The state is investigating whether a New Haven Democratic machine vote-puller broke the law in aggressively bringing a mentally disabled man to the polls in Westville.
The Nov. 6 incident — first described in this New Haven Independent story — is now case number 2007 – 388 at the State Elections Enforcement Commission (SEEC).
The SEEC took a sworn complaint from New Haven activist Jeffrey Kerekes, according to Director of Legal Affairs and Law Enforcement Joan Andrews.
Andrews said the commission doesn’t automatically open investigations based on complaints. She said the SEEC decided to open an investigation into this case after reviewing the complaint, the Independent article, and the flood of outraged comments posted by readers. There appear to be legitimate facts worth investigating, she said.
“It certainly raises the possibility of voluntariness of voting or overreaching” coming into play, she said.
In the Nov. 6 incident, veteran machine vote-puller Brian McGrath was helping Mayor John DeStefano and Alderwoman Ina Silverman bring voters to the polling place at Edgewood School. He obtained access to a Fountain Street building that’s home to elderly and mentally disabled people.
One apparently mentally disabled man went into hysterics, crying “I don’t want to vote!” but went along after McGrath commanded him to. At the polling place, another worker in a team with McGrath hid his campaign sticker and walked into the voting booth with the disabled voter until he was caught and booted out.
Republican poll monitors and subsequent critics in town accused McGrath & co. of taking advantage of an incompetent voter to run up the Democratic candidates’ totals.
In both the article and in a subsequent comment posted in response to critics, McGrath defended his actions. He said the man wanted to vote — and thanked him for helping him. The Republicans seek to limit the voting rights of the disabled, McGrath argued.
Now the SEEC will weigh in. Andrews said this case touches on a complicated area of law, how to judge whether mentally disabled people are competent to vote. The question has started showing up in cases since the passage of a “motor voter” law in 1993 made it easier for campaigns to bring people to the polls.
The SEEC succeeded in getting a state law passed to cover people who are already considered incompetent to handle some of their own affairs, such as finances, Andrews said. In those cases, she said, a guardian must be contacted before someone registers the person to vote or takes him to the polls. In one case, a guardian complained about a person being brought to the polls; a probate judge subsequently ruled that the person had the mental capacity of a 3 year-old and thus was unable to make a competent choice.
As for the New Haven man brought to the New Haven polls by McGrath, “he may be perfectly competent. There are two sides to every story,” Andrews said. She said the SEEC will interview the man and find out for itself.