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Oregon debates top two primaries

Washington has used system since 2008

The Columbian
Published: October 5, 2014, 5:00pm

PORTLAND — For the half-million Oregon voters who reject party labels, the May election ballot can be pretty boring.

Shut out of the Republican and Democratic primaries, this growing bloc of voters is left with a handful of nonpartisan local races and a perplexing question: Is it necessary to vote for all these judges running unopposed?

This November, Oregon voters decide whether to enliven their primary ballots. Under Measure 90, the state would abandon partisan primaries and adopt a top two election system similar to what is used in neighboring Washington and California.

Instead of only Democrats voting in the Democratic primary and only Republicans voting in the Republican primary, the measure would put all candidates on a single ballot and allow everyone — including nonaffiliated voters — the chance to vote. The two top vote-getters would advance to the general election in November, even if they are from the same party, or none.

Supporters contend the measure increases fairness by giving independent voters a voice. Their other selling point is that centrist candidates would have a better chance of going to Salem or Washington, D.C., because Republicans and Democrats would need to broaden their appeal beyond their primary bases, typically social conservatives and union members, respectively.

“We don’t call this a panacea that fixes all the problems with politics,” said Jim Kelly, the chief petitioner. “It’s merely a step in the right direction.”

Oregon voters trounced a similar measure six years ago, and opponents maintain it’s still a bad idea.

The Republican and Democratic parties, which opt to close their primaries, naturally oppose the measure. But some of the toughest criticism has come from minor parties that worry they’ll never make the November ballot. Labor unions, meanwhile, have contributed much of the $300,000 raised to fight Measure 90 as of Oct. 1.

Compared with those who vote in the general election, the primary electorate tends to be older, whiter and more Republican — not exactly labor’s core.

“There are six different ways that states across this country run primaries, and this ‘top two’ is the only system that limits choice in November, when the overwhelming majority of people are paying attention and the real decisions are made,” said Meghan Moyer, the campaign manager for Protect Our Vote.

The campaign in favor of Measure 90 has raised more than $1 million, mostly from business interests. Texas billionaire John Arnold contributed $500,000.

“I believe they want the current group of people who vote in primaries — less diverse, more affluent — to be narrowing the field,” Moyer said.

Washington has been using the top two system since the 2008 primary and California since 2012. This fall’s race in Washington’s 4th Congressional District features two Republicans, something that can’t happen under Oregon’s current system.

Kelly, a Democrat who lives on a ranch in Eastern Oregon, does not see that as a problem. In the current system, a Democrat living in rural Oregon faces a choice in November between a conservative Republican and a sacrificial lamb.

“My vote doesn’t count; essentially very few Democrats run for races and those few who do don’t have a chance,” Kelly said recently at a Portland bakery. “A Republican living in this neighborhood? Same situation as me out there.”

In the top two format, he said, the outnumbered voter might help elect the less-extreme member of the dominant party.

Another potential drawback is vote-splitting between several candidates from the same party. In a California primary two years ago, the two Republican candidates advanced to the general election in a district that leans slightly Democratic. It happened because the Republican turnout was stronger, as is common in primaries, and the four Democrats split the Democratic votes.

The system proposed in Oregon somewhat lessens that possibility. The ballot would note which candidates have endorsements from party leaders, giving uninformed voters some direction.

Eric McGhee, a researcher with the Public Policy Institute of California, a nonpartisan think tank, said the top two system has yet to produce the touted shift to centrism in other states, but it’s too early to draw conclusions.

It has also failed to get more people to cast ballots. The California turnout in 2012 was low and the turnout for this year’s primary was a record low. McGhee blamed boring races rather than the top two format.

“If you have an exciting primary campaign, that can draw independents to the polls,” he said. “They really need to see something exciting, in order to feel motivated to show up.”

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