Pueblo Clerk candidate Candace Rivera rebuts ‘ludicrous’ campaign finance complaint
A complaint submitted last week with the Colorado Secretary of Point out alleges that Clerk and Recorder prospect Candace Rivera committed dozens of marketing campaign finance violations.
Rivera has denied that she knowingly did anything at all erroneous.
“It’s unfounded and ludicrous,” Rivera reported. “They’re grasping at straws.”
A motor automobile registration technician, Robert Kenneth Brown, filed the grievance but refused to remark on the matter when contacted by The Chieftain.
Brown has been a whole-time employee of the section in the Pueblo County Clerk and Recorder’s office because December 2021. Rivera’s opponent, incumbent Clerk and Recorder Gilbert “Bo” Ortiz, reported that he and Brown are close friends outdoors of work, but Ortiz mentioned that he had absolutely nothing to do with the complaint, which is however under overview by the Secretary of State’s place of work.
An preliminary review is thanks on June 29, the working day soon after the most important election.
Rivera, alongside with 5 other candidates on Pueblo most important ballots, filed issues with the Secretary of State’s business alleging several situations of election glitches.
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Rivera explained she withdrew her criticism on June 21, the day just after she submitted it, due to the fact Griswold’s office was taking action in Pueblo.
Brown claimed that Rivera violated marketing campaign finance polices by failing to report expenses and contributions, as very well as an inaccurate filing.
Rivera admitted that she incorrectly filed expenditures in her first marketing campaign finance report — instead of listing the business enterprise exactly where she bought election supplies, her campaign was outlined as the payee — but submitted amended stories Wednesday.
Brown also took umbrage with a huge truck promoting Rivera that has been found all over Pueblo featuring a large painted image of Rivera’s headshot and slogan in very similar shades to the relaxation of her marketing campaign resources.
The truck belongs to Pueblo resident and motor vehicle dealership proprietor Luke Wodiuk, who has experienced general public disputes with Ortiz.
Wodiuk, who is not directly affiliated with Rivera’s marketing campaign, explained that he has owned the truck for above 10 years and desired to do one thing to support Ortiz’s opponent.
Wodiuk stated that when he uncovered out “Candace was the only a single that experienced the likelihood to get (Ortiz) off and basically earn,” he took a screenshot of Rivera’s marketing campaign symptoms and enlisted a buddy to paint his box truck with her likeness. The truck has been parked all over Pueblo along big roads for the duration of the campaign year.
Rivera claimed that she did not know about the truck till after Wodiuk painted it. Wodiuk claimed that he told Rivera the truck did not price him any dollars.
Brown, citing a screenshot from Fb Messenger in between former town council applicant Brandon Martin and Dominic Nava, alleged that Rivera accepted indication stakes from Martin without reporting them to the point out.
Rivera said the stakes had been not utilized for her marketing campaign and ended up returned to Martin, which he confirmed.
As of Thursday afternoon, practically $23,000 had been elevated and $16,000 expended by all of the Pueblo County clerk candidates, but not all candidates had filed stories thanks Friday.
Rivera, who filed her stories ahead of the deadline, had elevated far more income than any other applicant with $7,495 recorded in contributions. Republican Nathan Baxter trailed Rivera with $4,800 raised but had not filed the most recent report ahead of The Chieftain’s Thursday press deadline.
Ortiz, who was initially elected to the placement in 2006, has raised $2,325 for this election but started off with $4,568 left around from previous campaigns.
Ortiz has accrued in excess of $15,000 of unpaid fines from delinquent filings on reports dating back again to 2016. He explained that he is in discussion with the Secretary of State’s place of work about the fines and forgot to file new experiences due to the fact he did not accept any new donations or obtain any new supplies.
Marketing campaign finance polices stipulate that candidates file new experiences for each individual reporting time period, no matter of regardless of whether or not they have new contributions or expenditures to report.
Rivera is a political newcomer with a qualifications in prison justice hard Ortiz in the Democratic principal. Ortiz has contended with allegations about office instability and turnover over the past calendar year. An election supervisor was appointed by the Colorado Secretary of Point out Wednesday evening amid numerous stories of ballot errors.
Anna Lynn Winfrey can be reached by email at [email protected] or on Twitter @annalynnfrey.
This report originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Pueblo Clerk applicant Rivera refutes ‘ludicrous’ campaign finance complaint
