Multnomah County

PORTLAND EVENT: SEATTLE TIMES/SF CHRONICLE COLUMNIST TO DISCUSS "THE UPRISING" - NEW BOOK ON RISE OF POPULISM IN 2008

David Sirota's new book includes chapter on efforts to unionize tech workers in the Northwest

On June 13th, bestselling author and nationally syndicated columnist David Sirota will visit Portland to discuss his newest book, THE UPRISING: An Unauthorized Tour of the Populist Revolt Scaring Wall Street & Washington (Crown Publishers, May 2008).

Today is election certification day, which means that the "abstracts" for the primary election are now available. These are the numbers that show precinct by precinct how many votes came in for each race, what the turnout was, etc. It's also when you can find out if you were elected as a Precinct Committee Person (PCP) and what the write-ins were for positions in which no one filed.

It was no surprise that I was re-elected as a PCP today - I was the only name on the ballot, and with three votes in my household there was already more than enough to get elected. I ended up with more than 180 votes. We also elected a male PCP through write-in (he received more than the 3 necessary votes). Numerous other people received only one vote, and I plan on contacting them to find out if they'd like to be appointed to a PCP position - there are still numerous available.

As soon as the abstracts became available for Multnomah County, I immediately downloaded the numbers and began preparing them for importing into Excel. I've been keeping track of numbers since the 2002 primary, which allows me to compare turnout, spot trends in voting, etc. I also looked at the write-in numbers for positions where there was no candidate filed. There were rumors about the Republicans trying to get candidates on the November ballot via write-in, and I know that was the case here in my State Senate district since we'd received a letter and post card from the Oregon Republican Party encouraging such a write-in on the ballot.

It's always funny to look through the write-ins. Often times you'll find a number of Republicans who have written in the name of the Democratic incumbent. Sometimes you'll even find they've written in a Democratic candidate's name. In looking through the write-ins for Multnomah County, I had some pretty big laughs:

Here's a letter I e-mailed earlier to those voting in this weekend's Third Congressional District Delegate Convention:

Fellow Democrats:

Thank you for signing up to participate in this weekend's Third Congressional District Delegate Convention. It's great to see so many people involved - especially those who have not been involved in the party until recently. Your activism is helping to better the Democratic Party of Oregon (DPO) as well as your respective county parties and house districts.

I know many of you through work in the Democratic Party, Bus Project, Oregon for Dean in 2003/04, etc., but there are a number of names I don't recognize. I'm always excited when I find names that I don't recognize - it means the party is growing.

So I finally made it out of the house and to one of the parties - Nick Fish for City Council. As some may know, I was supporter of his a few years back when he ran and this time have run the web activities for the campaign.

A small crowd has already arrived and is eagerly awaiting results of the night. Those of us with laptops have hidden ourselves in the restaurant at Kennedy School so that the entire party isn't the crowd surrounding the laptops instead of enjoying the party.

I'm pretty optimistic about Nick's chances tonight. The campaign worked hard to be out in the community talking to people, and I think that he's the best person to fill Erik Sten's former seat.

So, once again today we received correspondence from the Oregon Republican Party. Apparently they know that we haven't voted yet, but what they've failed to notice is the party affiliation change - there are no registered Republicans in this household.

Today we received this post card:

So they're definitely still working hard to ensure the Republicans have someone on the ballot in November against State Senator Laurie Monnes Anderson.

If it wasn't for this postcard and the previous letter, I'd have no idea this was going on. I haven't seen anything on The Outlook's web site, haven't heard anything around town, etc.

So it still makes me wonder - are we the only district they're doing this in?

And if they're going to spend money on an effort like this, doesn't it make sense to ensure the people are still registered as Republicans?

As I've already said, I'm supporting Rob Milesnick for the District 3 seat on the Multnomah County Commission. Of all the candidates, he was the one who understands the strife that has been happening between the County and east county, and he has ideas on how to repair the broken relationship between the County and the cities in east county.

Last month, The Oregonian endorsed my pick of Milesnick for the seat.

From their endorsement:

The toughest choice, by far, faces voters in District 3, covering Southeast Portland, where there are five serious candidates.

...

But the polished Milesnick would bring new energy and a fresh approach. It's telling that he earned endorsements from former county Chair Bev Stein and former Gov. Barbara Roberts.

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OLMC opens doors to opportunity for minority candidates!  

The Oregon League of Minority Candidates will host its kickoff gala on the evening of May 12, at the Oregon Convention Center.