State election officials have ordered Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez to pay $839 to settle an election complaint.
The State Elections Enforcement Commission says that Perez, in his re-election bid, illegally spent city money to distribute newspaper ads and inserts that contained his picture and name.
It’s against state law for an incumbent official seeking re-election to use public funds during the 12 months before an election to pay for advertisements that contain the name, face or voice of the candidate.
The restitution involves a supplement in The Hartford Courant distributed to students and ads for the city’s 311 information line in four editions of The Hartford News, a local weekly newspaper.
