Allies of Jackson Council Vice President Marty Flemming are fuming after the mayor wannabe ditched his running mates and “rushed to get his petitions in,” sources tell Lakewood Alerts.
Candidates for mayor and Council must file at least 495 petitions for their name to show up on the ballot. Current Mayor Mike Reina and his running mates – Scott Sargent and Jennifer Kuhn – went in together on Monday to jointly file their petitions.
However, on the other side of the split Republican ticket, Flemming reportedly ditched his running mates, and got his petitions filed on Wednesday while his running mates – Andy Kern and Samara O’Neill – continue to struggle getting enough petitions to qualify for the ballot.
Lakewood Alerts has spoken to several people who are allied with Flemming, and who say that his behavior has shattered the illusion of harmony among his supporters and within his ticket.
“As much as we are doing our best to move on and ignore this, the fact is that Marty [Flemming] demonstrated what everyone knows about him – he’s a self-serving [expletive],” a Flemming ally said.
“He got himself his petitions and ran to file them while leaving his running mates scrounging for signatures,” another source close to the Flemming campaign said. “If the candidates can’t get along even before the election, how are they going to work together when in government?”