Calling it ‘indefensible’ and ‘outdated thinking’, Elmwood Park GOP mayoral primary candidate Magdalena Giadomenico fired back at a flyer that appears to suggest that as a working mother of two young children, she wouldn’t be able to perform the duties of mayor.

The flyer (partial screenshot above) was sent by GOP mayoral primary candidate Robert Colletti’s campaign.  In a comparison of the two candidates, it states that Coletti is a ‘semi-retired businessman available day and evenings to handle boro business’ while Giandomenico is a ‘single working mother of children ages 2 and 5’ and that ‘her full-time job restricts her from dealing with boro business during the day’.

Giandomenico in a Facebook post said that the campaign had ‘no right bringing our children into this campaign’ and that ‘being the first woman to seek the office of Mayor in Elmwood Park was always going to be a challenge, but never did we expect that our children would be used as a campaign issue’ and called on Colletti to apologize.

Colletti issued a statement on Facebook, saying it was a ‘misinterpretation’ and that the flyer is ‘written objectively and is a fair overview of six candidates’.  He said the comparison was meant to ‘strictly compare’ the time each candidate has during work hours to handle mayoral duties and did not intend to imply that she, or any working other, can’t handle the job of mayor.  Colletti also wrote that Giandomenico mentioned her children in her own campaign literature.

Colletti extended an apology on behalf of his slate to ‘those offended by the statements’, adding that ‘we admire and respect the commitment of all working women—single and married—in handling their complex responsibilities, and are especially appreciative of those women who are willing to take on the difficult job of public office. Should we be elected to serve on the Council in November, it will be our pleasure to serve alongside four women officials—a majority—and the most women ever to serve on our Council in borough history’.

Earlier this morning, Giandomenico posted this photo to Facebook: