- Democracy Resources President Ted Blaszak
Portland resident Everett Jaros says he was approached six times by people seeking signatures for two petitions related to wildlife habitat restoration and a new casino. The petition efforts needed to submit over 100,000 valid signatures to the Secretary of State by Friday, July 2 in order to put measures on the November ballot.
Both of these petition campaigns used paid signature gatherers from Portland’s go-to petitioning firm for progressive causes, Democracy Resources. Jaros says he encountered a signature gatherer for the company who complained about the instructions she had been given. According to Jaros, the woman said she returned to the office one day with more signatures for the wildlife petition than for the casino. “She told me that her boss said not to come in again with disparate numbers of signatures for the two petitions,” says Jaros.
Jaros thinks this could mean the company put pressure on the woman to suppress signatures for the more popular petition (it’s been illegal to pay signature gatherers for the number of signatures collected since 2002).
He filed a complaint spoke with Janice Straight, an investigator with the Secretary of State’s office. She suggested another possibility: that the woman was trying to coerce him into signing the casino petition through sympathy. She asked if he thought the signature-gathering company was using coercive tactics. Jaros doesn’t think so: “She was not trying to get me to sign,” he says. “I think she was just venting.”
If the Secretary of State’s office decides that an investigation is warranted, they will send Democracy Resources a list of questions to be answered, and repeat the process until they feel they have enough information. All of these investigations are conducted exclusively by snail mail, so it could take a while.
Democracy Resources has not responded to the Mercury‘s request for further information or comment.
Update 7/13 11:40 am: Logan Egbert at the Secretary of State’s office says that Jaros never actually filed a complaint: he was told on the phone that he would have to submit something in writing in order for the Secretary of State to consider further action. Also, according to Straight’s notes from the conversation, she never “suggested a possibility,” but asked Jaros if he thought the company might be trying to coerce people into signing.
What’s far worse are the signature-gatherers downtown who will give you the 15-second run-through without ever mentioning the word “casino.”
“Sign a petition to bring jobs and economic development to East County with a family resort in Troutdale?”
Or something to that effect.
These people are annoying but they’re pretty easy to ignore. I just politely say hi back and walk on by.
I’ve been approached by the casino petitioners twice. First time, they claimed it was an “environmental initiative” and second time it was “for school funding”. I asked to see the petition language both times that I’d be signing off on and both times got the run around. “Democracy Resources”? Democracy, my ass.
I hate being harassed by signature gatherers. They always give you a 10 word spiel on what it is….who the fuck signs something like that without knowing exactly what it is you’re putting your name to?
Also, I was on the MAX going downtown on a busy afternoon a couple weeks ago when I saw a signature gatherer pushing a huge ass stroller down the skinny aisle of the MAX asking each person about signing. Who brings their kid to work like that? For crying out loud.
what happened to union money ted? you have been degrading your reputation for what, 4 or 5 years now with this casino petition and the argument that giving legal exceptions and incentives to big gambling is tantamount to taxing big corporations is ass-backwards doublespeak. Those that care are losing hope.