Video footage of city employee Maria Agueda
Winning another two-year term as City Council president Monday night, Aidee Nieves has filed a complaint with the State Elections Enforcement Commission asserting – and providing video backup – two John Gomes mayoral supporters placed numerous absentee ballots into designated drop boxes in violation of state law, the very charges that became the center piece of Gomes’ lawsuit accusing Mayor Joe Ganim supporters doing the same leading to a court order for a new Democratic primary.
In the complaint Nieves charges her council primary opponent Maria Hernandez and city employee Maria Agueda, particularly egregious, with frequent illegal dumps into drop boxes created by legislative act as a response to Covid.
State law generally minimizes the handling of an elector’s ballot to family members, police officers and care takers.
The Gomes camp highlighted during the court challenge video of Ganim supporters Wanda Geter and Eneida Martinez dropping ballots into boxes.
When confronted with video of Gomes supporters during the same the dubious party line from the campaign has been they were doing so on behalf of family members.
“I can say with confidence,” Nieves writes “that neither of them have enough family members to justify the number of ballots they each placed in the drop boxes.”
She adds that the Gomes campaign hasn’t “owned up” to its “agents” doing the same as Ganim backers.
Nieves is fresh off winning another two-year term as council president. Lacking the votes, City Councilman Tyler Mack eschewed a run Monday night. Nieves went unchallenged albeit with five opposition tallies, including Mack.
Mack tried to build a council coalition to take out Nieves but was short of the required 11 votes so he did not offer his name. In addition to Mack, council members Scott Burns, Matt McCarthy, Aikeem Boyd and newcomer Jazmarie Melendez dissented.
SEEC has been overwhelmed by Bridgeport complaints this election cycle. Nieves complaint follows:
The City Council was present last evening for Public Speakers. Mayor Ganim was there, likely understandable, as he is seeking support for his January 27, 2024 primary. With Council Chambers filled to 66%, there were lots of voters present.
Though I speak very regularly at this session, at no other meeting have I seen him present, publicly listening and then coming down to the audience before taking his seat as President of the Council Meeting to execute the agenda of the formal City Council meeting.
Aidee Nieves was the only Council member nominated for leadership and a voice vote supported the nomination and seconding process. There is much work to be accomplished in Bridgeport. Who will lead this. How will the community lend its voice to the process. Those are some of the things I regularly raise. Any other ideas? Anyone want to converse in person? I do not know the outcome of those present requesting a Ceasefire Resolution from the Council. It was my birthday, so I thank each of your greetings and wishes with appreciation. Time will tell.
Bridgeport City Council Comments 12-4-2023 John Marshall Lee
Good Evening Councilpersons, welcome to a new term of public service for all the citizens of Bridgeport. Management consultants tell us that leaders of organizations must “plan the work” and then “work the plan” to expect success. As legislators your task is not to do the actual work that moves the City forward. Rather you listen to your constituents in the 10 City districts and direct them with their problems, issues, or concerns, to the existing place in City government where they can best seek a solution today. If such a location is not operating as you think it should, perhaps there is a need for you to prod those in power as a group, as part of oversight, checks, and balance, or make a new law.
Obviously, it is a suitable time to reflect upon and prioritize the serious issues that will occupy you in the coming two years. I suggest three areas to focus on:
• Civil Rights/Suffrage- between the long-running “absentee ballot” scandal and only 19.8% of nearly 70,000 registered voters casting a ballot on November 7, 2023. Who is proud of these results? Where is your response, that of the Ethics Commission, or any City effort to inform the public on civics?
• Boards and Commissions-A series of Mayors have left too many citizens serving expired terms as well as leaving positions unfilled, which challenges the purpose of these bodies. Where is any evaluation of those folks who were appointed, how they operate together, and assurance that the Charter is regularly followed? Where is any focus on housing at all?
• A Charter Review-Why not focus on low voting trends, requests for more face-to-face conversations in public sessions and perhaps a “carrot or stick” facing registered voters who fail to cast a ballot, with or without candidates selected? A small fine can be used to fund Civics education for all.
A majority of the folks signed up tonight to address you in their three minutes of public speaking have the passion to address you on a critical issue and ask you for a response that likely falls outside your territory. I salute them for their interest in governance issues. There is a critical contribution they can make. But…we need some of that passion and focus to drive the work of the City and its citizens. Too few folks take their civil rights seriously. How can you seek a place where responsibilities and rights balance, to have justice for all? Time will tell.
It’s called Hyperbolic – Flucking Horse-Shit!!!
Ms. President of the City Council, you’re a Day Late and a Dollar Short !
You had your chance to speak before Judge Clark and you blew it!
Now you want the State Elections Enforcement Commission to usurp the verdict of Judge Clark
who found the Ganim Campaign was totally guilty of Stuffing Ballot Boxes, now we’re waiting for the arrest of the Ganim’s perpetraters.
And to redo, an hope we can have a fair and HONEST PRIMARY for the good people of Bridgeport, an to IGNORE anymore of your Hyperbolic Flucking Horse-Shit!
This seems pretty strategic in nature. Let’s chalk it up to corruption because if there was an honest investigation into ballot stuff captured on video Y’all know there would many more doing the perp walk. Y’all know who you are and not in a sexy way. 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5mtclwloEQ