Oregon Business Association

April 24, 2008

A New Tool for Democracy

by Justin Delaney

In the first issue of the Balanced Voice, Phil Keisling told you about the Oregon Open Primary (Click here if you have not already signed the petition).  The measure allows all voters to vote in a single primary election, including unaffiliated and minor party members.  The candidates who receive the most votes advance to the general election, regardless of party affiliation or lack thereof.

The Open Primary is a significant improvement over our current primary system because it gives all voters a say in which candidates will appear on the general election ballot.  More importantly, it requires candidates to reach out beyond their party faithful in order to advance to the general election (more than 24 percent of registered Oregon voters are not members of one of the two major parties).

Since Phil’s piece appeared in Balanced Voice, significant progress has been made moving the measure forward towards the November ballot.  In March, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Washington’s “top-two” primary system, similar to the one laid out in the Oregon measure, stands up to constitutional muster.  Fundraising has been strong (although more help is needed to ensure this important measure makes it to voters) and more than 60,000 Oregonians have signed the petition thus far.  Check out some of the recent press on the effort or make a contribution here.

The most exciting development, however, is something that can make all Oregonians proud, even if they have never heard of the Open Primary.  For the first time in Oregon history, the petition can be downloaded on the Web, signed and mailed to the campaign for submission to the Secretary of State’s office.

No more signature gatherers chasing you down the sidewalk.  No more wondering if you just got hoodwinked into signing some crazy, regressive measure.  No more feeling bad about being rude to the nice kid working hard to make a buck.

The next time you are asked to sign a petition, just tell the signature collector that you did your homework and signed it in the privacy of your home or office.  Check it out by heading to www.oneballot.com and clicking the link to download and sign the Open Primary petition.

One more thing that could make an even bigger difference.  Simply copy the link, then embed it in an e-mail to your friends and colleagues.  Briefly explain why you support the Open Primary, urge them to download the petition and ask them to send it to more of their friends!.

It’s a quick, simple way to spread the good word – and help make the Open Primary a reality that will help Oregon for years to come.

Justin Delaney is Vice President and Assistant General Counsel at The Standard. Justin serves on the OBA Board and Executive Committee.