Looking back on a year as secretary of state
– Jeanne Atkins, Oregon Secretary of State, for Oregonlive
Friday, March 11, marks one year since I took the oath of office as Oregon’s secretary of state.
…While I have certainly “taken care” of the agency this last year, I have also served with my own goals and expectations for the agency. I was determined to keep the agency moving ahead …I committed to successfully implementing Oregon’s first-in-the-nation program to automatically register Oregonians to vote.
As of Jan. 1, Oregon’s “motor voter” law is up and running smoothly. With this pioneering law, we are adding thousands of voters to the rolls every month….
We Respond & Your Comments
Under our new Motor Voter Law, when Oregonians apply for drivers’ licenses they’re automatically registered to vote. They can choose which party to join or be registered as “unaffiliated.”
According to our secretary of state’s website, “The program…provides a secure, simple and convenient way for more Oregonians to be registered voters.”
How many new voters will be registered? And why was Guv Kate sporting such a huge grin when she signed it? They project about 300,000. Now – about that grin.
Oregon was the first Motor Voter state. The second? California. What do they have in common? Hint: It’s more than just having governors named “Brown” and Democrat governors and legislatures!
“The Brownies” will say they did it out of concern over low voter turnouts. But we know better – they love motor voter laws because they’ll generate more Democrat voters – lots more.