You could forgive Aberdeen voters for feeling a bit confused these days.
A letter blasting several candidates in the upcoming Aberdeen elections bore the return address of a citizens group that endorsed those same candidates.
Now, the citizens group supporting two of the candidates purportedly controlled by an out-of-town developer is calling the letter a dirty trick connected to their chief opponent, incumbent Mayor S. Fred Simmons.
The two-page letter and petition found in voters? mailboxes this weekend said it came from “Concerned Citizens for a Fair Aberdeen Election,” at P.O. Box 125. But that box is being used by another political group, “Aberdeen Communities Together,” which has endorsed two of the four candidates whom the letter said were being backed by Art Helton, a Darlington-based developer with properties in Aberdeen.
“My cell phone and my e-mail have been going rampant for the last two days,” said Neil “Chuck” Doty, a spokesman for ACT. “Luckily, the people who are aware of us detect a rat as soon as they open it.”
The letter also urges voters to oppose pharmacy owner Steve Johnson, who is seeking to get on the ballot. Johnson, who owns property in Aberdeen and outside the city in Perryman, is fighting allegations that he does not live at his city property and is thus ineligible to vote. State property records do not list his city address as his primary residence.
The second page of the letter is a petition asking the Board of Elections to investigate Johnson and Helton?s voting privileges.
“Art Helton and Steve Johnson are NOT residents of our Great City and should not be permitted to vote,” said a copy of the letter obtained by The Examiner. It divided the field of candidates into “Art Helton?s candidates” ? listing mayoral candidate Mike Bennett, incumbent councilwoman Ruth Elliott and council candidates Johnson andBernard DeWitt ? and everyone else under “independent candidates.”
ACT has endorsed Bennett and Elliott, but has stayed away from taking a position in the debate surrounding Johnson, member Robert Price said.
Steve Wright, Simmons? business partner in the airport north of the city, had stopped ACT from using its old name of “Friends of Aberdeen” by registering his rights to the name and using it on mail supporting the mayor.
“We suspect ? not for sure, but we suspect ? that this letter is another Steve Wright trick,” Doty said. Wright did not return requests for comment Monday.
Doty said he believed the letters used ACT?s address to confuse voters or distract ACT members from campaigning for their candidates.
“I didn?t know who it came from, but I filled it out,” said Council President Mike Hiob, who is running for re-election and has frequently criticized Helton?s perceived influence in the city.
