Zac Petkanas

Congressional candidate Sydney Hay: Campaign PhotoSydney Hay, Republican candidate for the 1st Congressional District seat, is attacking Democratic opponent Ann Kirkpatrick for what she characterizes as ducking out on a forum in Show Low on Monday.

“I want all of the voters in the district to have the opportunity to know where both my opponent and I stand on the issues," said Hay. “I hope Ann will reconsider our invitation to come to Show Low and join me in this town hall meeting.”

The Hay campaign said it invited Kirkpatrick to the forum, yet Zac Petkanas, communications director for the Kirkpatrick campaign, said he'd seen no such invite.

"The first time I've heard anything about this is from you," Petkanas told PolitickerAZ.com. He said Kirkpatrick and Hay have already appeared at four forums together, including one in Show Low on Sept. 26.

The campaign of Democratic congressional candidate Ann Kirkpatrick claimed Friday that Kirkpatrick was far better positioned to win the open 1st Congressional District seat than Republican Sydney Hay. 

"Last Tuesday's results made it clear, people in CD-1 are looking for real change, not more of the same," said Kirkpatrick communications director Zac Petkanas in an e-mail to PolitickerAZ.com.

"Not only did our campaign win by 15 points compared to Sydney Hay's four," continued Petkanas, "our campaign garnered 8,000 more actual votes as well as a greater percentage of the total vote than did the Phoenix corporate lobbyist."

"At the end of the day," he said, "ten thousand  more Democrats voted than did Republicans in CD-1."