NEW: Speaker Fox Files Board of Elections Complaint
Friday, October 26, 2012
House Speaker Gordon Fox has filed a complaint with the state Board of Elections over a negative radio that is paid for by a Connecticut man.
The ad originally ran on WPRO without properly identifiying Harvey Adelberg as the buyer –a violation of state campaign finance laws— but Adelberg filed the apporpiate paperwork Thursday.
Fox’s independent challenger Mark Binder has denied having any knowledge of the ad, but Fox spokesman Bill Fischer said there is “mounting evidence” that suggests Binder was coordinating with the group who placed the ad.
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"It is also abundantly clear that Mr. Binder and the Connecticut resident behind the radio ad, Harvey Adelberg, have no regard for Rhode Island campaign finance law. Mr. Binder has broken the law by accepting nearly $4,000 in coordinated expenditures from Mr. Adelberg in an effort to avoid state candidate contribution limits.”
UPDATE
Binder campaign spokesman Peter Kerwin released the following statement:
"First the Fox campaign made legal threats and when that fizzled, they are now playing junior detective trying to find links between the Binder campaign and the ad. This is a silly exercise on their part. It is what a losing campaign looks like...a campaign determined to distract people from the issues that really matter. Mark Binder has been going door-to-door, talking to voters about issues like 38 Studios, Speaker Fox's decision to kill payday lending reform, and the late night merger of the Office of Higher Ed and the Board of Regents. Those are the issues which will determine the outcome of this election."
