New London — Andrew Lockwood, one of three candidates running for the 39th House District seat, issued a public apology this week to one of his opponents for what he has called an error in his campaign material.

Lockwood, a Republican running as a petitioning candidate, distributed flyers written in Spanish and English comparing Democratic candidate Chris Soto to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, with claims that Soto supports cuts to military spending and the relocation of the residents of the Crystal Avenue high-rises to a proposed complex on the former Edgerton School property.

Soto denies both.

While Lockwood has not backed away from his statement about Soto’s support of the Edgerton School proposal, he admits he was wrong to imply that Soto supports cuts to military spending.

“What Chris Soto said was ‘I don’t have a specific answer,'” Lockwood said in a reference to Soto’s comments about cuts to military spending during a candidate forum sponsored by The Day.

Lockwood said flyers were printed with the inaccurate information because of a “simple human error,” and the result of ideas floated for campaign material that erroneously were sent to the printer.

“The error falls on my shoulders and, as the candidate, I had the final approval,” Lockwood said.

Soto first saw Lockwood’s flyer at a debate on Wednesday and immediately called them fabrications — taking to Facebook with a video that quickly garnered more than 3,400 views.

“I don’t mind if someone says something about me — just don’t lie or twist things around,” Soto said.

When asked about defense spending cuts during the Day forum, Soto said in part, “I don’t have a specific answer right now, but we do need to think creatively on how to diversify the businesses we have in eastern Connecticut.”

During the Day forum, Soto said the best spot for the relocation of Crystal Avenue residents “has yet to be seen,” but he has since come out definitively against the former Edgerton School site.

“Yes, I think it’s a good project because any project that is going to improve the living conditions of those down at Crystal Avenue is a good project,” Soto said.

But Soto said to “warehouse people, whether it’s in towers or in townhouses,” at one site does not address the issues of socioeconomic mobility and housing desegregation. At Wednesday’s debate, he suggested that perhaps splitting the residents onto three locations would be preferable.

“There are better options. There are other solutions,” Soto said.

Lockwood has said he is against the proposed Edgerton School housing project and supports the movement of residents to multiple sites.

Green Party candidate Ronna Stuller, who is a member of the Planning and Zoning Commission currently considering a zone change in an area encompassing the former Edgerton School property, said she is barred from commenting on the issue.

During the Day forum, Stuller said defense cuts could be possible with the closing of hundreds of military bases overseas and suggested “we have enough sub contracts in place now to keep southeast Connecticut in jobs until about 2020. What’s going to happen after that?"

She said that the region should buck “an endless cycle of begging for a new contract” and find ways to diversify the economy.

Lockwood said his campaign material was reprinted and the older material discarded “at significant cost to myself and the campaign.”

“But it is the right thing to do. My campaign does the right thing with honor and integrity,” Lockwood said.

g.smith@theday.com