The race for Portland mayor is getting snippy.

The two leading candidates are accusing each other of being negative after complaints about polling.

Underdog candidate Sho Dozono says frontrunner Sam Adams is guilty of negative polling.

Adams denies that. He says Dozono is simply lashing out under pressure.

At the core of these complaints are two separate polls, one from each candidate.

Most recently, Adams commissioned a specialized poll designed to test out the negative points of each candidate.

“If anything, this poll was more negative about me,” said Adams.

A supporter of his opponent -Sho Dozono- was on the call list and didn't like the slant of the questions.

“Clearly, it's a negative attack on my business background,” Dozono said.

Dozono says it appears the Adams poll distorted a five-year-old lawsuit against him, a lawsuit that called into question how Dozono performed as a trustee for a friend's estate.

Dozono settled that suit for $800,000

“I've never been a professional trustee and I've paid every cent back with interest,” he explained.

What really bothers the underdog candidate is that such an issue was even raised by his political opponent in a poll of 400 voters.

“I'd like to think that the citizens of Portland are tired of negative campaigning,” said Dozono.

But Adams denies the questions were slanted or inaccurate. He says Dozono's supporter distorted his retelling of the poll questions.

“We've been expecting a negative attack from the Dozono campaign,” said Adams.

Adams says Dozono is lashing out under pressure.

Dozono has faced criticism over money spent on his own poll several weeks ago.

That poll was handled by Dozono's chief advisor Len Bergstein late last year. But Dozono says he didn't know how to report the expenditure until recently.

“I'm an outsider coming in brand new, not a politician,” said Dozono, explaining the difference between him and Adams.

Both candidates claim the other is turning negative in this mayoral campaign. Both candidates say they're eager to start debating issues relevant to the city's future.

Dozono says he cleared up that campaign expenditure issue with Oregon’s Secretary of State. He admits every day of this campaign is a learning experience.