CLEVELAND, Tenn. -- Sheriff's candidate Steve Lawson says a newspaper advertisement calling him an "Obama Democrat" is despicable.
"I did not authorize the ad, it was not an ad for the Steve Lawson campaign, and the ad was obviously presented to try to have the people of Bradley County make their choice for sheriff be based on something other than the qualifications and leadership ability of the candidates," Mr. Lawson said at a news conference Thursday.
The candidate called on his Republican opponent, Jim Ruth, to renounce the ad.
"We had nothing to do with that," said Mr. Ruth's campaign manager, Doug Bird. "Our campaign is honest and everything we do is more than aboveboard. Our rule is anything we do will have our name on it."
The ad in Wednesday editions of Cleveland's daily newspaper shows a silhouette of President Barack Obama's head. To the right of the drawing in large type are the words, "Obama Democrat & Proud Of It."
Below that, inside a black box, is "Steve Lawson Sheriff 2010." In smaller type it says, "Paid for by Nick Vicino. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee."
Mr. Lawson said he told the newspaper the ad was not authorized by his campaign and that he did not know Nick Vicino. The Bradley County Election Commission told him no one named Nick Vicino is registered to vote in Bradley County or in Tennessee, he said.
In its print and Internet editions Friday, the Cleveland Daily Banner ran a description of its political advertising policy and described how it verified the identity of the man who placed the ad.
The man came in and said he wanted to place the ad on behalf of the group Gideons 300. But the newspaper determined that the group wasn't recognized by the Bradley County Election Commission, so it couldn't place the ad. The man, however, could place the ad under his own name, which he did, the newspaper said.
"When the paper could not verify the false sponsorship of the advertisement, it chose to run the ad as being sponsored by Nick Vicino," Mr. Lawson said. "I do not know Nick Vicino. Nick Vicino does not know me. He was never authorized to use my name and, in fact, I objected to the ad."
Drew Rawlins, executive director of Tennessee's Bureau of Ethics and Campaign Finance, said state campaign finance law doesn't require someone who places a political ad to be a registered voter.
Drew Robinson, assistant district attorney for the 10th Judicial District, said he's not aware of any law that would restrict free speech rights in a political campaign.
"It may be deceptive, it may be political dirty tricks, but I didn't find anything to indicate that it's a violation of the law in any way, assuming that the person who placed the ad used all the proper identification," Mr. Robinson said.
Mr. Lawson said his campaign believes the man behind the ad lives in Ellijay, Ga. The man told campaign aides he "just wanted to help the Democrats in Bradley County," Mr. Lawson said.
Attempts to locate Mr. Vicino in Ellijay were unsuccessful Friday.
Mr. Bird, with the Ruth campaign, noted that Mr. Lawson is a Democrat, as the ad says.
"As Shakespeare said, 'He protests too much,'" Mr. Bird said. "He has been a big Obama supporter, but he is trying to run as a conservative. If he is ashamed of being a Democrat, he should have changed."
Mr. Lawson said he has advertised his conservative values throughout the campaign.
"I am proud of the support I have received from Republicans, Democrats, Independents and people who have become members of the tea party," Mr. Lawson said. "We are not running a partisan campaign. We merely want a comparison to be made of the abilities of the respective candidates."