For the third time, voters in Connecticut’s largest city tried to pick a mayor Tuesday in an election upended by allegations of malfeasance involving absentee ballots.

Bridgeport held the do-over Democratic primary because the result of the first one in September was tossed out by a judge, an extraordinary invalidation that came after surveillance video showed supporters of Mayor Joe Ganim dropping stacks of absentee ballots into outdoor collection boxes.

The result of the subsequent general election in November was also set aside so the primary could be rerun. All three races have pitted Ganim against fellow Democrat John Gomes, formerly the city’s acting chief administrative officer.

The rerun primary may not be the final word on who becomes Bridgeport’s next mayor, with a new general election scheduled to be held Feb. 27. Unless one of them drops out, Ganim and Gomes would face each other again because both also qualified for the ballot with endorsements by minor parties.

The outcome of Tuesday's contest remained unclear as early returns showed the two nearly tied. The Associated Press has not called the race.

Nevertheless, Ganim declared victory about an hour after the polls closed.

“It is again humbling for me to know that thousands and thousands of voters and people in the city of Bridgeport who we serve trudged through the weather today, overcame what is voter fatigue and made a strong statement by voting and voting for us to continue the progress in the city of Bridgeport," he told supporters at a rally. Gomes was expected to speak later in the evening.

Ganim is an incumbent who served seven years in prison for racketeering, extortion and other crimes stemming from his first 12-year stint as mayor. By narrow margins, he got more votes in last year's two invalidated contests.

Those races are currently the subject of multiple investigations and Tuesday’s primary may not be the final word on who becomes Bridgeport's next mayor. Superior Court Judge William Clark also ordered a new general election to be held Feb. 27.

Unless one of them drops out, Ganim and Gomes would face each other again in the general election because both also qualified for the ballot with endorsements by minor parties. Also in the general race are Republican David Herz and independent candidate Lamond Daniels.

Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas said late Tuesday afternoon that voter turnout was just under 10%, a number she called low, but she hoped it would increase with late voting. She said no major problems were reported, only a few vote tabulators that malfunctioned and were quickly replaced, and someone yelling outside a polling place who left when asked.

While the race has been overshadowed by the allegations of absentee ballot violations, Ganim has tried to tout improvements made in the city under his leadership, urging voters not to change course. Throughout the campaign, Gomes has called for a more inclusive and transparent city government.

Bridgeport, a heavily Democratic working-class city of 148,000 located about 62 miles (100 km) east of New York City, for decades has been under state and federal scrutiny for alleged irregularities involving absentee ballots. New primaries have been called over the years in state legislative and local city council races because of absentee ballot problems.

Many of the issues relate to a practice known as ballot harvesting, where campaign workers go to people's homes, help them fill out absentee ballots, and then either mail those ballots in or deposit them in drop boxes.

Connecticut requires people to drop off their absentee ballots themselves, though in some circumstances they can be deposited by family members, police, local election officials or a caregiver.

The security camera videos under scrutiny appeared to show the same people returning to a drop box and stuffing it with papers multiple times.

Ganim denied any wrongdoing personally and accused Gomes supporters of committing the same fraud, which Gomes denied.

Various steps have been taken to restore voter confidence and secure this new primary, including printing serial numbers on both absentee ballot applications and ballots.

Two interim election monitors were assigned by the state to spot-check absentee ballot applications for Tuesday's election in parts of Bridgeport to confirm they were legitimate. They also worked to educate the public and city election workers about election rules.

The Secretary of the State’s office deployed more than a dozen nonpartisan volunteers to polling places in Bridgeport to record any voting issues that might arise and help file any complaints, if necessary.

Despite efforts to clamp down on possible election misdeeds, both campaigns accused the other of committing violations in the days leading up to Tuesday's contest.

Last week Thomas announced her office filed a complaint with the State Elections Enforcement Commission concerning new allegations involving absentee ballot applications.

In a debate on WICC-AM on Monday, Ganim accused Gomes of wrongdoing with absentee ballot applications and Gomes accused Ganim operatives of “harassing and bullying” city voters.

“We need to get rid of the corruption in our city,” Gomes said.

Ganim retorted shortly after, saying “I’m going to not respond to the personal attacks Mr. Gomes is opening.” He later said, “At this point, my urging to Bridgeport residents is to come out and vote on Tuesday despite the weather. We need to clear this up.”