Third candidate enters Lynn mayoral race

LYNN – A Lynn man running on the Constitution Party ticket has entered the city’s mayoral race.David M. Rohnstock, 50, of 285 Lynn Shore Drive, gathered enough certified signatures last week to make him an official candidate for the city’s top office.Rohnstock, a self-described investment specialist, has been a Lynn resident for a year and a half. As of May 29, he had 570 signatures certified by the city’s Board of Election Commission, according to Karen L. Richard, the head clerk.Rohnstock’s campaign platform addresses school choice, the city’s residency rule, illegal aliens, honesty in government, how to increase revenue and reduce crime.On school choice, Rohnstock said, “Put the control of children’s education in the hands of their parents instead of the teacher’s union. Lynn needs more charter schools that are based on merit pay.”The candidate supports doing away with the city’s residency requirement. “Abolish it,” he said. “Government has no right to tell people where they must live.”When it comes to illegal aliens, Rohnstock said, “Change the status of Lynn as a ‘sanctuary city.’ Make it mandatory that all residents and employees are here legally. Enforcement of the Constitution would dramatically reduce crime, property taxes and unemployment for Lynners.”Rohnstock said he would also work to “eradicate nepotism, patronage, fraud and wasteful spending.”The candidate said he would try to increase revenue. “Make better use of city-owned assets,” he said, citing as revenue sources the Lawrence Gannon Municipal Golf Course, Lynn Beach, various parking areas and the City Hall auditorium. “Run Lynn more like a business.”With an eye on crime, Rohnstock said, “Implement effective policies to change Lynn’s status as the third-highest crime-ridden city.”Rohnstock will run against incumbent Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr. and former Lynn mayor Patrick McManus.The Constitution Party’s mission statement “is to secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity through the election, at all levels of government, of Constitution Party candidates who will uphold the principles of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. It is our goal to limit the federal government to its delegated, enumerated, Constitutional functions and to restore American jurisprudence to its original Biblical common-law foundations.”Formerly known as the U.S. Taxpayers’ Party, the name Constitution Party was adopted in 1999 by delegates at the National Convention. Rohnstock said Rich Selfridge, area chairman of the party in Eastern Massachusetts, will serve as his campaign manager. The candidate said the national party’s mission mirrors his own.Rohnstock has been attending City Council meetings in recent weeks.