On Monday evening, Jorge Cabrera, Democratic candidate for Connecticut’s 17th state senate district, stood on the steps of Ansonia City Hall and spoke anxiously to a few dozen supporters, calling for more integrity and transparency in the voting system.
Last Wednesday morning, Cabrera found out that he won the state senate race. He spent the rest of that day into Thursday night celebrating with his friends and extended family. It was at the celebration luncheon on Thursday, however, that he learned something had gone wrong.
“Immediately, we didn’t know what had happened,” Cabrera said at the rally. “We knew that the city of Ansonia had resubmitted the numbers and all of us were left scratching our heads.”
Officials are currently recounting votes after a mistake was made. What the mistake is specifically, officials don’t know for certain.
“It appears it was a mistake made in reporting from the Registrar’s office to the Secretary of the State,” Ansonia City Attorney John Marini told WTNH News 8’s George Colli. “Essentially, from what we’re being told, it was a data entry mistake.”
The latest count has Incumbent Republican George Logan earning 18,513 votes compared to Cabrera’s 18,448 votes, according to Connecticut Secretary of State Denise Merrill. The slim 65-vote margin calls for a recount, but the reporting error further complicates the situation.
Here was the scene before the rally last night in #Ansonia. @Cabrera4Senate and his family and supporters gathered to discuss #voter transparency and the integrity of the #electoral system. The #recount for CT's 17th senate district continues. pic.twitter.com/nznkmz4vP4
— HQ Press (@hq_press) November 13, 2018
“There’s something bigger at stake here. It’s not about the candidates, and it’s not about a political party. It’s the principle of making sure that every single vote counts; making sure that every single person that took the time to vote on Election Day knows that their vote was counted,” Cabrera said. “Nothing lessens the integrity of our election system than what we’re looking for.”
State Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, who stood next to Cabrera during the rally, said that the voting system loses integrity when numbers are misreported.
“When you have confusion in the electoral system, like what we’ve seen on Thursday, that takes people’s confidence away from the electoral process,” said Duff. “We’re actually seeing that throughout this nation right now.”
In Florida, the results of the U.S. Senate race between Governor Rick Scott (R) and incumbent U.S. Senator Bill Nelson (D) are being recounted. Brenda Snipes, Broward County Supervisor of Elections, has come under fire from republicans since Election Day. Some republicans claim that the delays in the counting process may suggest Snipes’s office was part of an election fraud scheme. Former Florida Republican Gov. Jeb Bush on Monday called for Snipes to be removed from her position in office, while President Donald Trump said last week that Snipes has a “horrible history.”
“An honest vote count is no longer possible-ballots massively infected. Must go with Election Night!” Trump tweeted.