Two Baltimore County Democratic General Assembly candidates blame Republicans for what they called mysterious, intentionally misleading mailings sent to constituents.
Incumbent state Sen. Jim Brochin, D-District 42, said he has filed a complaint with the state prosecutor for a mailing disguised as an National Rifle Association event invitation to “thank our friend Senator Jim Brochin for keeping assault weapons legal in Maryland.”
The mailing does not include an authority line or other indication the NRA did not send it ? which NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam confirmed.
“Show some courage and put your name on it,” Brochin said. “It?s really upsetting when you work hard for four years and try to do the right thing and someone tries to distort your record.”
Brochin said he believes it is the work of right wing Republicans who don?t want to see him in office for another four years. The NRA has unofficially endorsed Brochin, according to his campaign manager.
In the November elections, Brochin will face Republican nominee Doug Riley, who said the state prosecutor?s office contacted him last week. He said he told them he had nothing to do with the mailing, and suggested Brochin might have sent it himself.
Meanwhile, District 7 Houses of Delegates candidate Jack Sturgill said a group known as the “Democrats for Responsive Government” distributed a mailer containing lies about his campaign, citing a nonexistent newspaper article.
State Board of Elections records list Stephen Bowen as chairman of the committee. The address listed as Bowen?s on the records matches an address for a business that donated to the campaign of incumbent District 7 Del. Richard Impallaria, a Republican. Neither returned phone calls by press time. Sturgill said he doesn?t believe the connection is a coincidence.
“It?s a desperate piece by desperate people,” he said.
