The owner of an Oklahoma political consulting firm said a legitimate poll being conducted in Kokomo was doctored by opponents of Mayor Matt McKillip.

Last Friday, Republican mayoral candidate Rick Hamilton accused McKillip’s campaign of attacking his family through a “push poll,” a form of negative campaigning which masquerades as a phone survey.

Sources said caller identification showed the calls were made from a New York City phone number. Calls to the number were answered by individuals who identified the company as either “Central Marketing” or “Central Research.”

McKillip has denied allegations that his campaign is involved with the alleged push poll.

The mayor did, however, confirm the Oklahoman City firm Wilson Research Strategies has done polling work for him during the run-up to the May primary. According to McKillip’s pre-primary campaign finance report, Wilson received $16,000 from the McKillip campaign through April 20.

Chris Wilson, owner of Wilson Research Strategies, also confirmed Tuesday his firm has been polling in Kokomo and is proud to be working for McKillip.

Wilson said the firm is conducting polls for 15 to 20 mayoral campaigns in Indiana.

When asked about push polling, Wilson said his firm doesn’t do it.

But Allan Sutherlin, principal of Carmel-based political consultants Stakeholders Inc., said Tuesday he believed Wilson Research Strategies used the tactic earlier this year in Carmel against incumbent Mayor Jim Brainard.

“I wish I did know more about them,” Sutherlin said. “I was mad when it was happening against Jim Brainard. I don’t know who hired Wilson Research Strategies.”

Hamilton has been trying unsuccessfully to find a link between Wilson and the firm making the alleged push poll. Some of those who received the calls in question said the callers identified themselves as being from “Central Research Services” or “Central Marketing.”

But a woman who identified herself only as “a supervisor” told the Tribune Friday that Central was making calls in Kokomo.

During his interview Tuesday, Wilson first said Central Marketing Services was not involved in polling in Kokomo.

When told the telephone caller identification went back to Central Marketing, Wilson called Central “a sister company” of Wilson Research. If a supervisor told the Kokomo Tribune they were calling in Kokomo, they would be fired, Wilson said, as employees are instructed not to reveal such information.

Wilson then alleged someone must have recorded the questions being asked during the legitimate polling commissioned by McKillip, and then produced an altered version of the same interview.

Wilson said the questions asked — all of which Hamilton’s campaign termed false and misleading — were similar except for the final one concerning abortion.

Wilson said he suspected someone in Howard County added the most controversial of the statements reported to the Tribune, the allegation one of Hamilton’s daughters had an abortion.

He said that on the transcript of the tape, the caller said “good afternoon.” Wilson said his business only calls after 6 p.m. to comply with Indiana law.

“We use 350 telephones,” Wilson said. “There would be a lot of background noise on any tape recording.”

According to a transcript of the alleged push poll made public by the Kokomo Perspective, the individual being called asks the caller who paid for the poll.

“I’m pretty sure this one is for McKillip,” the caller says, according to the transcript.

Wilson said interviewers are never told who commissions polls.

“If someone said that, they would be fired,” Wilson said.

Hamilton laughed when told of the allegation that the questions were altered

“That’s the latest spin?” he asked incredulously.

Wilson’s statements are not true because the telephone numbers went back to a New York area code, Hamilton said.

“These were not local calls,” he said. “It was clear to me last Friday who was doing the poll. Now you have proof.

“Unfortunately, my daughters’ reputations have been unfairly stained with lies, something they can’t totally get back,” Hamilton said, describing the calls as “evil.”

Although the call didn’t specify which of Hamilton’s four daughters the abortion allegation was made against, Hamilton said none of his daughters have ever had an abortion, and that his family supports a “pro-life” stance.

Craig Dunn, chairman of the Howard County Republican Party, asked how supposedly local calls were done in such a way that the caller identification number would come back as from the East Coast.

“The caller ID number went back to Central Marketing,” Dunn said. “He [Wilson] is a paid liar, is what I think.

“That dog just isn’t hunting,” he said of the allegation that a legitimate survey was altered locally.

Jennifer Hollowell of the Indiana State Republican Party said Monday that Wilson is an old friend. Both worked on the 1994 campaign of David McIntosh.

“The subject was not about Kokomo,” she said. “As he left, it was mentioned they were doing some polling in Kokomo. That is as far as it went.”

Ken de la Bastide can be reached at (765) 454 -8580 or via e-mail at ken.delabastide@kokomotribune.com