Fact check: Why is Republican mailer endorsing Jimmy Paulding for SLO County supervisor?
Are political mailers landing in your mailbox? You may have seen one that told Republicans to vote for Jimmy Paulding, a registered Democrat running for the San Luis Obispo Board of Supervisors.
The mailer did not call Paulding a Republican, but it did recommend him to Republican voters.
Paulding’s campaign paid for him to appear on the mailer, he said, but they did not know the mailer would be presented as a Republican voter guide.
Paulding is running to represent District 4 on the Board of Supervisors against incumbent Lynn Compton, a registered Republican who defeated him for the seat by only 60 voted in 2018.
Paulding said that he doesn’t mind sharing his political party affiliation.
“I am a registered Democrat and have no problem telling people that,” he said in an email to the Tribune.
However, he noted that the Board of Supervisors is a nonpartisan office, and he wants to represent everyone — regardless of their political party.
“I am running to be an independent voice for South County,” Paulding said in the email. “That is why I am using all channels at my disposal to reach Republican, Democrat and Independent voters — because I want to represent everyone.”
What does the mailer say?
The mailer recommends candidates for nine offices up for election on June 7, including state Assembly and governor. It endorses Paulding for the District 4 seat on the Board of Supervisors.
The mailer was made by the group California Voter Guide, which is “not an official political party organization,” the mailer reads.
Text at the bottom of the mailer says that candidates are “selected independent of party affiliation.”
The mailer says that Paulding “backed public safety, protected small businesses during COVID-19 and fought for transparency and accountability in SLO County.”
Paulding stands by that statement, he said.
Paulding said his campaign paid for him to be included on five mailers: California Voter Guide, Budget Watchdogs, Budget Watchdogs Newsletter, Senior Advocate and Election Digest.
“I bought on to slates about fiscal conservatism because I take a fiscally conservative approach to local budget management, and have passed balanced budgets as a councilman,” he said in the email.
He also said that political party isn’t an important part of the Board of Supervisors race — but that the incumbent, Lynn Compton, “governs as a hard partisan.”
Paulding noted that he is endorsed by three of his colleagues on the Arroyo Grande City Council — including a Republican, a Democrat and an Independent. He said he wants to reduce partisanship on the Board of Supervisors.
“This is a nonpartisan office I am running for, and I believe that local leaders should work hard to keep the national politics out of the local level,” Paulding said in the email. “I want to unite our community and our Board of Supervisors so we can work together to tackle the challenges of the day.”
This story was originally published May 23, 2022 at 12:43 PM.
