Give Now
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
  • Full Schedule
Watch Live

Politics

49th Congressional Campaign Off To Aggressive Start

By Alison St John / Reporter
Published August 30, 2018 at 12:27 PM PDT
This story was published more than 6 years ago.
Diane Harkey and Mike Levin are shown in undated photos.
Diane Harkey and Mike Levin
Diane Harkey and Mike Levin are shown in undated photos.

The candidates in the highly competitive 49th Congressional District race to replace Darrell Issa are launching the campaign season with attacks. Republican Diane Harkey and Democrat Mike Levin are coming out of the gates swinging.

It’s not yet Labor Day and Harkey, Darrell Issa’s handpicked successor, has a cable TV ad accusing Levin, an attorney, of working on behalf of Countrywide Financial during the mortgage meltdown. Over ominous music, a voice accuses Levin of earning thousands of dollars defending Countrywide and evicting families from their homes.

Levin’s campaign denies ties to Countrywide's deceptive practices, saying Levin worked for a firm contracted by Bank of America that fought fraudulent mortgage claims after Bank of America bought Countrywide.

Advertisement
Become a KPBS sponsor

Democratic candidate Paul Kerr spent money on ads with similar attacks before the June primary election, but Levin dismissed them as misleading and beat Kerr convincingly to win a spot on the November ballot.

Levin is hitting back against Harkey with an 8-minute online video featuring seniors like Lynn Hasney who lost everything in a Ponzi scheme managed by Harkey’s husband involving real estate investments. Dan Harkey was ordered to pay back more than $12 million.

"I wouldn’t be surprised at all if she’s using all the money that they got from duping all of us to fund her campaign right now," said Hasney in the video.

A California Appeals Court recently affirmed Dan Harkey’s conviction in the multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme. Diane Harkey was listed as an officer in the company but was not implicated in the conviction.

The 49th Congressional District stretches from Del Mar to Dana Point and is one of the most competitive congressional seats in California due to changing demographics. Incumbent Republican Darrell Issa decided to retire after serving in the seat for 18 years, rather than risk losing it.

Advertisement
Become a KPBS sponsor

Levin’s campaign has been the most effective at fundraising, with more than $2 million raised leading up to the June primary. Harkey raised $700,000 before June, of which $100,000 was a loan from herself.

49th Congressional Campaign Off To Aggressive Start
The candidates in the highly competitive 49th Congressional District race to replace Darrell Issa are launching the campaign season with attacks.

Tags

Politics North CountyPolitics, Democracy and Elections News
Alison St John
Alison St John currently serves as a general assignment reporter and occasionally co-hosts KPBS Midday Edition. She fell in love with KPBS Radio when she arrived in San Diego in 1985 and first heard NPR. She has been a voice on KPBS Radio since 1989, and has served as a news reporter for radio, TV and the web, as well as anchoring, hosting, producing and editing. Alison has reported on stories about North County and was based in the KPBS' North County Bureau. Alison covered the metro beat during the critical period of the San Diego City pension crisis, and the education beat while Alan Bersin was the controversial Superintendent of San Diego City School District. She covered health when the industry was converting to managed care and told welfare reform stories in the late 1990s when Clinton was “ending welfare as we know it.” She has covered land use issues extensively, looking at the challenges of meeting a growing population while preserving community character, and developing a better transportation system to meet environmental concerns. She has done many stories on the military in San Diego, and the series she edited on the challenges veterans face returning from active duty to civilian life won “Best of Show” from the San Diego Society of Professional Journalists. She occasionally hosts the KPBS Roundtable and KPBS Midday Edition. Alison has won awards from the San Diego Press Club, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Associated Press TV and Radio Association, and the California Golden Mike Awards. Alison was born in Tanzania, brought up in Scotland, and earned her degree in psychology and sociology from Durham University in England. Her postgraduate diploma is in student counseling. She worked in England, Nigeria, Switzerland, Belgium, India, and Japan before moving to the United States in 1981. She now lives in Oceanside and enjoys how her community is growing and changing.
Public Matters Graphic Image of people behind a text that says "Public Matters"
Public Matters
You are part of something bigger. A neighborhood, a community, a county, a state, a country. All of these places are made stronger when we engage with each other in conversation and participate in local decision-making. But where and how to start? Introducing Public Matters.
Explore
More News