72nd District Assembly Race (Orange, Linda: phone, pay, county)

[BlackShoe]

Residents of Orange County have not had to wait until 2010 to get a large helping of a mud slinging political race.On November 17 a special election will be held to replace the disgraced Mike Duvall,forced to resign because of a sex scandal.Three Republicans,a Democrat,and a Green are running.The leading Republican is expected to win in what will likely be a January runoff election.The two leading GOP candidates,Linda Ackerman and Chris Norby,have waged a vicious campaign.Too many accusations to list here,but Ackerman charges that Norby was a sexual harasser and free spender that once voted himself a pay raise.Norby counters that Ackerman is a carpetbager and is a liberal trying to pass herself off as a conservative.Both sides have sent out numerous mass mailings,pre recorded phone calls,and have lined up endorsements from prominent names.Many voters have expressed disgust over the tone of the campaign.In the meantime,the mud continues to fly,so Californians are getting perhaps a little preview of what we can expect in 2010.