Herman Welch, Waldport Mayor and lifelong Republican recently joined the Independent Party of Oregon, making him the first Independent Party member to hold public office in the state of Oregon.

Welch recently announced his switch to the Independent Party in a letter to the Oregonian:

Mayor no longer Republican

The Oregonian Feb. 22, 2009

At the age of 74 and after 53 years, I have finally quit the Republican Party and have re-registered as an Independent voter.

Most of us understand that the president's economic recovery program is not perfect and perhaps has flaws. But we also understand that our country is in the midst of a very serious crisis. The president understands the gravity of the problem and is trying to do something about it.

The Republicans in Congress (except for the three who put their country first and set aside party ideology by voting for the stimulus bill) have offered no constructive economic recovery ideas except to continue tax cuts for the rich (if any are left) and offer only worn-out ideology.

I still believe in having political parties that engage in vigorous constructive dialogue on economic issues, but as President Obama said recently, "When the town is burning you don't check party labels. Everybody needs to grab a hose."

Other Independents to hold local office are Robert Brundage of Sublimity, Soso Nedjeljko of Butte Falls, and Wayne Rofinot of Warren. Other prominent Independent Party members include former State Rep. Tony VanVliet and former Eugene Mayor Jim Torrey.

From November '07 through November '08 the Independent Party grew by more than 33,000 new members compared to roughly 10,000 for the state's GOP.

An analysis of the Independent Party's growth since October 2007 shows that roughly 40 percent of the party's new members were previously non-affiliated voters or members of a major party who have re-registered as Independents.

Independent Party caps off historic gains in voter rolls with historic election night.

The Independent Party of Oregon capped off 2 years of unprecedented growth -- registering more than 41,000 new members in 22 months -- with the most successful election in state history for a minor political party.

The Independent Party became the first minor political party in Oregon since 1887 to have its cross-nominated candidates win statewide office. The party's statewide cross-nominees were Jeff Merkley for U.S. Senate and Ben Westlund for State Treasurer, both of whom vigorously sought the Independent Party's nomination (in addition to their Democratic Party nominations). The last statewide officeholder to win the cross-nomination of a minor political party was Sylvester Pennoyer, who was elected Governor after receiving the nominations of the Democratic Party and the People's Party.

Kate Brown, the new Secretary of State, also sought and received the endorsement of the Independent Party of Oregon.

Joel Haugen, the Independent Party's nominee for U.S. House of Representatives in Oregon's 1st Congressional District, received 18% of the vote, one of the strongest showings for a minor party candidate seeking congressional office in Oregon history.

State Representative Vicki Berger (House District 20), a Republican who was cross-nominated by the Independent Party, was one of the few Republicans in a targeted race to retain her seat.

IPO candidates also fared amazingly well when facing major party candidates one-on-one. Pete Belcastro (I) collected 39% of the vote against Peter Buckley (D) in House District 5 (Jacksonville-Ashland). Terry Rilling (I) received 39% of the vote against Chuck Riley (D) in House District 29 (Hillsboro-Forest Grove). Keith Wangle (I) earned 29% of the vote against Dennis Richardson (R) in House District 4 (Grants Pass-Central Point). Both Buckley and Richardson are in prominent party leadership positions in the Legislature.

August 22, 2008 - The Marion County Circuit Court, Judge Paul Lipscomb, today ruled against the Independent Party of Oregon (IPO) in the lawsuit described below in this post. The court denied the preliminary injunction sought by the IPO and others. This does not end the case, but the denial of the preliminary injunction means that all candidates who have accepted nominations both from the IPO (or any minor party) and by a major party (Democratic or Republican) will be identified on the November 2008 ballot solely as the candidate of the major party.

"We believe that the Oregon statute allows each candidate to have up to two party labels on the ballot," said IPO state chair (and attorney in the case) Linda Williams. "We are disappointed that the information conveyed to voters on the November ballot will be restricted to only one party per candidate."

• Constitution of the Independent Party of Oregon
• Bylaws of the Independent Party of Oregon

The Independent Party is the only political party to grow in membership in Oregon during the first half of 2007. This screen shot from our google maps-based campaign software shows where most of our members live

The Independent Party of Oregon, the state's third largest political party (with more tha 55,000 members) today rolled out an ambitious agenda for good government reforms in the 2009 legislative session.

Note on June 29, 2009: We have indicated below the ultimate outcome of each of these bills. Of the 5 priority bills, 4 were enacted. The other one was passed by the House but killed in Senate Rules Committee.

HB 2386 - ELECTRONIC VOTER REGISTRATION (enacted)

This directs Secretary of State to adopt an electronic voter registration system, which would allow qualified electors to complete their voter registration electronically.

"This idea has been adopted with great success in Washington and California. It makes it easier for younger people and folks who are overseas to register to vote in Oregon," said the party's Secretary, Sal Peralta.

HB 2414 - CROSS NOMINATIONS LISTED ON BALLOT (enacted)

This would allow candidates who are nominated by one or more political party (cross nominated) up to two party identifiers printed next to their names on the general election ballot. This bill brings Oregon law into greater agreement with Federal laws as it relates to the recognition of state party committees that seek to support federal candidates. It clarifies existing Oregon law and settles to the satisfaction of all parties concerned a legal dispute between the Secretary of State and the Independent and Working Families parties," according to Linda Williams, the party's chair.

After this bill passed the House by 53-7 on March 31, it was stuck in the Senate Rules Committee until June 23, when it was suddenly and without notice sent to the Joint Ways & Means Committee. There it was "gutted and stuffed" with entirely different content. But on June 24 the House Rules Committee amended SB 326 (see below) to insert all of HB 2414. That bill then passed the House by 42-17 and the Senate by 25-5. The Democratic Party of Oregon (DPO) urged Governor Kulongoski to veto the bill, but he signed it.

SB 326 - REPEALING DISENFRANCHISEMENT OF NONAFFILIATED VOTERS (enacted)

In 2005, the Oregon State Legislature, by wide margins of both Democrats and Republicans, enacted HB 2614, a law intended to keep independent candidates off of the Oregon ballot by disqualifying all Republicans and Democrats who vote (on anything) in the primary election from signing any petition for a candidate seeking to qualify for the general election. The bill introduced other complications into the process for qualifying any candidate for the ballot by means of collecting signatures of voters. The only two Oregonians to testify against this bill were Dan Meek and Blair Bobier (of the Pacific Green Party). HB 2614 has made it more than twice as difficult to qualify any candidate for the November ballot by means of petitioning.

Senator Rick Metsger then made repeal of HB 2614 a cornerstone of his unsuccessful 2008 run for Secretary of State. He is making good on his promise to get it repealed. The Oregon Senate on May 13 voted for SB 326 by 27-0. The House Rules Committee on June 14 inserted the provisions of HB 2414 (see above), and the combined bill then passed the House 42-17 and the Senate 25-5. The Democratic Party of Oregon (DPO) urged Governor Kulongoski to veto the bill, but he signed it.

HB 2500 - BUDGET DISCLOSURE (enacted)

This directs the DAS to create and maintain a web site listing revenue and expenditures of state agencies and requires the agencies to prepare a monthly report on government spending.

"This bill brings much-needed transparency to the budget process. We believe that it will help to increase citizen involvement and oversight of a budget that has grown significantly over the past few decades," said Peralta.

HB 2588 - NATIONAL POPULAR VOTE (passed by House; killed in Senate Rules Committee)

This enacts the Interstate Compact for Agreement Among the States to Elect the President by National Popular Vote.

According to the Portland Tribune, former chair of the National Endowment for the Arts, John Frohnmayer is considering a bid for the U.S. Senate.

From the Trib...

Of late, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has been casting about desperately for a candidate to challenge Oregon Sen. Gordon Smith, causing speculation to arise even about nonpoliticians like John Russell.

In comparison to such speculation, however, one name sounds like a sure thing – John Frohnmayer. The only catch? He’s not a Democrat.

Frohnmayer, brother of former Oregon Attorney General Dave Frohnmayer and an art historian at Oregon State University, is a former chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts under George H.W. Bush.