http://cptv.vo.llnwd.net/o2/ypmwebcontent/Chion/do%20110714%20Ganim%20poll.mp3
Former Bridgeport Mayor Joseph Ganim has not announced whether he’ll jump into the mayoral race this year, but a poll finds that if he does, it could change the landscape of the election.
Joe Ganim was released from prison one year ago after serving six years for a massive municipal corruption scandal. The former Bridgeport mayor was convicted on 16 counts, including steering city contracts in return for hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks.
His former campaign manager testified against Ganim and served 10 months in prison. Now, Lennie Grimaldi runs the online webzine OnlyInBridgeport.com, which commissioned a survey on Ganim’s chances, if he were to try to get his old job back.
"The survey was conducted by the Merriman Group, and they screened 565 Democratic primary voters in Bridgeport that showed that in a head-to-head race between former Mayor Joe Ganim and current Mayor Bill Finch that Joe Ganim has a four point lead within the poll’s margin of error. And in a large Democratic primary field, Ganim actually increases his lead."
Grimaldi says the goal of the survey was to find out what Bridgeport residents think about Ganim now.
"If he gets into the race, it’s a game-changer. There’s a lot of nostalgia for him."
Current Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch was elected in 2007. Three other Democrats have announced their intentions to challenge his bid for re-election.
