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Lawsuit Challenges 4th District Primary Results

By MARK SPENCER

August 26, 2010

HARTFORD — —

Angel Morales has filed a lawsuit alleging improprieties in the way absentee ballots were handled in his six-vote Democratic primary loss to state Rep. Kelvin Roldan in the 4th House District.

In the complaint, filed in Superior Court in Hartford, Morales says that shortly after the polls closed Aug. 10, he was told by his own poll watchers and the Democratic registrar of voters that he had won, although the complaint does not specify vote totals.

By the next morning, after 78 absentee ballots were counted, Morales had lost by nine votes, the complaint said. That margin shrank to six votes, 382 to 376, after a mandatory recount on Aug. 16.

The complaint alleges that election officials failed to keep boxes containing absentee ballots sealed from Aug. 10 until the recount, among other procedural improprieties. It asks a judge to declare Morales the winner or order a new primary.

Robert F. Ludgin, Morales' lawyer, declined to comment on the suit, saying it was now up to a judge to render a decision.

Roldan could not be reached for comment, but Evelyn Mantilla, his campaign manager, said she learned of the lawsuit Thursday.

"Through the process, we didn't see anything irregular," Mantilla said. "We are confident in the results"

In addition to Roldan, the lawsuit names as defendants the Hartford city and town clerk and the Democratic registrar and deputy registrar of voters, who will be represented by the office of Corporation Counsel Saundra Kee Borges.

"We are working closely with both the clerk's office and the registrar's office to review the process and make sure everything was don according to law," Kee Borges said.

A conference call on the lawsuit is scheduled for today and a hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday.

State Rep. Kenneth Green also has filed a lawsuit this week challenging the results in his two-vote loss to city Councilman Matthew Ritter in the 1st House District Democratic primary.