News

Chvala center of senate race

State Sen. Chuck Chvala, D-Madison, is not running for re-election this year, but that hasn’t stopped the scandal-plagued legislator’s name from popping up in the 16th Senate District race.

Chvala makes numerous appearances in Republican candidate Eric Peterson’s new television ad, which intersperses pictures of the former senator with images of Peterson’s opponent, state Rep. Mark Miller, D-Monona. In the ad, pictures of the two legislators alternate while a narrator points to connections between the two Democratic lawmakers.

“The overriding theme of the ad is we need a change in the Capitol — insiders are working together and we need a fresh perspective,” Peterson press secretary Chris Schneider said.

However, one particular aspect of the ad has drawn a storm of controversy — and scorn — from the Miller campaign.

The ad opens by mentioning the 18 felony charges brought against Chvala in connection with the Capitol corruption scandal of 2002 before fading to a picture of Miller. While not suggesting Miller is guilty of Chvala’s alleged misdeeds, the ad continues to alternate pictures of the two with increasing frequency.

“I think it’s a very negative advertisement, one that I would never dream of using,” Miller said in a phone interview. “It’s insulting to voters and I would hope the reaction to this will cause it to backfire.”

Schneider said the ad in no way suggests Miller is guilty of the behavior for which Chvala was indicted. He said Chvala was placed in the ad to highlight the “insider” status shared by the Democrats.

“We use Chuck Chvala’s name in the ad because there are substantial ties from one to the other. It’s not us making those connections; Miller made those and we’re pointing those out,” Schneider said.

Among the connections listed in the ad are allegations Chvala and Miller contributed to each other’s campaigns; that Chvala used Miller’s money to pay for his legal costs; and that Miller and Chvala have voted the same way 90 percent of the time in the state legislature. The ad culminates with the narrator commenting, “No wonder it’s hard to tell these guys apart.”

Miller said he votes with Chvala often and praised the senator for passing SAGE, a smaller-class-size initiative. But Miller said Chvala last gave him money in 1996 and asserted his own contributions to Chvala are not providing for legal expenses.

As for bringing Chvala’s felony charges into the equation, Miller dismisses the move as “blatantly irrelevant to the campaign.”

Chvala has represented the 16th District, an area including eastern Madison, Stoughton, Sun Prairie and other outlying areas, in the state senate since 1984. But with the felony charges looming overhead, and a trial set to begin in January 2005, he is not seeking re-election.

Miller announced his candidacy for the seat in March, then defeated fellow Democratic Assemblyman Tom Hebl in the September primary.

Schneider said he believes the district needs an ethical boost and Peterson, a Sun Prairie native, is the man to bring it. But by bringing Chvala’s name into the race, and especially by citing his legal troubles, Miller said the Peterson campaign has sunk to new depths of political treachery.

“This ad is just a low campaign tactic, and it surprised me to see anybody stoop to such a level,” Miller said. “Voters have had enough negative campaigning.”