GOP Congressional Candidate Says Rival Won't Debate

There appears to be a drastic difference of opinion on whether there will be a debate featuring the three Republicans seeking the congressional seat representing the 4th District, which includes Attleboro and Seekonk. Candidate David Steinhof claims Sean Bielat, who most political observers consider to be the frontrunner, won't debate him and fellow candidate Elizabeth Childs. Meanwhile, a Bielat spokeswoman says a debate is actually be finalized for next month.

"The Steinhof campaign has now heard from no less than 10 [Republican town] committees that a debate including all of the candidates will be impossible because Sean Bielat is pulling the same 'Catch me if you can!' stunt he pulled during his 2010 campaign," Steinhof wrote in an email issued to the media. "Maybe Mr. Bielat doesn't have any solutions. Or most likely, he's waiting to hear the solutions of Elizabeth Childs and David Steinhof. Maybe he's counting on a few debate forums between Childs and Steinhof in order to gather enough material to use for his own campaign."

Sarah Rumpf, spokeswoman for Bielat's campaign, called the accusation "a blatant lie." She told Attleboro-Seekonk Patch that the Bielat campaign has agreed to participate in a debate next month on the Jeff Katz radio show. It is just a matter of finalizing the date. Also, the campaign is in contact with various Republican town committees about hosting additional debates.

"We have received several debate invitations over this month that were initiated by the Childs campaign, but only included our campaign and hers, but we have always insisted that all three Republican candidates who made the ballot should be invited to participate in all debates," Rumpf wrote in an email to Patch. "For Steinhof's campaign to claim we won't debate when in fact we have been insisting on his right to participate is, at best, disingenuous." 

The primary election will take place Sept. 6. The winner of the Republican contest will face one of three Democrats—frontrunner Joseph Kennedy III, Rachel E. Brown or Herb Robinson—in the November general election.