Today the great State of Oregon has seen fit to deliver me both a Jury Summons, and my 2022 Primary Ballot. What a day for civic engagement! I figured that while I filled out my ballot, I would let you know who I am voting for and why. To inform my decisions, I will be using the State Voter Guide, the Deschutes County Voter Guide, Laura Camacho's Voter Guide, endorsements from The Bulletin, The Source Weekly, and individuals whose opinions I respect. While I will be participating in the Democratic Primary, I’ve also made a halfhearted attempt to included picks for the Republican Primary, because I’d like any person who is elected to represent me to be as qualified as possible.
Okay, lets open the envelope
US Senator: Ron Wyden
As much as I want to send fresh blood to Washington, I don’t think we have strong enough candidates to replace Ron Wyden for US Senator this year. Ron Wyden has been our Senator since 1996. He is a strong supporter of LGBTQ and abortion rights and that is very important to me. I also care a lot about data privacy, and his past stances on Net Neutrality, the Patriot Act and his work to fight against SOPA and PIPA are appreciated.
US Representative 5th District: Jamie McLeod-Skinner
This one isn’t a hard choice for me at all. Jamie is a progressive candidate endorsed by all the people I trust, including Elizabeth Warren, The Source Weekly, The Bulletin, Councilor Kebler, Councilor Perkins, and the Deschutes Democrats. She is a strong candidate that I think will represent the newly redrawn 5th district better than Kurt Schrader. I like that she prioritizes workers rights, fighting corruption, healthcare, and the climate crisis. While Kurt Schrader is FINE and was endorsed by Biden, he is a Blue Dog Democrat that has a habit of tanking legislation I want to see passed in the name of reaching across the isle / being a moderate. He’s also been in Congress for 13 years, which is a long enough time for a representative that doesn’t wholly align with my political values. On a personal level, I also feel very annoyed that his campaign is filling my mailbox with so much garbage.
Republican Recommendation: Lori Chavez-DeRemer
Pulling this recommendation from her Bulletin Endorsement:
We see Chavez-DeRemer as bringing more diversity in life experience as a nominee to her party. She has a record of accomplishment in, albeit, local government. And it was she who has earned the endorsement of a number of Republican Oregonians, who we may not always agree with, but we certainly respect.
Governor: Tina Kotek
There are a lot of solid candidates here, but I am going to go with Tina Kotek based on recommendations by Ariel Mendez and Camacho, and endorsements from The Bulletin, the Human Rights Campaign, and Elizabeth Warren. As a lesbian, I know that she is going to be the kind of advocate for LGBTQ rights that I want in a representative that earns my support. I would love to keep that check box next to “Gay Governor” checked on my gay agenda. I also really like her focus on the homelessness crisis and advocacy for expanding Project Turnkey. Something that just suddenly became very important to me in State and Local races is abortion rights. She is endorsed by the Pro-Choice Oregon PAC.
Republican Recommendation: Christine Drazan
State Representative, 53rd District: Emerson Levy
I like Emerson, she is a mom and a renewable energy attorney and she engages with me pretty regularly on Twitter. I haven’t had an opportunity to meet her in person yet. She is running unopposed in the primary, so this is an easy pick. She cares about housing, wildfire mitigation, and childcare. She is endorsed by the Pro-Choice Oregon PAC.
County Commissioner Position 1: Oliver Tatom
Oliver is also running unopposed. I met Oliver recently and he was a pleasure to talk to. He’s a Registered Nurse and Licensed Paramedic that has centered his campaign around Health, Safety, and Education. One of the things I appreciated while talking to him about his potential political opponents was that he’d prefer to run against a candidate better suited for the commissioner role, than against someone who was worse for the county but possibly easier to defeat. I think that shows a lot of maturity. He is endorsed by the Pro-Choice Oregon PAC.
Republican Recommendation: Tony DeBone
I would much rather see a slightly awkward policy wonk who has 12 years of experience and positions I disagree with win the Republican Primary than a charismatic anti-vax crazy person, and that’s all there is to it.
County Commissioner Position 3: Morgan Schmidt
Oh my God, I love Morgan as a person, and her dog Buddy is so cute, active and loving, that I didn’t notice he only has 3 legs for over an hour. You can tell a lot about a person from their dog. I honestly don’t think I have met someone that has more of a genuine and kind first impression than Morgan. Morgan’s campaign is centered around Affordable Housing, Central Oregon’s Homelessness Crisis, and Mental Health Services, and she is endorsed by the Pro-Choice Oregon PAC.
Nonpartisan Offices
I’m not going to break these down individually. This is partially because I don’t have much to say, partially because most of these people are running unopposed, and partially because I’m several hours into writing this post and I want to be done now thank you. I’m going off of Camacho’s Voting guide for all of these.
Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor and Industries: Christina Stephenson (She is endorsed by the Pro-Choice Oregon PAC.)
Judge of the Supreme Court, Position 6: Roger DeHoog
Judge of the Court of Appeals, Position 3: Darleen Ortega (Note: her opponent seems really gross)
Judge of the Court of Appeals, Position 5: Scott A Shorr
Judge of the Court of Appeals, Position 8: Ramon A Pagan
Judge of the Circuit Court, 11th District, Position 3: Bethany P Flint
Judge of the Circuit Court, 11th District, Position 6: Wells B Ashby
Judge of the Circuit Court, 11th District, Position 8: Michelle A McIver
Judge of the Circuit Court, 11th District, Position 9: Alycia M Herriott
District Attorney, Deschutes County: Steve Gunnels
County Assessor: Scot W Langton
Democrat Precinct Committeeperson: Eileen Woodward
And thats all I got! Nothing left to do but write an approximation of a concluding paragraph. Now I’m going to go respond to my jury summons and read up on the concept of jury nullification. See y’all again on Wednesday for the regularly scheduled council meeting summary post.