Issue Position: Protecting Access and Integrity to Our Elections System

Issue Position

The Secretary of State runs Oregon's election system, which is the foundation of our democracy. When it comes to supervising elections, the most important word is "Trust." Richard's reputation for openness and integrity is an important reason to make him our next Secretary of State. In the legislature, Richard has also been a leader in improvements to the initiative and referendum system, Vote-By-Mail, ballot integrity, the centralization and technological improvement of voter lists. Some of his priorities:

*Oregon's pioneering Vote by Mail system has made voting easier and more secure, helping keep Oregon's turnout among the highest in the nation. But Richard believes that nobody should have to pay to vote: he supports paid postage for all Oregon ballots.
*Right now, Oregon wins high marks for the transparency of its online contributions and expenditure reporting. But Richard believes that much more can be done to protect the integrity of the campaign finance system. Sometimes the issue isn't what campaigns report -- it's what they don't report. He will fix gaps in the system to ensure that all campaign activities are properly accounted for.
*Richard will also aggressively implement Oregon's new Motor Voter system to ensure access for very eligible voter. He also supports reducing the lag time between the voter registration deadline and Election Day, while protecting the security and integrity of the process.

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