Repeating a Lie Doesn’t Make It True

I don’t respond to false accusations; I just accept it as one of the dirty parts of political life. But when a lie is repeated often enough in a determined campaign of mistruths, some people may wonder “Where there’s smoke there must be fire”.

In the past term this group of individuals have filed 15 complaints with the Town Clerk and the Integrity Commissioner. Every one of those complaints has been dismissed.

Typically, I choose to focus on the job of mayor versus responding to these untrue complaints — however, due to the serious nature of the most recent allegations, I feel I need to set the record straight.

Over the past several weeks, a small group of individuals have purposely spread misinformation across social media to try to create an impression that I breached my ethical responsibilities as your mayor and used Town resources in my campaign.

The Integrity Commissioner was unequivocal. I have not used Town resources for my campaign. Period

They found that “The accounts are personal to Mayor Mrakas, and do not utilize Town resources.”

They further stated that “the use of an elected title, and the posting of information about public duties or community events, does not make a social media account a Town resource.”

They also confirmed that “the accounts remain owned and operated by the member and are not supported by municipal resources” and concluded that “the complaint does not require a formal investigation.”

Those are the facts.

I find it deeply disappointing that this style of politics, where false accusations are repeated in hopes they become accepted as truth—has become a tactic in local Aurora politics. I believe it reflects poorly on the character of the people and candidates that engage in this style of politicking. Smearing someone’s reputation for political purposes does nothing to improve our community or earn the public’s trust.

I will not quietly accept attacks on my integrity or credibility with manufactured falsehoods, and I don’t believe Aurora residents should tolerate this kind of misinformation either.

The overwhelming majority of our community is better than this. Aurora deserves honest, respectful, fact-based discussions—not manufactured controversy and political games.

I will continue doing what I was elected to do: serve the people of Aurora with transparency, integrity, and results.