Given that we are in the final days of the campaign for Suffolk Clerk of Court, it’s likely that a significant number of voters are making their final evaluations of the candidates, some based perhaps on what is written in the newspaper.

Unfortunately, there has been a recent flurry of &uot;letters to the editor&uot; that have gone beyond the expected distortions and mistruths one would expect during a campaign season. For some reason, they all come from supporters of Randy Carter. It would, however, be a disservice to your readers to allow flagrant breaches of the truth to be printed without a response.

Most of my detractors have begun their letters with language that says, &uot;I researched all the candidates….,&uot; yet, rarely is the &uot;research&uot; ever correct. The most recent letter, written by a Ms. Angela Koncz, is the most twisted about the facts.

Ms. Koncz writes, &uot;Mrs. Gayle also conveniently leaves out that she was a Deputy Clerk of the Juvenile Court in Portsmouth. Reading today’s Virginian-Pilot, she states she is an Administrator, which is she?&uot; The correct answer, as it has always been, is that I was a Deputy Clerk in Portsmouth for five years and now currently serve as the Chief Court Administrator for the Portsmouth Commonwealth’s Attorney where I work hand-in-hand with both the Circuit Clerk of Court and the Juvenile Clerk of Court everyday. Not only did I not conveniently leave that out, I placed that very information in the very first sentence of my campaign literature because I am proud of my professional experience.

My detractors want to diminish my experience by saying that my five years as Deputy Clerk was in Juvenile and Domestic Court, not Circuit Court. There are some differences between the two, but none are substantial enough to be a valid campaign issue. What I do find substantial is that none of the other candidates have ever worked in a Clerk of Court, anywhere. That lack of experience seems to be conveniently overlooked by these letter writers.

By and large my campaign has been a rewarding experience. The opportunity to meet the hundreds of people door-to-door has reaffirmed my commitment to serve the citizens of Suffolk as the Clerk of Court. This has truly been a labor of love for me.

I recommend that voters read the profile on my candidacy done by the Suffolk News-Herald this week. It is a fair account of my experience.

Barbara X. Gayle

Candidate for Clerk of Court