Holmen School Board candidates respond to alleged political ad with racist messaging

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HOLMEN, Wis. (WEAU) – A pair of candidates for the Holmen School Board are speaking out against an alleged campaign ad containing racist messaging.

Over the weekend, a Reddit user posted an image of a flyer depicting Holmen School Board candidates Josh Neumann and Chad Updike.

The two men say they don’t know who made the flyer, or who posted it.

“When we saw it initially, it was a shock, we wondered if it was real,” Updike said. “Once we understood that this was a coordinated attack, there was a little bit of anger at first, and then disappointment when we started to think about how it was going to impact, not only us and our families, but also the community at large .”

Neumann and Updike released a joint statement about the ad, saying it was “a blatant attack trying to discredit both of us in an attempt to gain political advantage.”

The Holmen Police Department is looking into the alleged ad, asking anyone who received a physical copy to call 608-526-4212.

“We’re hoping, ultimately, that they find out who did this, and that they’re prosecuted accordingly,” Updike expressed. “This doesn’t set a good precedent if somebody’s able to say these things and there’s no consequences.”

The candidates say the post has brought the wrong kind of attention to the school board election, and unfairly questions who they will represent.

“Chad and I are not running for school board because it’s fun, or because we’re looking for something to do on our Monday nights for the next three years, we volunteered to do it,” Neumann explained. “We’re not politicians, we’re two dads that want to be active, and do what we can to help at our local school level.”

“To have something like this happen in a school board race, I wouldn’t have even imagined that something like this could happen,” Neumann added.

The original poster claims they did not take the photo, but had it sent to them by a friend after the alleged flyer was left on their car.

The Holmen School Board election is set to take place on April 5.

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