For the second day in a row, Republican candidate for House District 30 Esther Helton said she was "faced with lies and smears coming from my primary opponent whose campaign is clearly working to distract from the district-wide support earned by me and my record as a pro-jobs candidate."
The Helton campaign said, "On Thursday, we announced having raised $81,381 from 203 donors with a true grassroots campaign underway based on serious policies such as the rising cost of healthcare, the need for better paying jobs and vocational education. This was met with a series of abject lies and continued personal attacks from Jonathan Mason, an insurance intake clerk working who has struggled to raise funds and reported less than $15,000 in the April filing."
Ms. Helton said, “My campaign continues to build momentum because I’m focused on canvassing and working hard to earn the trust and support of voters in District 30. Voters should notice that I am running a serious campaign to address the excessive power of insurance companies over your healthcare decisions, the need to grow jobs, not raise property taxes and to expand our educational opportunities to include more vocational classes and career-based learning to prepare our children for their best futures. But voters should also notice that my opponent is not running for office. He’s running on attacks and lies. Voters, you deserve better and you won’t be embarrassed by me.”
The Helton campaign said, "In two separate press releases, Mason, in his mid-30s, lied to voters and the public. The first release was announcing an endorsement from a statewide political action committee declaring that Helton 'did not meet the criteria” of the pro-life organization and originally falsified that she had refused to meet with the group. After the Tennessee Right to Life was presented with the facts that they verified that Esther had never received their information, but instead, their survey was returned by postal mail with no follow up call to obtain the correct address, it was clear Esther had never be offered the opportunity to meet the Nashville-based group. The TN Right to Life has subsequently demanded that Mason retract his lies and Esther has submitted her survey electronically to reveal her consistent stand for the life of the innocent and unborn."
Ms. Helton said, “To have your Christian faith attacked by seeing in print statements that are completely untrue is a line that has been breached. Mr. Mason’s habit of attacking people using their faith must stop. Politics aside, my faith in Jesus Christ has been a source of tremendous strength in some difficult days and having a political hack attack me to score some type of points is too far.”
The Helton campaign said, "The second Mason release similarly deceptively twists information into two additional lies aimed at Helton. Mason wrongly identifies Helton as a support of Barack Obama and is misrepresenting her public service on the East Ridge City Council to further his lies."
Ms. Helton said, “My voting history shows that I am a Republican and I’ve been certified by both the local Hamilton County and Tennessee Republican Parties to have met that criteria. Like many leaders in Hamilton County who serve today in countywide office and currently in our state delegation, I did cast a ballot in a Democrat primary but my voting record as an elected official, my financial contributions and the time that I’ve spent working for other candidates reflects my Christian faith and my conservative values that make me a Republican.”
The Helton campaign said, "Finally, Mason’s campaign insists that Helton’s need to attend a meeting involving property owners at their invitation has forced her to “withdraw” from a forum which was finalized on July 2nd. The organizer of the forum has been told since the very first inquiry that Ms. Helton had a conflict. Ms. Helton’s appointment was set weeks prior to the invitation extended by this individual to speak."
Ms. Helton said, “I am even more determined that the voters of District 30 have a very simple choice: They can vote for a politician who enjoys grandstanding and slinging mud, or a nurse committed to address health insurance costs, creating jobs and making our classrooms work for our kids."
Early voting begins July 13; Election Day is Thursday, Aug. 2.