A special election will be held on Tuesday, January 26, in which Oregon voters will determine whether to repeal taxes enacted during the 2009 legislative session. In order to participate in that election, Oregon citizens must be registered to vote by Tuesday, January 5. (To vote in Oregon you must register in the county where you live at least 21 days before the election.)
If you have moved since the November 2008 election, you need to update your voter registration in order to ensure that you receive your ballot in January. If you need additional information about voter registration, you may wish to contact either of the following sources:
Visit the Voting in Oregon Guide for more information.
Unsure if you are already registered? You can find out here .
Election Process
FairVote (formerly the Center for Voting and Democracy)
Organization dedicated to achieving universal access to participation, they provide background information on election issues (redistricting, proportion representation, instant runoff issues, and voter turnout for example)
United States Electoral College (NARA)
Electoral college laws and procedures, state-by-state electoral college votes, 1789-2004; number of state electoral votes for 2008
Electoral College
United States Electoral College (NARA)
Electoral college laws and procedures. State-by-state electoral college votes, 1789-2004
Electoral College (Fair Vote)
How the electoral college works, which states bind their electors, faithless electors (Organization is lobbying for Presidential election by popular vote)
Interactive map of the electoral college for 2008
Center for Responsive Politics
Non-partisan research group monitoring campaign finances. Summary reports on Presidential and Congressional campaigns by contributor, industry and zip code. Data base also searchable by donor
Summary receipts and disbursements of Presidential and all Congressional candidates
Search by candidate and year; then drill down to detail on individual contributors
Search by street address to determine the people in your zip code giving more than $200 to a presidential candidate. May also search by name of an individual
LexisNexis Congressional (subscription)
Under the Members section, search by Member of Congress to determine individual campaign or PAC contributors since 1987 and financial disclosures since 1991. Separate section on campaign finance reports
Can search by zip code for Presidential campaign donors of over $200
Fact Checkers
FactCheck.org (Univ of Pennsylvania) - Analyzes claims made by politicians in the news to determine their accuracy.
PolitiFact Truth-O-Meter - Congressional Quarterly and St.Petersburg Times effort to analyze truth in candidate claims. Approach by candidate, subject, or result (true, false, somewhere in between), by party and where they said it.
After the Elections
List of positions available for Presidential appointment, pay scale, and incumbent. ("Plum" refers to "Political Plum) 2008 edition expected in fall 2008
Humor
Indecision 2008 (Comedy Central)
Humorous videos and posters of the Presidential election from Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart
Singing video of John McCain and Barack Obama
A compilation website of political humor, jokes, cartoons and videos from a variety of media sources.
Congress.org election guide - Congress.org is a service of Capitol Advantage and Knowlegis, LLC; private, non-partisan companies that specialize in facilitating civic participation.
Project Vote Smart
Biographies, lobby group ratings, Political Action Committee campaign funding, Candidate answers to the National Political Awareness Test, a questionnaire on issues in the election, Congress, Governors, President, and State Legislatures
New York Times Election Guide
Biographies and blogs of Presidential candidates as well as their stands on the issues
Voting and Elections (USA.gov)
FAQs, particularly about campaign regulations, financing, and volunteering, Links to the electoral college
Democratic candidates
BARACK OBAMA - PRESIDENT
Official Web Site
Acceptance Speech (August 28, 2008)
JOE BIDEN - VICE PRESIDENT
Republican candidates
JOHN MCCAIN - PRESIDENT
Official Web Site
Acceptance Speech (September 5, 2008)
SARAH PALIN - VICE PRESIDENT
Congressional Candidates
Candidate Profiles (OpenSecrets.org, from the Center for Responsive Politics) - Politicians & elections, Influence & Lobbying, News & Analysis sections for Congressional and presidential elections
Congress.org - Includes links to 2008 Congressional and state legislative races by state
Congresspedia - Wiki on Congressional elections by state for 2008
CQ Politics - Section on House, Senate and Gubernatorial races to watch in 2008.
Presidential Debates
American Presidency Project (UCSB)
Transcripts of primary debates beginning 2007; will include general election debates after they happen.
Linked through CNN ElectionCenter2008
Commission on Presidential Debates
Text of the 2008 debates when they occur; text of debates for 1858, 1948, 1956, 1960, and every four years since 1976
Candidates On the Issues
Congress.org - Lists major Presidential candidates with candidate contact information, biographies, and voting information. Some biographies include the candidates’ positions on a variety of issues (economy, education, environment, job creation, health care, national security, tax policy, etc.).
New York Times Election Guide - Biographies and blogs of Presidential candidates as well as their stands on the issues (abortion, climate change, health care, immigration, Iran and Iraq)
On the Issues - Extensive web site analyzing positions of all Presidential candidates as well as incumbent governors, senators and House members on a variety of campaign issues. Relies on their voting records but also includes position statements.
National Party Websites
Party Platforms
Historic Party Platforms (American Presidency Project) 1840-2004
Third Parties Websites
Newspaper Coverage (Web)
LexisNexis Academic (Subscription)
Full text of newspapers for the United States and its major cities
Links to commentaries from 325 political columnists and political cartoons
Links to current articles of political columnists
Full text of today's New York Times and a searchable archive. LexisNexis Academic (subscription) indexes the Times, 1969-79; full text begins in 1980
USA Today section on 2008 elections
News Media Websites on Politics '08
major US news organizations, all include video from their television networks
Oregon Elections Division (Secretary of State’s Office)
Provides comprehensive election information to the public, including information on voting, campaign finance and candidates. They publish the state Voters' Pamphlet and distribute it to every household in Oregon so that all Oregonians have the opportunity to make informed decisions when voting. Some of the things here include:
Oregon Voters Pamphlet Includes text, explanation, financial estimates, and arguments for and against
Politics1 Online Guide to Oregon - A directory of Oregon candidates for State Cabinet, United State Senator and Congress in the current election cycle; state political parties; state news sources. Does not include candidates for state legislature.
Oregon Voters Pamphlet lists all candidates of all parties registered to run for public office
Project Vote Smart - enter your zip code and see the candidates running in your district.
Major Parties:
Democratic Candidates for Office: 2008 - from the Democratic Party of Oregon website
Republican Candidates for Oregon State House and Oregon State Senate from Republican Party of Oregon website
A non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates and ballot measures. It was formed in 1992 and was originally located here at Oregon State University. Read about them on their website or the article at Wikipedia.
Oregon, Northwest and National Politics & Elections News – from OregonLive.com
Stateline.org (Oregon page) - a nonprofit, nonpartisan online news site that practices journalism in the public interest by reporting on emerging trends and issues in state policy and politics.
KGW.com Politics page – Portland tv station, requires registration to view some parts of the site