Race for Oregon's top elections job stays civil
The Oregonian
Janie Har
Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Three quietly vie to be secretary of state

Even in a crowded election year, you'd think there would be a little more heat over a seat at the center of citizen initiatives and voter rights.

But Kate Brown, a veteran Democratic legislator and Rick Dancer, a former television news anchorman, have waged a low-key, civil race for the office of secretary of state.

Brown is widely considered to have the edge in a state that's registered 130,000 new Democrats since January, largely over enthusiasm for presidential candidate Barack Obama. The former state Senate majority leader has a deep background in elections law and raised about $570,000 this year, although she spent much of the money to fend off two colleagues in the primary.

Republican Dancer, who's raised about $180,000, is running as the outsider who believes the office has become too partisan and alienating. He's never held elective office but is well-known to Eugene television viewers as a longtime news anchorman for the ABC affiliate.

"She is a career politician, and this, of all positions, is a bad place to put a career politician," says Dancer. "I've made a career of keeping my opinions out of my job."

Brown says voters can look to her many years in Salem, where she worked with Republicans to balance budgets and promote sound policies.

"I'm the only one, frankly, with actual experience being in an extremely political environment and reaching across the aisle to do what's best for Oregon," Brown says.

Limiting campaign contributions and citizen initiatives are two hot-button issues for the office. Initiative activists say the two-term secretary, Democrat Bill Bradbury, has imposed rules that make it harder to qualify a proposal for the ballot.

It's unclear whether that would change under Brown or Dancer. As a legislator, Brown helped pass laws regulating the system. Dancer says he's OK with the way things are.

However, the two do differ on the issue of campaign contributions. Brown says she would support asking voters to approve a constitutional amendment requiring limits. Dancer says he doesn't want to weigh in on an issue that voters should decide for themselves.

Dan Meek, a public interest lawyer who has spearheaded many initiative campaigns, says limits should be the most significant issue for voters.

"Oregon is one of four states with no limits on political contributions whatsoever," Meek says.

"It's absolutely central to elections, because in Oregon, unlimited money can determine who wins and who loses."

Both candidates say they would watch out for Oregonians, whether through rigorous audits or neutral administration of elections laws. Both say they would tap an advisory committee to help draw new legislative boundaries in 2011 if the Legislature can't.

Dancer says he supports Measure 65, also on the November ballot, that would open primary elections to all voters and advance the top two vote-getters to the general election.

He acknowledges that fellow Republicans aren't happy with his position but says there's something unfair about the current rules.

"It rubs me the wrong way as a journalist that 25 percent of our people are registered to vote, but they can't vote in the primary," he says.

Brown opposes the proposal, saying it would weaken the ability of third party candidates to get on the general ballot. A better solution, she says, is for the two parties to open up their primaries.

Earlier this year, Republicans huffed when Bradbury's office ruled candidate Jeff Duyck ineligible to run for House District 29.

Washington County elections officials had allowed him to vote in the district since it was created in 2001 and the state had certified his candidacy, unaware that Duyck's house was actually 100 feet outside the border.

Dancer says he would have asked lawmakers to convene a special session to try to fix a flub by government. Brown says Bradbury's job was to enforce the law.

"I don't think we want the secretary of state willy-nilly changing our laws and constitution," Brown says.

Making the race a three-way contest is Pacific Green Party candidate Seth Woolley. The software engineer doesn't plan to raise any money and hasn't.

Woolley would limit campaign contributions, ban all paid signature gathering, require a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to undo an initiative approved by voters, and use software to re-map legislative districts.

He, too, opposes Measure 65, because it would not promote more centrist or independent candidates, he says.

"I probably wouldn't be running if it weren't for Bill Bradbury, who's been keeping candidates off the ballot and keeping initiatives off the ballot," Woolley says.

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