Things are heating up in the House District 11 race as GOP candidates Heath Allbright and Don Fallin spar over campaign finances and alleged Montgomery influence.
On Sunday, Allbright issued a video statement on Facebook in response to campaign mailers paid for by 1776 PAC that Allbright said unfairly "attacked my character."
The mailers read, "Why is Heath Allbright taking so much money from Montgomery political bosses and PACS?" on one side, and the other side says, "Because Montgomery political bosses expect Heath to do their bidding!"
The mailer states that 60% of Allbright's campaign contributions come from Montgomery political bosses and special interests.
"You may have received a mail piece today from my opponent, Don Fallin, attacking my character, my integrity, and my beliefs as a conservative. I wanted to apologize on his behalf. This isn't how Republicans should conduct themselves," Allbright wrote in a statement accompanying the video.
Allbright said in the video that he would not "engage in this type of behavior."
"That's not what a true leader does," he stated. "I believe these dishonest ads tell more about the person running them rather than the person in the ads. My mother told me long ago that if you can't say anything nice about someone, don't say anything at all. As quoted in the Book of Luke, 'Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.' My family and I have chosen to stay positive and continue to talk about the issues of District 11 that matter most to people."
On Monday, Fallin issued a statement to 1819 News in response to Allbright's video, doubling down on his assertion that Allbright is the Montgomery favorite.
"I have not, nor will I ever, attack my opponent's character or family," Fallin said. "My opponent has challenged accurate assertions that he is heavily supported by Montgomery officials and special interests. The voters will have to make their decision on what they think about that. I look forward to finishing this campaign the way I started it, in a positive and friendly manner with the people of District 11 being the priority."
Fallin also addressed comments he made at a candidate forum in Cullman last Thursday.
"I also would like to clarify that I was given wrong information, and it has come to my attention that Senator Garlan Gudger and Representative Randall Shedd have remained neutral throughout the election process," he said.
According to the Alabama Secretary of State's website, the most recent filed reports show that of $72,900 in monetary campaign contributions to Allbright's campaign, $39,850 came from 17 different PACs — roughly 54.7%.
Out of $57,614 in monetary contributions to Fallin's campaign, $13,950, or 24.2%, came from three PACs.
Editor's Note: This article has been updated to correctly state the mailers were paid for by 1776 PAC, not Don Fallin's campaign.
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