Clark County Commissioner John Detrick filed a complaint with the Ohio Elections Commission late Friday against his opponent, Douglas Geyer, just four days before the election.

Detrick alleges that Geyer made three slanderous statements in a political advertisement in the Springfield Paper on Wednesday, as well as Geyer’s campaign website.

Clark County Commissioners made a lease agreement in July with the Community Improvement Corp. for the Clark County Agricultural Building, which will then be subleased to Konecranes Inc. for a global training facility expected to bring at least 25 jobs. To do this, agencies such as OSU Extension, 4-H and Clark County Soil and Water Conservation District will have to move.

In the advertisement, Geyer says commissioners Detrick and Richard Lohnes gave away the agriculture building without input or informing all members of commission or agricultural organizations affected, which Detrick says is false in his complaint.

Detrick declined to comment, but the attorney representing him said his campaign didn’t see the advertisement until Friday, which is why they filed the complaint so late.

Geyer and past opponents “have thrown mud at the commissioner before the election to besmirch the commissioner and we contend to vindicate the commissioner’s records,” attorney Daniel Harkins said.

Geyer wasn’t aware of the complaint shortly after it was filed, but said he believes his statements to be true.

“It’s somewhat satirical,” he said of the advertisement. “But I don’t think you’ll find anything in there that is false and misleading … I believe it’s an essential give away. The cost of removing all people in that building to make it available to (Konecranes) is simply unfounded. It’s not justified and it can’t be justified.”

Because the complaint was filed so late on Friday, it will not be set before the probable cause panel before Election Day on Tuesday, said Phil Richter, the executive director of the Ohio Elections Commission. He doesn’t know when a hearing will take place.

Even though the complaint will not be heard before the election, Harkins said that if the election is close he will argue that if not for the “slanderous” advertisement the race would have had a different outcome.