Tag Archives: Jason Osgood

Jason Osgood Drops Out of Race for King County Elections Chief

Posted on December 10th, 2008 | Comments Off on Jason Osgood Drops Out of Race for King County Elections Chief

Jason Osgood sent out a press release this evening announcing that he is withdrawing from the race for King County Director of Elections. Osgood just finished a grueling unsuccessful race this year for Washington State Secretary of State.

Osgood is endorsing Sherril Huff – the current head of King County Elections as the most qualified for the office.

A big concern is that with multiple candidates and no primary, the possible vote split will see a winner with only 20 to 30% of the votes cast.

The Republicans who put together the Initiative for this election did not do the voters in King County any favors by the quick election process and not having a Primary. Right now the race favors the candidate with the best name familiarity and/or the best access to special interest money. This is the problem with making the office elected.

Below is the press release put out by Osgood earlier this evening:

December 9, 2008
*** For Immediate Release ***
Jason Osgood Supports Sherril Huff for King County Director of Elections

The following statement was issued today by Jason Osgood:

Sherril Huff today announced her intention to run as a candidate in the February 3rd special election scheduled to fill the position of King County Director of Elections. Huff is currently the appointed head of the department and is now the most experienced and best qualified candidate seeking this position. Her exemplary performance in the November general election clearly demonstrated that Huff is the most logical choice in this race. I have therefore withdrawn my candidacy for King County Director of Elections, effective immediately, and am fully supporting the candidacy of Sherril Huff.

I had an opportunity to speak with Sherril Huff earlier today. After congratulating her, I reiterated my commitment to advocating for open source alternatives to current King County election systems of which I and others have been critical. Huff expressed a willingness to work together on achieving shared goals and advancing the cause of election integrity in King County. I am confident that in the months and years ahead we will all move forward together.

These last nine months have been an extraordinary experience, first as a candidate for Secretary of State, and recently as a candidate for King County Director of Elections. I am incredibly grateful for the amazing support I have received from so many citizens, activists and fellow Democrats. I have learned so much, met so many wonderful people, and had the time of my life. I have no regrets. Thank you all.

Cheers,

Jason
Osgood

 

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Jason Osgood Tosses Hat in Ring to be King County Elections Chief

Posted on November 21st, 2008 | 1 comment

Jason Osgood, the recent Democratic candidate for Washington Secretary of State has tossed his hat in the ring to become King County’s first elected Director of Elections. Jason Osgood joins a growing list of potential candidates for the new county office approved by voters in the November 4, 2008 election.

The nonpartisan office was created by voters in the General Election when they voted to approve King County Charter Amendment 1 by a 56.25% yes vote. The first election to fill the office will be held on February 3rd. Filing for the office will occur from Dec 10th -12th. There will be no primary vote. Whoever gets the most votes wins.

Jason Osgood, speaking at the 46th District Democrats meeting on Thursday night announced to the group that he is running for the office.

Osgood in his race against Sam Reed for Secretary of State received 47.8% of the King County vote – some 390,934 votes. This gives him a good base to start form and name familiarity in the race. He has also been thoroughly vetted on election issues as a result of running for Secretary of State.

The Seattle Times reports that at least 7 other people besides Jason Osgood have expressed an interest in running. They run the range of the political spectrum political – including some far right candidates whose divisive politics hardly seem a good fit for what is supposed to be a nonpartisan office. People whose names were mentioned in the Seattle Times include:

“Chris Clifford, a local-government watchdog who is leading an effort to recall Seattle Port Commissioner Pat Davis, this week became the first announced candidate for elections director. …Among those thinking about running are veteran politicians state Sen. Pam Roach, R-Auburn; former King County Councilmember David Irons; and Seattle Port Commissioner Lloyd Hara….Other potential candidates are:
• County Council Chief of Staff Ross Baker, who says he has gone “two-thirds of the way” toward deciding to enter the race;
• Joe Fain, chief of staff to County Councilmember Pete von Reichbauer, and chair of the successful campaign to make elections of the council, executive and assessor nonpartisan;
• Anthony Hemstad, a management consultant, Valley Medical Center commissioner and former Maple Valley city manager.
With so little time for candidates to raise money and campaign, Nixon said it will be difficult for political newcomers to take on experienced politicians whose names are familiar to voters.”

Osgood just having been before the voters and running on election issues should be able to get a good start over the other candidates, especially those who ave never run for office before or that never ran county wide or those that are not mainstream candidates.

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Rep. Jay Inslee May be Next Secretary of Interior

Posted on November 1st, 2008 | Comments Off on Rep. Jay Inslee May be Next Secretary of Interior

Among the names circulating as possible candidates for positions in an Obama administration is that of Democratic Congressman Jay Inslee for Secretary of the Interior. A second name mentioned is that of Robert F Kennedy, Jr.

You can check out the list of names of potential candidates being discussed for staff and Cabinet positions in an Obama Administration according to a post today by Politico.

As noted by Politico:

“The list is heavy on campaign heavyweights and Washington insiders, many of them from the administration of President Bill Clinton. So while surprises can be expected to crop up — especially on any Republican members of the Cabinet — many of the selections would likely be proven hands who would provoke little controversy. Obama has not communicated his final choice on any of these posts but plans to move very quickly if he is elected, according to the sources. They point to the political price that Clinton paid for dilly-dallying on his appointments and nomination. “

Good for a little diversion and feel good reading at seeing some great names as possible key players in an Obama Administration but don’t forget the election isn’t over yet. Just a few more reasons to keep working hard to put a great new team in place in Washington DC. Vote Barack Obama for President!

And don’t forget the local races to keep Washington moving forward as part of the national change.

Vote Nov. 4, 2008 for:

Chris Gregoire for Governor,
Peter Goldmark for Public Lands Commissioner,
John Ladenburg for Attorney General,
Jason Osgood for Secretary of State,
Jim McIntire for State Treasurer,
Darcy Burner for Congress
George Fearing for Congress.

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Turdblossom’s Insider’s Guide to Swinging Elections

Posted on September 26th, 2008 | Comments Off on Turdblossom’s Insider’s Guide to Swinging Elections

Here’s a lively thought provoking film produced by wakeupandsaveyourcountry.com called “Turdblossom’s Insider’s Guide to Swinging Elections“. Turdblossom of course is George Bush’s “affectionate” name for his long time buddy and political operative Karl Rove.

Wakeupandsaveyourcountry.com’s “mission, with this funny little film is to educate, activate and EMPOWER millions of voters around this country to put their bodies and hearts on the front lines of the election to protect their vote on November 4th. Share it with everyone you know and then check our website for what you can do to stop election “swinging”!”

It may be easy to shrug off all the various reports of voting machine fraud, voting machine errors and voter suppression but we do so at the peril of our democracy. Republicans are desperate to hold onto the White House and will use every trick they can to gain advantage. I frankly have no confidence in the previous two Presidential elections based on what I have read and heard about.

Make sure you are registered to vote and you meet the deadlines. The last day to register to vote in Washington State is October 4, 2008.

You can register to vote by going to the Secretary of State’s website and going to the voter registration page and checking out the information. You can check to see if you are registered to vote by going to the page entitled “My Vote”

If you have moved within the same county you can change your address at the My Vote page

If you need to register for the first time, have moved to a different county or want to become a permanent absentee ballot voter, you can register to do this at the Online Voter Registration page.

Don’t assume you are still registerd to vote. The following remarks are by Democratic candidate for Secretary of State Jason Osgood and posted on Washblog. He expresses concern over the large number of voter registrations that have been cancelled in Washington State.

“The incumbent Republican Secretary of State has publicly taken credit for cancelling 400,000 voter registrations. He’s being far too modest.
Between January 2006 and June 2008, the Republican has cancelled 900,000 voter registrations. For the same period, 500,000 new registrations have been added. That’s a net loss of 400,000 voter registrations.
It’s been very difficult to determine why all these voters have been cancelled. During our first debate, the incumbent brushes off criticism by saying these registrations were duplicates, people who’ve died, and felons. That accounts for 25% of the cancellations.
However, 75% of the cancellations have no explanation whatsoever. Not dead, not felons, not duplicate records.
I don’t understand this. Washington State continues to grow. We’re mounting record voter registration drives. And yet, we have fewer registered voters.
It seems to me the total number of voters should be going up, not down. “

Check today to see that you are still registered to vote. Go to My Vote.

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