This is the FOX11 recap and consists of opinion and commentary. For the full debate transcript, click here.
FOX HOLLOW CITY HALL – Candidates Lyca Beretta, Draco Dimanovic and Scarlett Waverly met today to face the press and the public in the only Mayoral debate this election cycle.
The debate however left many questions unanswered, many half-answers, and many things to be desired. While there was no clear winner, Mr. Dimanovic faced heckling from the audience to the point of an accusation that he was running for election to increase fire department funding, where he’s an employee. Both Waverly and Beretta seemed to offer more constructive commentary, but both also faced accusations of bias and conflicts of interest.
Mrs. Beretta, who is the daughter of Ethan Martingale, the county sheriff, faced accusations of bias and inability to be impartial with family members already in high county office. Supporters of Beretta then came back at Mrs. Waverly, claiming she was in the same position as Beretta as Mrs. Waverly is an employee at Foxwood Academy. Waverly disputed such claims in a disputed exchange regarding where the school gets funding allocated from.
Exchanges further got heated as the debate came to a close; with one supporter of Beretta going to the point of parking a van with a large Beretta advertisement on it in front of city hall at the conclusion of the debate. The Waverly campaign called the placement of the van “bad taste” and “incredibly inconsiderate”, while the Beretta campaign denied the van has any affiliation with them; only that it’s a “strong supporter” of the campaign. Mr. Dimanovic came out after the debate to endorse Mrs. Waverly for mayor.
The Morning Heritage does not endorse candidates in political elections. We’re confident the public will make a good choice on Monday when polls open. All candidates will win a spot regardless unless a write-in candidate appears over the weekend.
Elections will run from 8AM to 8PM ((SLT)) Monday.
The candidate’s statements from after the debate are as follows:
Lyca Beretta:
“I am proud to stand with two other candidates who care as much about Fox Hollow’s future as I do. We all want to see our amazing community succeed and grow, and it’s an honor to have the opportunity to be considered for mayor. No matter the outcome, I believe citizens can rest assured that our government will be in the hands of people who intend to drive us forward and take us into the next phase of Fox Hollow’s future.”