Erin BreenChannel 2 News
On your ballot for the special election there are four candidates – all hoping to represent you in Congress. You've heard a lot about two of the candidates from the slate of ads they're running.
Well, the other two candidates have bold stances on the issues as well, but if you haven't attended the debates, you may not have heard them.
Our "Reality Check" looks at who they are and where they stand as Independents.
Independents often have an uphill climb. Buying ad time is generally out of reach financially, but the two candidates running in the upcoming special election have made the most of what they do have; strong beliefs, social media and in Helmuth Lehmann's case… a book.
In fact, Lehmann's run for Congress actually started with his book, Losing America: How Self-Serving Leaders are Destroying Our Future. Just after its publication, Dean Heller's seat in Congress came open. Lehmann collected the signatures to get on the ballot, because "I want people to realize I'm here because the future of this country is jeopardy," Lehmann says. "I'm embarrassed to leave my kids and their kids the kind of future we will have if we don't change things."
Lehmann's background is in business, specifically turning around big businesses near the brink of bankruptcy. He's done it three time in last the decade. He tells us he's for a 17% flat tax with your first $10,000 a year and says medicare needs to be better funded. He also believes banks should not be given government money at 0% because they don't lend it out since they're making money investing overseas.
Lehmann says collaboration not compromise, is the key. "When we collaborate we see bigger possibilities and we see the root causes and when we see the root causes we can find potential solutions," says Lehmann.
Lehmann has a website and a Facebook page and in the next few days you may see him in Pahrump or North Clark County.
The Independent American Party candidate in the race is Tim Fasano. He's a navy veteran who's run businesses in aerospace and rocketry. He wants you to know he's a strict constitutionalist.
"I think government should get out of the way of the free market," Fasano tells us. He's also getting the word out through the Internet and on the interstate, driving to events and meetings across the state.
Fasano believes in a fair or flat tax, that social security is a sacred cow and he closely aligns himself with the politics of Ron Paul. He says his lack of a major party affiliation makes him accountable directly to voters. "Truly the Republican and Democratic parties don't have the interest of the American people at heart. They have their own interest, control."
There are 60,000 nonpartisan voters registered in Congressional District 2. That's not enough to swing the election but enough to make a difference.
I did a Reality Check with Democratic candidate, Kate Marshall Tuesday but I'm still waiting for a response from Republican Mark Amodei. Amodei has not returned our calls or requests for interviews this week. We still hope to talk with him so you can hear directly from him, about why he thinks he should get your vote.
