Webb files ethics complaint against Edmondson in Precinct 4 race

Democrat Candidate Bryan Webb has filed a complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission, just weeks before a new Denton County Precinct 4 Commissioner will be elected, alleging his opponent Republican Dianne Edmondson’s campaign inaccurately reported expenses several times

Edmondson released a statement Thursday night calling Webb’s accusation “desperate” and “frivolous;” and, while she doesn’t outright deny the accusation, she does say that “nothing (Webb) says can be taken as credible by the voters.”

Edmondson and Webb are running to replace current Precinct 4 Commissioner Andy Eads, the Republican candidate for Denton County Judge.

Webb’s complaint says that in five of the Edmondson campaign finance reports this year, the campaign’s reported credit card payments exceed the expenses disclosed by a total of $8,250.13. The number of disparities in Webb’s complaint accurately reflect the numbers in the finance reports, which can be found at votedenton.com.

Documents also show that Edmondson’s campaign filed four corrections to its finance report in July.

In her statement, Edmondson points to a portion of a Texas Ethics Commission resolution that condemns the specific use of last-minute accusations in campaign communications.

The resolution says, in part, that if a candidate uses statements like “the TEC is investigating a complaint against Candidate A,” it is an “improper attempt to mislead the public” and “such language in campaign communications is an unfair practice and should be judged accordingly by voters.”

Webb has communicated about his TEC complaint with local news media, but hasn’t posted about it on his campaign Facebook page.

Early voting for the Nov. 6 election begins on Monday.