Television endorsement sparks protest

With two days left before the primary election, two candidates for Douglas County commission are accusing the county's public access television station of airing programs that support their opponents.

District 5 candidate Stuart Posselt said candidates Greg Lynn and Mike Olson were featured on the Douglas County Builder Industry Association's Builder Talk Show.

At the end of one of the programs, Posselt said host Carole Thompson urged listeners to vote for Lynn and Olson.

Neither Posselt nor District 1 candidate Dave Nelson had seen the program, but said their supporters alerted them.

"This is a violation of the Channel 16 policy and I've asked them to pull the program," Posselt said. "I'm really upset and so is Dave."

In an e-mail to Thompson, Posselt asked for equal air time before the election.

"The failure to allow for equal time is a gross violation of FCC regulations," Posselt said. "It is simply one more nail in the coffin indicative of the developers and builders support for Olson and Lynn."

Thompson did offer Posselt an opportunity to appear on the program in September, but he points out that would be after the election.

Nelson, whose residency has been an issue in the campaign, said he resisted responding to critics.

"Although the residency question was clarified in a rebuttal on the front page of the Record Courier on July 9, 2008, I would like to restate that I live in District 1 at 980 Winter Green," he said, "in a home owned by a family member for the past three years. I moved there on Nov. 1, 2007, and changed my drivers license, voting registration and utilities which reflect my new address."

Nelson, who is president of the Douglas County Good Government Group, said he held meetings since late December with a group seeking District 3 commission candidates.

" My wife and I co-founded the Good Government Group of Douglas County in 2004 because we felt there were issues with transparency in the county," he said. "We have helped a lot of people with issues when the citizens were up against the county or developers. Running for a commission seat and being able to work for all the citizens in Douglas County seemed like a natural next step."