Saturday, April 26, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

McDonald says Moncrief broke election laws

Janet Moncrief Ward 1 challenger Michael McDonald Ward 1 councilman Click on the image for an enlargement.

Councilman Michael McDonald's campaign filed a formal complaint with the secretary of state Friday, alleging Ward 1 challenger Janet Moncrief and others working to aid her campaign have violated numerous election laws.

Moncrief, Peter "Chris" Christoff, also an opponent of McDonald's in the primary election, and "one or more John Does" have worked in concert as part of a "conspiracy of deception, illegal mailings, vast under-reporting of expenditures and other unlawful acts," the complaint states.

The goal of the conspirators, according to McDonald campaign manager Jim Ferrence, who drafted the complaint, is to smear the two-term Las Vegas councilman to the benefit of Moncrief.

"It (the complaint) makes it perfectly clear Moncrief and Christoff are working as a unit," he said Friday. "Christoff is a stalking horse to allow Moncrief to take the high road."

In the April 8 municipal primary election, Moncrief outpolled McDonald 48 percent to 44 percent, sending the two to a runoff in the June 3 general election. Christoff received only 5 percent of the primary vote and was eliminated.

Moncrief, who has credited her unexpected showing against McDonald in the primary to weeks of door-to-door campaigning and inexpensive mailers, denied the allegations.

"It sounds like an act of desperation from the McDonald camp," she said.

Ferrence supports his accusation of a Moncrief-Christoff link with affidavits from Robert and Lillian Simpson. According to both sworn statements, Christoff told the northwest valley couple in February he knew he couldn't win the primary, but would play the "bad guy" to bolster chances for a Moncrief victory.

During the same conversation at the Simpson home, Christoff asked Lillian to run a phone bank for Moncrief. In return, he said he would pay her $5,000, which he would receive from Moncrief's "manager," according to their affidavits.

Christoff again approached her after Moncrief's primary victory, asking her to run a phone bank, according to Lillian Simpson's affidavit.

Moncrief said she has met Christoff on only two occasions: at a group function to which all Ward 1 candidates were invited, and in an appearance on "Face to Face with Jon Ralston," a cable television program.

Christoff also told Robert Simpson he was about to receive $38,000 from strip club owner Pete Eliades to pay for the mailing of 17,000 fliers targeting McDonald, according to Robert Simpson's affidavit.

"I can't vouch for him telling the truth," Robert Simpson said of Christoff Friday, "but that's how he told it."

Christoff and Eliades, who owns the Olympic Garden Topless Cabaret, have known each other for years and talk occasionally. But Eliades said Christoff never asked him for money.

"Somebody is lying," Eliades said. "It's absolutely not true."

Christoff said the Simpsons' statements are false. Robert Simpson, he said, is a "liar."

Christoff alleged Lillian Simpson approached him about running a phone bank for Moncrief.

During the primary election campaign, Christoff sent out several postcards reminding Ward 1 voters of previous ethics complaints against McDonald and comments made by Mayor Oscar Goodman during his feud with the councilman in 2000. Christoff has vowed to continue to mail more fliers leading up to the general election runoff between Moncrief and McDonald, saying he'll spend between $25,000 and $38,000 on the effort.

Robert Simpson said Christoff spoke to him on numerous occasions about his campaign. The couple decided to come forward with their testimony only after they learned of the latest campaign finance reports, which they believe don't fully reflect the amount of money Christoff and Moncrief have spent.

According to those reports, filed April 16, Moncrief raised $11,000 and Christoff raised $5,000.

"The math just doesn't work out," Robert Simpson said. "We really didn't want to be drug into the thing. But we thought it was wrong, and we have to tell it no matter what the consequences."

The Simpsons do not live in Ward 1, and therefore cannot vote in the Moncrief-McDonald race.

Ferrence also alleges under-reporting by Christoff, Moncrief, one or more John Does or some combination of the parties.

Moncrief, who reported $11,761 in expenditures, said she produced her four primary mailers on her own computer and sent them to a small number of carefully targeted households. The figure also doesn't reflect money she spent on mailers after the reporting period ended, she said.

Ferrence argues a total of 11 mailers were sent out during the primary by parties other than McDonald's campaign, while Christoff and Moncrief report spending only a combined $15,921. He said a conservative estimate shows an additional $45,000 to $100,000, unaccounted for in the finance reports, was spent to campaign against McDonald.

The councilman likened the anonymous expenditures to money laundering.

"This is blatant," McDonald said. "People have broken laws here."

Moncrief, a registered nurse and surgery center director, denied knowing of any anonymous contributors as alleged in the complaint. "I definitely don't know any John Does, other than those who end up in our emergency room without a name," she said.

Three of the mailers were distributed under the names of political action committees not yet registered with the secretary of state, as required by law. The committees included "The Committee to Oust Michael McDonald," "Republicans for Good Government," and "Citizens for Better Government," a name Ferrence said was illegally used in a "persuasive poll" telemarketing campaign.

Christoff later claimed responsibility for sending 17,000 mailers attributed to the "Committee to Oust Michael McDonald." On Friday, he described his failure to put his name on the mailers as a "human error."

Ferrence also alleges Christoff made "false statements of fact" in one postcard mailed to voters.

McDonald's campaign manager said his main purpose in filing the complaint with the secretary of state was to prompt an investigation with subpoena power. Only then, he believes, can the financier behind the conspiracy be found.

"McDonald has a right to face his accusers," he said.

After Moncrief won the primary, Ferrence said he expected a "tight race" and a "barn-burner" in the general election.

Moncrief believes that's the true motive behind the Ferrence's complaint.

"Maybe he's done polling that shows what my polls show," she said of the accusations. Moncrief said her campaign's polling of random Ward 1 residents show her with a comfortable lead at 49.8 percent to 32.2 percent for McDonald, with 18 percent of those contacted undecided.

Chief Deputy Secretary of State Renee Parker said a letter will be sent to those named in the complaint, requesting a response. After receiving the responses, officials will either close the matter, request the Nevada Division of Investigations conduct an inquiry or turn the matter over to the attorney general's office.