Sparks Behind Byrne Write-In Website

As you may or may not know, there has been some buzz recently about a write-in campaign for Bradley Byrne, the GOP candidate who lost the primary to Robert Bentley. There have been references on Facebook, and a website was created specifically for that purpose.

Information released today by the Alabama Republican Party indicates that the website dedicated to a Bradley Byrne write-in campaign may have been, in fact, created and run by the Ron Sparks for Governor campaign.

Their evidence is as follows. First, the domain name WriteInByrne.org was registered by a gentleman by the name of David Niesen.



Second, David Niesen was associated with the Sparks campaign, even to the point of being listed as a contact person on press releases.




Third, Niesen received two payments from the Sparks campaign around the time that the website was created.



If you'd like to see the PDF file they circulated containing full-size images of the documents in question, you can find that here:
http://www.politicsalabama.org/files/writeinbyrnesparks.pdf

This is an interesting development. Although certainly not illegal, it is one of those "dirty tricks" that everybody claims to hate but few think twice about. My opinion? If true, this is a major blow to Sparks' integrity and image.

Think about it. Sparks is hammering Bentley on the "AEA scandal," which basically arose because Bentley didn't declare the in-kind contribution. Where, may I ask, is the declaration on this website that it was paid for by the Sparks campaign? Aren't such declarations required? Since this website urges people to write in Byrne's name, they are engaging in candidate advocacy, and therefore, disclosure rules apply.

So we have some shenanigans going on, and it doesn't reflect well on Sparks. If true, that is.

UPDATE: Bradley Byrne has issued a statement in the wake of these revelations.

“It has been brought to my attention that a write-in campaign bearing my name has been launched and run by operatives working for Democrat Ron Sparks. I’m disappointed that the Sparks campaign would stoop as low as to fraudulently give the appearance that this effort was being run on my behalf. These types of tactics further prove the desperation of the Democrats in Alabama and I call on them to take down this sham website immediately. I fully support the Republican ticket and I will be voting for Dr. Robert Bentley on Tuesday, I encourage all of those who supported me in the Primary to do the same. There has never been a more important election for the future of Alabama, so I urge all of those who want to move our state forward to look past the smokescreens and fake websites and vote Republican on November 2nd.”