Political Gulags and One-Party "Voterstans" in Oregon

The unofficial results of Oregon primary elections for the write-in winners in those races where a major party did not field a candidate are in. It looks like John Kroger has won the Republican write-ins in the Attorney General race. Of course, he also won the Democratic primary handily. If Kroger “accepts” the Republican nomination after the results become official, he will have to choose one party label or the other for the General election ballot, but he will effectively block the Republicans from nominating anyone. If he declines the nomination, then that creates a “vacancy” which Republicans can fill under whatever party rules they have.

Local political party operatives gamed races in the May primary where there was no official candidate on the opposing party’s ballot. Republican Ted Ferrioli, for example, solicited Democrats in Oregon Senate District 30 to write him in as the candidate on the Democratic ballot. No doubt he will “accept” that nomination, closing off the possibility of the Dems running any competition in November.

Democrats employ the same tactic in staunchly Democratic parts of Multnomah County. The result in Oregon (as it is nationally) is non-competitive legislative and congressional districts, where incumbents are routinely re-elected.

In 8 Oregon senate races and 25 house seat contests the "other" major party did not put up a candidate. These districts are now little “voterstans” created by the Republicans and Democrats to carve up influence in the state.

Of course, such gaming isn’t “wrong.” We expect politicians to manipulate the system, and they meet these cynical expectations. Thus much of Oregon has been “sorted” by incumbents in the Legislature into “safe” heavily Republican or predominately Democratic districts.

This is bad enough at the federal level, where Republicans and Democrats even decide who gets to appear in the presidential debates. In Oregon, the “two-party” system is reduced to a one-party racket in much of the state.

The game is further rigged in Oregon since unaffiliated candidates must run a costly, party-made marathon just to get their names on the ballot. In 2005 the Legislature barred any Republicans or Democrats from signing an independent candidate’s petition for ballot access if the voter had returned a ballot in the May election --regardless of whether the voter had actually voted at all in the partisan races.

Oregon Districts where one party holds a significant advantage in voter registration are now political gulags for voters. Campaign cash, which is unlimited in Oregon state races, flows in one direction.

The entrenched parties like this system. The candidate who gains the blessing of the party which has staked out its own voterstan becomes the de facto winner after the primary. This makes it easy for developers and other special interests to channel their “support.” There’s certainly no need to debate or discuss actual issues.