Candidate Says Mailer Declaring Stance On State Question 744 A Lie

Jon Jordan, News 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The race between House District 84 candidates, Republican Sally Kern and Democrat Brittany Novotny, heated up on Friday when Kern sent out a mailer stating Novotny supported State Question 744, a measure designed to increase funding for state education.

Novotny said she does not support the measure and never has.

"To make up a position for a very important local issue was surprising," Novotny said. "I don't understand why someone would make up a position."

Kern said she based the mailer and her opponent's stance on 744 on something Novotny posted online. Kern said in a blog post Novotny wrote back in April, she described the state's lack of funding for education while at the same time asking her constituents their thoughts on the question, and even encouraged them to visit the Yes on 744 website.

"Everything I put out on my opponent is things I have taken from newspaper, their own political mailings or their website," Kern said. "If my opponent does not support it then they certainly misrepresented themselves."

Still Novotny said it was an assumption and a wrong one, but Kern said she is not sorry for the mailer.

"If I was wrong in doing that I certainly apologize, but I think it was a safe assumption from everything my opponent has put out," Kern said.

Kern said she isn't the only one who misinterpreted Novotny's stance on the issue. On Novotny's Facebook page, one of her followers also assumed she supported 744 based on the blog post.