Virginia Haugen insists that Shelley Erickson, her purported rival in last month’s mayoral primary, is “not my voice” as the Auburn City Councilmember continues her fall campaign.

Haugen defeated two challengers – Erickson, a businesswoman, and Frank Lonergan, a locksmith – to advance to the Nov. 3 general election for mayor and square off against two-time incumbent Pete Lewis.

In a phone call to the Auburn Reporter Thursday morning, Haugen insists that she is running a positive campaign, despite the negative, online rancor partisans for both sides have displayed.

Haugen concedes Erickson’s post-primary rhetoric “has gotten out of hand,” and added that she wants to move ahead as she and her volunteers knock on doors to secure votes.

“(Erickson) is not speaking for me,” Haugen said. “She has a lot of information. Shelley, Frank and I have shared information. We have worked together … but no, no, (Erickson) is not working for me.”

A Haugen supporter was overheard commenting in a downtown restaurant about how the candidate was maintaining a low profile in the race. Erickson, a small business owner, has been openly critical of city matters, and especially the mayor, whom she has accused of bullying business owners out of town and of harboring plans to condemn downtown properties such as Rottles and Comstock Books in the name of blight and bulldoze them for the sake of urban renewal.

Frustrated with the negativity, Haugen wants to move ahead.

“We’re trying to be very positive,” said Haugen, who is running a small, low-budget campaign. “I know there’s been some negativity out there from us about Pete. But we’ve put the skids to that. … This is not a personal thing. … We’re not going to stand around and bash people at City Hall.”

Haugen acknowledges she has some ground to make up in the next eight weeks. She garnered 27 percent of the vote from King County voters in the primary, compared to 47 percent for Lewis. In Pierce County, Lewis took 68 percent of the vote, while Haugen picked up 14 percent.

Haugen hopes that by winning the votes her challengers received, she can narrow the gap with Lewis.

“The campaign looks very positive,” she said. “We don’t have the budget, but we have some great people working for me.”

Haugen says her biggest concern is the direction Auburn’s downtown is taking.

“People want more from the theater, they want from more the administration,” she said. “And they want a more open administration.”

Haugen says she has nothing but respect and admiration for Lewis.

“Pete has a lot of money. He’s a tough guy, and he’s made us work really hard (in the campaign),” Haugen said. “Pete’s a wonderful person.”