EAST AURORA, N.Y. — Republican David DiPietro is facing his first challenge for the 147th Assembly District in six years and he says it’s starting to get ugly.

"I've taken every race seriously since I was a trustee in this village and this campaign has morphed for my opponent into a lot of mudslinging,” he said. “We haven't done anything against our opponent until now but we've decided to take the gloves off.”

DiPietro said his Democratic challenger, Luke Wochensky, has spread some untruths about him and he's brought on long-time friend and political consultant Michael Caputo to fight back.

Caputo is known for running Carl Paladino's 2010 gubernatorial campaign and working for the Trump campaign in 2016.

"There's no one better in the entire country and Mike's a personal friend, a great friend of mine, and I know he's going to do a great job for me," DiPietro said.

However, DiPietro took his first strike against the Democrat even before Caputo came in board. In July, he and three East Aurora residents challenged Wochensky's residency status, claiming he'd lived in Russia until 2016. They lost, but from the candidate's testimony a new angle surfaced.

"It begs to ask the question, is he a tax cheat," DiPietro asked.

Wochensky admitted under oath to not filing state income taxes in 2014 and 2015 while he worked outside of the country. He said his accountant told him he was not obligated to do so.

"The constituents of my district in Erie and Wyoming County pay the most exorbitant taxes in the country," DiPietro said.

Along with Erie County Republican Committee Chairman Nick Langworthy, DiPietro said the information is relevant to voters, but they also believe it may be a legal issue.

"The chairman has filed with the tax department to look into this claim that he didn't pay taxes yet he says he's a resident, so if he was a resident and didn't pay, that's tax fraud,” he said.

A request for comment placed with Wochensky’s campaign was not immediately returned.