank Gerratana.

All Democratic candidates for school board, city clerk, town clerk, sheriff and City Council won. It appears Joseph Lombard, who was appointed to the Board of Education as an unaffiliated voter, won the fourth seat to fill out the minority party representation on the board. Bobbi Brown, incumbent Sybil Allen and Albert Benejan are the three Democrats.

Three Working Families Party school board candidates fell short, as well as For The People slate created by Maria Pereira whose minority party received enough votes to maintain its ballot status.

Pereira and running mate Samia Suliman won seats on the City Council to represent the Upper East Side 138th District.

Marilyn Moore

For Moore the night comes down to, if only. Entering the race for mayor in January she tapped into the voter anger toward Ganim particularly the neighborhoods Moore represents in the Connecticut State Senate. Taxes, public safety, flat funding education, Ganim’s dubious run for governor after voters returned him to office in 2015 became a rallying point for the opposition. Along the way Moore provided few specifics about the direction she’d take the city and failed to build the necessary relationships to carry a contrast with the incumbent across neighborhoods.

Running for mayor in Connecticut’s largest city is a different animal than the legislature.

In politics opposition can navigate to an opponent loathe to the incumbent. Others, however, won’t join the party unless you show them how you’ll be different and why you can win. It’s up to the candidate to inspire. Moore’s aloofness belied the essential ingredient in politics to achieve necessary coalitions: outreach. A Moore mantra emerged: “why don’t they come to me.” That’s like saying I want a job, come to me.

Moore’s run was all about “God’s calling.” Democratic divinity doesn’t always deliver.

Moore failed to reach out to an assortment of political operatives and community activists opposed to Ganim who could help with money, organization and message. She also had no clear vision other than “I’m not Joe Ganim.”

Moore walked through the primary process with little public scrutiny, raising enough money to begin building a public profile, a Connecticut Post chief editor Matt DeRienzo, now gone, serving as a de facto public relations arm for his animus toward Ganim. Despite the campaign’s shortcomings, Moore caught a break. Ganim’s political operation had a significant breakdown in Hispanic turnout on primary day. The atmosphere was there for Moore to croak Ganim so severely on the machine count to render the establishment’s mighty absentee ballot operation moot.

Moore won at the polls, but lost by 270 votes overall because of the absentee count. Ganim dodged a political bullet, in more ways than one. On primary night it was learned that Moore’s campaign operation had fumbled its backup plan in the event of a primary loss: the simple task of petitioning on to the general election ballot as the candidate for the Working Families Party. Moore had presumably circulated the petition sheets herself, but the signatures were laden with disqualifying non-city residents.

Meanwhile, a community group whose leadership gravitated to Moore’s mayoralty, Bridgeport Generation Now and affiliate Bridgeport Generation Now Votes, made absentee ballot irregularities the linchpin of a lawsuit challenging the results of the primary.

In the end, Superior Court Judge Barry Stevens ruled the evidence did not match up to altering the 270-vote win. An appeal is now in the hands of the Connecticut Supreme Court.

Without a ballot line in November, Moore opted for a long-shot write-in candidacy. Along the way the cracks in Moore’s campaign operation gave way: Ganim operatives paid closer attention, the botched backup plan showed weakness, Moore’s petition drive was called into question, the Connecticut Post that endorsed her applied some scrutiny led by reporters and editors who pushed back on DeRienzo. Doubt was raised about her candidacy. Moore still stubbornly clung to I’m not Joe Ganim.

Moore’s write-in candidacy failed to establish traction while Ganim’s campaign operation got its act together after a turnout breakdown in the primary. She was defeated across the city except for Black Rock where residents felt the sting of a revaluation-based tax increase during Ganim’s first year in office.

Moore supporters assert if we had a November ballot line we’d have won. Maybe so. But who’s fault is that?

The only hope for Moore now is a Connecticut Supreme Court decision ordering a new primary. But that would require invalidating two elections to bring on two more.

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90 comments

    1. Oh, boy! Looks like you took a ‘hell’ of a beating there. Who do you mean by “we?” Go fishing with Day, Joe Sokol and Mackey. Get Moore rest and come back when you’re ready.

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    1. Donj….the Moore campaign fucked it up. Ganim would have been toast tonight if Moore got the WFP Line. The question tonight is how the hell the Marilyn Moore eff things up in such a huge and spectacular way. I will say this. I hope Marilyn Moore does not run for reelection as State Senator. Incomptenence has no place here. She really screwed things up.

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      1. Frank, you thrash Maria for her outspoken remarks against Gen New. Who brought a law suit against the corrupt AB’s that gave Ganim the primary victory. She is in the position to get law past to correct some of these abusive activities regarding AB’s But instead you championing her to get these need laws you thrash her as incompetent and don’t want her to not seek reelection. Think about that.

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        1. So you are saying before her demise she will not try to fix the AB’s corruption did her in?

          That’s my point. Where are the Moore supports? Why are they and her (but TWT) not screaming from the rooftop to fix this corrupted AB’s system in the Port that torpedoed her election primary victory? Is the Port not going to have anyMOORE Primaries? Paging JML, Day, and Ron. All I hear is Mario this and Joe that. Moore has a golden opportunity to do MOORE, in the Senate, to curve the Port’s AB’s. abuse. I’ll wait to see what she is going to do for the Port. As for her supporters, your silence here on OIB says enough.

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rntm3yDAQuM

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          1. MOORE torpedoed her own primary- the AB’s are secondary and unproven- conjecture. What is fact is she sunk her ship like the Titanic by failing to get the required number of signatures to get onto the ballot of the General Election. What has always surprised me through this process is that #NeverMoore supporters are so blinded by their fake news emotions on that that they are thinking that it had no effect on her campaign. She blew her own ship up. To answer your question, will #NeverMoore work to fix the AB issue? Of course she won’t.

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          1. What has your hero mayor Joe Ganim done for education in his almost 4 years as mayor and why would he change? Those voters who voted for Joe Ganim knew that he has flat funded the BBOE? As for Dennis Bradley, you have got to be joking, what did he when he was the President of the BBOE. Here’s what he did, NOTHING, oh, don’t for get Bradley was the leader to get Maria Pereira to resign her position on the BBOE so he was the leader to STOP all BBOE education business for the 21,000 plus school children and Mayor Joe Ganim said and did absolutely NOTHING but let’s blame State Senator Marilyn Moore for the funding problem for the BBOE because she was almost 6 years in the Senate.

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  1. Wait a minute, The only area that write-in Moore won convincingly is Black Rock School 690 to 369. Moore beat Joe Ganim in Black Rock at Black Rock School in Ganim own district by 321 votes. You mean that at one school 690 people at one voting site wrote in Marilyn Moore, you got to be joking, WOW!!!!! How many votes did mayor Jeff get?

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        1. Oh yes, green the $500,000.00 in green that Joe Ganim stole from the taxpayers of Bridgeport, who is white, what black person stole $500,000.of green from the Bridgeport taxpayers?

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    1. Chances are that black rock residents knew who they didn’t want and may have voted or “wrote in” any reasonable candidate. Chances are that black rock voters are more well read, well informed and well “written” as opposed to …unfortunately…, other residents of the city who vote for the same old same old and continue to get the same old same old which we all know is to get nothing.
      Some even say you have criminals voting for criminals. What we do know is that some “criminals”, pardon me, “ex-cons”, will continue to be in charge for another term. Many say that they will be brutal getting things done (for themselves) as the leader is getting old and his protege probably realizes that this may be his last hurrah.
      Many other “incumbents” just rode their usual way to victory for all the great things that they accomplished for their constituents AND for the city in general. Yeah right. Many of those same people are happy to be in place so that they can continue to try and do for themselves, right bartender?!! Hey- the new date for your hearing in Superior court for your LIQUOR STORE is on November 22.
      How’s the rentals and absentee ballots going…..Cheers !!!!!!
      Just couldn’t help myself on that one!

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  2. Privately, Marilyn is having a glass of wine, relived it’s over, and she can go back to Hartford. She had second thoughts early in the summer and did not put her heart and soul into it. Joe basically ran unopposed, and the #’s prove it… Thanks for nothing Marilyn.

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  3. Congratulations to all who won at the polls. I hope you keep the promises made and do a better job this time around. Special congratulations to the Mayor and his promise to better fund our schools. I doubt it will happen but would love to be proven wrong.

    I would also like to take a moment to congratulate the true winner people may not be aware of. I don’t care enough to vote got over 60,000 votes from registered voters that sat at home and didn’t bother to vote. Thanks for nothing.

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  4. Another stamp of confidence that the majority of you have no idea what you’re speaking of. Lots of time left to browbeat this page over the stampede of a loss from real voters who physically went in to vote. no absentee argument to support your corruption battle call. You’re wildly out of touch with reality, with proof of a landslide victory to back me up. Won at the polls not in the back room. Time has told!!!!!!

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  5. Do you have the black rock numbers for city council seems like there was a lot of vote splitting there people voting a democratic line and but not voting for ganim. he even seem to underperform the rest of the democratic ticket city wide

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  6. Also what stand out to me was maria ran behind her running mate by almost 100 votes and the republican ran ahead of her running mate by 100. so hundred people decided not to vote for maria after voting for her partner and went down and voted for the republican.

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    1. Donj, you shouldn’t be surprised at all.

      Who do you think the vast majority of DTC and City employees in my district voted for? It wasn’t me.

      In addition, Republican candidate Sheens Henderson is an intelligent and articulate black woman that actually got out and worked to get votes.

      I was impressed by her effort.

      What I have consistently shown is that not only can I win without the DTC ‘s backing, I can also win when they actively work against me.

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  7. Im very surprised also that moore received 4,735 right in votes thought it would be maybe 1,500 to 2,000. i was thinking the average vote did not know they could even vote for her.

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    1. From OIB
      This means Tuesday’s vote is on for the general election. Chief Justice Richard Robinson at 4:30 p.m. read the justices decision into the record from the bench. Robinson announced after reviewing briefs and hearing oral arguments that the Supreme Court will take the case under advisement. So a decision will come down the road.

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  8. I’m left somewhat bewildered by the celebration of Joel, Peter, stevenl and Reaper on the election of an avowed thief who stole hundreds of thousands of dollars while violating the public trust in the process.

    Is there any wonder why Paul Newman referred to Bridgeport as the armpit of Connecticut or that the rest of the State views Bridgeport’s mayor as a joke and the city as pathetic. Only In Bridgeport does a man serve 7 or 9 years in prison for theft and you have a cacophony of morons celebrating his victory! Good job fellas we’ll see how happy you are when Joe raises the hell out your taxes.

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    1. Don, Marilyn Moore didn’t run the perfect campaign so Joel, Peter, stevenl and Reaper rather have a convicted felon who stole taxpayers money. Joe Ganim didn’t run the perfect campaign because didn’t register to get on the ballot if he had lost the primary, Marilyn Moore had already beat Joe Ganim at the voting polls and if she won the absentee ballots Marilyn Moore would have been mayor and Joe Ganim would have had to run a as a write in candidate.

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      1. Don, you notice that Joel, Peter, stevenl and Reaper seem to have forgotten about then Mayor Bill Finch who lost the primary election to Joe Ganim and he didn’t get a spot as a candidate in the general election so he couldn’t run for mayor but that doesn’t count only Marilyn Moore campaign is the biggest issue in the history of Bridgeport.

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          1. Tom “Grin Ripper” Kelly,
            Physically reap or fiscally rape by Ganim2 as incumbent 2015-19?
            If you had an election party with all of the trimmings, let those who expressed interest (registered?) them all know about the daylong poll party and only 15% showed up, what would you conclude? And if 2/3 of them supported the incumbent and another 1/3 for a same party “write in” candidate, would there really be such glee among the winning group as there is today? And to that maybe you may respond, “sew”, sow”, or “so” what?

            This form of “democracy”, as seen in Tuesday’s results, is reminiscent of a poor, foreign country new to democratic practices and just learning about and using the electoral vote to select government leaders, not our vaunted American governance practices leadership in the world? But my guess that in this “other country”, the 60,000 with the right to vote of the 150,000 residents would see more going to the polls, better informed about options, issues and candidates, and full of the enthusiasm forgotten by too many Bridgeport citizens. How many of the 10% incumbent voting totals went to the polls because there was a job, some money, or a favor was part of the voting transaction? Isn’t that what Ganim2 practiced the first time through his paces? How did he distance himself from past behavior when he linked his first and second terms, spanning his time behind bars, for sake of benefit enhancement? Time will tell.

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          2. Dear John. I challenge you to review any mayoral election numbers, no matter how weak the challenger is , and it will reflect your ratio analysis of the anti-vote. I like your creativity on reap!

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    2. Didn’t Donald Day and Ron Mackey congratulate and praise Ernest Newton when he plead guilty to three felonies just a few months ago but did not have to serve any prison time in regards to his conduct in his Senate race???

      The Black felon on the City Council who betrayed the public’s trust is just fine but the White felon serving as Mayor who betrayed the public’s trust is completely unacceptable.

      Pure hypocrisy.

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  9. At least I won’t have to hear “how do I vote for Marilyn Monroe” one more time which means I won’t have to explain even one more time that “Marilyn Monroe is a dead iconic movie actress. I think you meant Marilyn Moore. “

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  10. Well it appears as if the big bad wolf is dead as Maria and her gang of three got the fewest votes for the BBOE which sends a clear message from the electorate, We’re Sick Of You and your failure toward our children’s education.

    Now maybe the children of Bridgeport can get the education they deserve now that this sycophant obstructionist is gone. Thank you Bridgeport.

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    1. Well Don, let’s see how she works with the 18 other City Council members who are all Democrats who support Mayor Joe Ganim and DTC chairman Mario Testa and let’s see if she can form a coalition by getting 9 other Council members to go along with her. No way in holy he’ll will that happen unless Mario gives the ok so Maria will either follow Mario’s direction or she’ll getting nothing for district the same way she did on the BBOE.

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      1. I do everything for a reason. I ran a BOE slate and we campaigned for all of 27 days on a party that no one ever heard of.

        All you need to know is it was part of a strategy and the objectives were met.

        I wonder if Ron and Donald can run a citywide campaign for only 27 days on a newly created line with no top of the ticket and garner over 1000 votes.

        I think we all know the answer to that question.

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        1. Maria, that’s great, nothing new here, you played JoAnn Kennedy and Helen Olga Losak, you use them for your own personal gain and they got nothing. It’s going to be fun watching you almost accomplish nothing on the City Council unless Mario Testa gives the okay. Maria, you will be a spectator watching.

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    2. She, Maria, is gone from the gymnasium’s folding table and chair to the City Council Hall. 🙂

      P.S Ron if the city is a rubber stamp or corruption I can only assume she will not get along with many of them. 🙂

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  11. Question Lennie. Why doesn’t the WFP share in the blame for Moore failing to qualify? You have written endlessly that she failed to qualify but I don’t think once have you suggested that the WFP shares at all in her falling short.
    You know they’d be pounding their chest claiming victory in CT’s largest city but you and everyone else blames it all on Moore.

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      1. That’s pretty stupid even for you.
        Was she the WFP candidate???
        Then the WFP should be getting signatures not just sitting back watching. And that’s what they did.

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        1. Not as stupid or inept as she was crowing that she had secured the WFP for months and that ithe Primary didn’t matter because she would have a second bite of the apple. As a former member of the Carpenters Union she should know that you always measure twice cut once! The Buck Stops Here. She’s no Harry Truman. All she needed were 207 Valid signatures and she would probably be Mayor. This isn’t the State Senate where you have everyone spoon feeding you. She didn’t even attach her name to the court case.

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          1. And all Joe Ganim needed to be satisfied with $120K+ salary and all the perks that legally come with it but that simply wouldn’t do. He wanted Moore and Moore and Moore.

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        2. Troll, stop playing stupid. You saw the August 7, 2019 YouTube video of Jonathan Rodrigues and his wife visiting the Moore campaign and signing the petitions. Who was the actual circulator? Bridgeport WFP Chair Sauda Baracka appears on the video as the circulator of petitions inside Moore’s campaign headquarters.

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    1. The WFP is absolutely to be blamed too. Marilyn Moore was their candidate and failed to ensure their candidate was on the ballot.

      Marilyn Moore has also been involved in numerous campaigns and has run for State Senator on three separate occasions.

      They are both at fault

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  12. Let me try this again because my orginal post was deleted. I’m sure that Senator Moore will accept responsibility as soon as Mayor Ganim apologizes or shows one ounce to responsibly or contrition for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars, for violating the public trust and for accepting bribes. Go ahead Grim and talk to your boy, I’ll wait for the apology!

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    1. Don, it’s truly amazing how Joe Ganim stole taxpayers money, over $500,000.00 and did federal time in prison but he’s excepted back like hero as if he didn’t do anything but Marilyn Moore is the bad guy.

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  13. What was hard to watch last night was Joe’s victory speech.First seeing Mr “no one asked me for my support,so I don’t owe Mario &Joe anything” Ernie Newton,standing front and center behind Joe,hooting &hollering,and even “shhhhushing” the crowd when Joe started talking,watching Ernie kiss his ass was sad to watch,thought Ernie had a little bit of pride..Then came Joe’s speech,he mentioned a few times how he “loved the city of Bpt”.All I could think of is,if he loved the city,why did he steal from us the first chance he got??..If Joe “loved’ our city,why,did he look to leave the city a year after getting re-elected by trying a run for governor?? He stopped being mayor for 18 months while he criss-crossed the state trying to get the rest of the state to believe the lies he told the people of Bpt..Love the city??,ya right,more like “love what he can take from the city”

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    1. Harvey
      First let me say This I 💋 no one a- – 1013 voter came out and Voted for me. Just because you think 🤔 Everyone that doesn’t agree with your stupidity is a a- – kisser. Well we have a right to support who we choose to support. It’s funny just because you dislike Joe and Mario everyone else is suppose to agree with you. In politics their are no permanent Enemies and no permanent friends just a common interests. I’ll give you time to digest that.

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  14. I can’t wait until someone primaries the incompetent Senator of the 22nd Senate District.. Her time is up. Monroe and Trumbull probably want her out as well after this debacle. Time to start is now. What say you Grin Reap?

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          1. In The City, if your mouth was on fire I wouldn’t pissed on it to put it out, coward, why are you scare to use your God given name given to you by your mother and father?

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  15. You’ve got that right Donald Day!
    How Ganim has not taken a once of responsibility for committing all of those felonies against the city AND the taxpayers.
    He would have you believe he is as innocent and pure as the freshly fallen snow.
    Marilyn Moore does not owe Grin Reaper an apology for the mixup with the WFP petitions.
    Joe owes the taxpayers big time. Maybe making full restitution would be a nice way to start.

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    1. You must have had a Freudian Slip. I guess she owes you an apology. You were originally the Grin Reaper! I’m the Grin Ripper! Parker must be getting big?

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  16. Mary
    Didn’t you hear?
    Joe has a plan for Bridgeport but Mr Rodgers aka Ken Flato would let him reval, oops typo, reveal it right now.
    But he’s going to some how lower taxes, increase funding for education and somehow increase the benefits for himself and top staff.

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  17. Only 21% of active voters even turned out to vote. So the Mayor shouldn’t consider his win the “VOICE OF THE PEOPLE” or some kind of mandate. Apparently most Bridgeport voters are disgusted with the City’s One-Party government and lack of “diversity” in that few Conservatives have any voice in Bridgeport whatsoever ! In order for Conservatives to have any voice at all, they are forced to register as Democrats so that they can vote in the Democratic primaries and thereby at least choose which Democrat will be the next mayor.

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