Candidate Lyda Ness-Garcia criticized for campaign ad

A candidate running for the 77th district is criticizing her opponent in a new TV ad. But while many may think this is politics as usual, some say this ad is just unethical.

Democrat Lyda Ness-Garica is running for State Representative of District 77, the seat held by Rep. Marisa Marquez, also a Democrat.

In her new campaign ad, she show’s a picture of Marquez standing next to Gov. Rick Perry, with a banner that reads, “Ness-Garcia is the real Democrat,” implying Marquez is not.

But the photo in that ad is actually cropped. ABC-7 received a letter from Marquez’s uncle Jose Antonio Marquez. In it, he said his image, as well as his brother’s was removed. It was actually a group photo taken after a ceremony at the Texas House of Representatives, honoring his father, a decorated World War II veteran.

Jose Antonio Marquez said the governor graciously took the time to congratulate the Marquez family and Ness-Garcia’s add is dishonest.

“I find this ploy by Ness-Garcia to be shameful and dishonest because it tarnishes the memory of a great patriot who was posthumously awarded the purple heart and two bronze stars for his combat action in France and Italy,” said Jose Antonio Marquez.

ABC-7 reached out to Ness-Garcia for her side of the story.

“We understand that in the heat of a political campaign, emotions run high,” responded Tyler James, campaign manager for Ness-Garcia. “Lyda Ness-Garcia has a profound appreciation for the service and sacrifice of all our community’s veterans. That is why she will fight for ALL our families, and work to expand Medicaid to provide health care for our veterans.”

Ness-garcia’s campaign also said Marquez’s donors have also contributed to Gov. Perry’s campaigns, which is just apart of the reason they chose to crop the photo and align her with Texas Republicans. They also said “this is just another thing distracting voters from the issues and her record.”

Rep. Marisa Marquez declined to comment.