NewsPflug responds to Larkin's comments about candidacyBy Steve Dunn/Gate City Managing EditorMatt Pflug, a candidate for the Lee County Board of Supervisors, responded today to statements by Rick Larkin, chairman of the Lee County Democratic Party, about his candidacy.
Pflug, Republican Mike O'Connor and Janet Fife-LaFrenz, who won the Democratic primary in June, are vying for the District 5 seat on the board of supervisors. Pflug was nominated by petition after losing in the primary. Pflug said Larkin chose to split hairs about his candidacy for the board of supervisors. “He (Larkin) concludes I am not Democratic. If one is democratic, they advocate democracy, representation and freedom of choice,” Pflug said. “This is exactly the reason for my candidacy.” Pflug said he has not declared that he is the “nominee” of the Democratic Party. Neither has he declared that he is the democratic “party” candidate nor that he is on the democratic “ticket,” he added. “For more than 40 years my father as a member of the Democratic Party Central Committee worked in the trenches for the Lee County Democratic Party to help elect and re-elect individuals like Anne Pedersen, Mike Short, Larry Holtkamp, Jerry Kearns and Rick Larkin,” Pflug said. “Starting at the age of 16 I have worked along side of him and been a member of the Central Committee. Being a Democrat and democratic is part of who I am.” Pflug said election law provides that any eligible citizen shall be given the opportunity to run for elected office in a general election regardless of the outcome of a primary election. “Having met all the requirements to be a candidate in the general election by petition, the county auditor has placed my name on the ballot as provided by law,” he said. “I am a candidate and yes, I am still a Democrat and democratic.” A postcard seeking voters' support indicates that Pflug is “your Democratic candidate” for the board of supervisors and tells voters “you must fill in the oval next to my name on the ballot.” Pflug also said he agrees with Larkin's statement that “misleading the public undermines the democratic process.” Likewise, Pflug said Larkin's statement that “a good campaign emphasizes a candidate's strengths and draws differences between the candidates in a truthful way” is good advice. “A critical difference is the knowledge I gained as a previous four-year county board member that I can immediately bring to the table,” Pflug said. He added he appreciated Larkin “for reminding the voters that they have another choice for the board of supervisors other than the ‘party ticket nominee.'” Profiles of Pflug, O'Connor and Fife-LaFrenz will be published in the Daily Gate City next month. Copyright © 2010 - Daily Gate City
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