University of Colorado Board of Regents candidate Edie Hooton has fired her campaign manager for falsely posing as a CU parent on Reddit and criticizing one of Hooton’s Democratic opponents in an anonymous post.
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Campaign manager Anna Wert claimed to be the mother of a CU student in a Reddit post on Tuesday about regent candidate Kubs Lalchandani, criticizing his work as a Florida attorney representing technology and healthcare clients and questioning the depth of his connection to Boulder as he runs in the Democratic primary for CU regent.
People on social media accused her of lying about her identity, saying she was actually a member of Hooton’s campaign team. The Daily Camera obtained screenshots of text messages that linked the Reddit account to Wert.
Hooton said she knew nothing about the Reddit post before it went up.
“This was an unfortunate lapse in judgment by a promising young woman who is no longer with our campaign,” Hooton wrote in an email to the Daily Camera. “She worked tirelessly to support multiple elected officials and candidates across Boulder County, and she has accepted full responsibility. I would ask that everyone who has ever made a regrettable comment or post on social media to show empathy here.”
The Daily Camera could not immediately reach Wert for comment. She had deleted the Reddit post and her Reddit account. The post generated outrage online, with most people coming to Lalchandani’s defense. Through other details on her Reddit account, some people were able to identify Wert and knew she was part of Hooton’s campaign, criticizing her for posing under a false identity on an anonymous platform.
“What concerns me most is not the politics of this race, but the conduct itself,” said Aquiles La Grave, a Boulder resident and friend of Lalchandani, posted on Nextdoor. “Creating anonymous content, assuming a false identity, and using that identity to attack an opponent falls well outside the standards our community should expect from local campaigns.”
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Lalchandani declined to comment on the Reddit post, saying he wants to remain “focused on the problems facing CU and higher education.”
Lalchandani was also attacked anonymously online when texts were sent to delegates after the caucus that would determine which Democrats would be on the primary ballot. The text message, provided by La Grave, said Lalchandani “may not be exactly who you think he is.” Hooton told the Daily Camera that she doesn’t know who sent the texts or to whom they were sent.
Campaign finance records also show that Colorado Within Reach, an independent expenditure committee, has spent $6,500 on internet ads opposing Lalchandani and more than $25,000 on mailers supporting Hooton.
Hooton and Lalchandani are two of three candidates in the Democratic primary race for the CU regent seat representing Congressional District 2. Boulder resident Murray Smith is also running in the Democratic primary, and candidate Marty Neilson is running unopposed in the Republican primary. Primary election day is June 30.
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