Mao Tosi’s campaign for an East Anchorage Assembly seat was under scrutiny by Alaska Public Offices Commission Officials on Thursday. They held a hearing to address allegations of 15 violations filed in a complaint Tuesday.
The 15-count complaint was filed Tuesday by John E. Lewis who requested expedited review. However Lewis withdrew his request for expedited review because of his unavailability to attend Thursday’s hearing telephonically or in person. Attorney Elizabeth Hickerson, Chair of the Commission, told Tosi they would try to resolve the matter as soon as possible.
“What we think is the best thing is for the staff to work with the complaintant and the respondent and come up with procedures and timelines that will help us resolve this matter as quickly before the election as possible,” Hickerson said.
Tosi, a former NFL football player and activist who manages the Northway Mall and runs the non-profit, Alaska Pride Youth Programs, jumped into the race against sitting Assembly member Adam Trombley and candidate Pete Peterson at the last minute. Tosi sat with APOC staff directly after the hearing to begin resolving the allegations.
“With APOC officials, we’re going through each one to insure that we have taken care of these and once we finish these then I think we’re okay,” Tosi said. “You know, I just want to get finished with this so I can get back on the campaign trail.”
Allegations in the complaint include making campaign expenditures before filing for office, not properly identifying that political ads, like bumper stickers, were paid for by his campaign and using his position at the Northway Mall to benefit his campaign, among other things.
Daysha Eaton is a contributor with the Alaska Public Radio Network.
Daysha Eaton holds a B.A. from Evergreen State College, and a M.A. from the University of Southern California. Daysha got her start in radio at Seattle public radio stations, KPLU and KUOW. Before coming to KBBI, she was the News Director at KYUK in Bethel. She has also worked as the Southcentral Reporter for KSKA in Anchorage.
Daysha's work has appeared on NPR's "Morning Edition" and "All Things Considered", PRI's "The World" and "National Native News". She's happy to take assignments, and to get news tips, which are best sent via email.
Daysha became a journalist because she believes in the power of storytelling. Stories connect us and they help us make sense of our world. They shed light on injustice and they comfort us in troubled times. She got into public broadcasting because it seems to fulfill the intention of the 4th Estate and to most effectively apply the freedom of the press granted to us through the Constitution. She feels that public radio has a special way of moving people emotionally through sound, taking them to remote places, introducing them to people they would not otherwise meet and compelling them to think about issues they might ordinarily overlook.
