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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 26, 2018)
3A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2018 Poll says governor’s race is a squeaker Gov. Brown, Buehler in a close campaign By PARIS ACHEN Capital Bureau Gov. Kate Brown and state Rep. Knute Buehler are in a close race for governor, according to a new poll by Clout Research. The phone poll of 679 likely voters between Thurs- day and Sunday shows that 41.7 percent would choose Brown, while 40.8 percent would vote for Buehler. The results have a 3.76 percent- age point margin of error, according to Clout, a national opinion research firm based in Columbus, Ohio. The poll was commissioned by Leona Consulting Co., an Oregon-based conservative political and public affairs firm. The new poll is a fol- low-up to a poll of Oregon residents — not likely voters — released in August. That survey, also conducted by Clout and commissioned by Leona Consulting, showed Buehler leading Brown 43 percent to 42 percent, with 15 percent undecided. “The results haven’t changed much at all,” said Lindsay Berschauer, of Leona Consulting. It’s “still considered a toss-up and still within the margin of error.” “Both Brown and Buehler win the support of about 4 of every 5 voters in their respec- tive parties, but indepen- dent and nonaligned voters tilt heavily toward Buehler,” said Fritz Wenzel, founder of Clout Research. “He wins 48 percent support among inde- pendents, compared to just 23 percent of indies who support Brown — a remarkable show of strength for the challenger that mitigates the voter regis- tration advantage that Demo- crats enjoy in Oregon.” Another survey of 770 registered voters in July by Gravis Marketing, a non- partisan research firm that has been repeatedly scruti- nized by FiveThirtyEight, the Washington Post and oth- ers for inaccurate results, showed Brown and Buehler tied at 45 percent. Clout receives a “C” grade from FiveThirtyEight and calls races correctly only about 50 percent of the time, according to that organiza- tion’s pollster ratings. Clout Research accurately projected Republican Den- nis Richardson’s victory in his election as Oregon sec- retary of state against Dem- ocrat Brad Avakian in 2016. Its polling showed Richard- son winning with 41 percent of the vote, while Avakian received 35.7 percent. Richardson won the race with 47.4 percent to Avaki- an’s 43.2 percent. But in another poll in 2016, Clout projected a tie between GOP candidate Bud Pierce and Brown in that year’s race for governor. In fact, Brown won comfort- ably with more than 50 per- cent of the vote, while Pierce garnered 43 percent. County unemployment rate remains low heading into fall The Daily Astorian Seaside School By CLAIRE WITHYCOMBE Capital Bureau SALEM — Opponents of a ballot measure to ban taxes on groceries contend that some grocers have illegally used their employees to distribute politi- cal material supporting the ban. The Vote No on 103 cam- paign claims in a letter to Ore- gon grocers that such conduct violates state law that prohibits coercing workers into employ- er-mandated political activity. Major grocers, includ- ing Albertsons Safeway and Costco, have bankrolled the effort to prohibit taxes on gro- cery products, Secretary of State records show. Measure 103 is on the November ballot. The Yes on 103 campaign denied the allegations, saying its campaign staffers were dis- tributing the items and custom- ers could take them at will. Monday’s letter is the lat- est volley in what has become an acrimonious campaign over whether Oregon, which has no sales tax, should especially pro- tect grocery items from state taxes. The measure is opposed by a coalition of progressive groups, which said in its letter that employees at Fred Meyer, Safeway, QFC and Albertsons stores in Portland, Eugene, Springfield and Roseburg were distributing flyers and magnets reading “Keep Our Groceries Tax Free,” and telling custom- ers to vote for Measure 103. “Oregon grocers are engag- ing in a deceptive campaign where they claim that Measure 103 is necessary to ensure that food is not taxed,” wrote attor- ney Margaret Olney in a letter to grocers on Monday. “While they can make this position known in their stores, they can- EO Media Group The Vote No on 103 campaign claims in a letter to Oregon grocers that such conduct violates state law that prohibits coercing workers into employer-mandated political activity. not require employees to per- sonally deliver that message to customers. We are writing to each grocery retailer to demand that it stop.” Olney also wrote that the campaign would “explore all possible avenues for challenge, including election law com- plaints and civil actions against the employers” if the grocers didn’t stop. She also said that any time employees spent distributing the flyers and magnets should be dis- closed as in-kind contributions to the Yes on 103 campaign. Katherine Driessen, a spokeswoman for the “No” campaign, said that “multiple customers and staff” reported employees were distributing literature and magnets. However, the Yes on 103 campaign in an email state- ment late Monday labeled such claims “false accusations.” “The Yes on 103 campaign material that is referenced in this letter was distributed and placed by the campaign at store check stands,” wrote Dan Floyd, a spokesman for the campaign. “Individuals may take a magnet and literature or not as they see fit.” The two campaigns dis- agree what goods the measure Bids Due: Taco Feed Shela’s Famous Tacos! Q: What does your Tune Up service offer? of viruses and other A: Removal malicious software. Repairs to the Windows operating system. Disk defragmentation. Installation of all updates for your hardware and software. An Office Suite. Ad blocking software for surfing the web. Anti-virus program. “Bloated” software removal. Registry repair and defragmentation. Easy to use self-service programs for you to keep your computer running well. And much more. 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New Middle/High Bid Package: #4 That disagreement and pub- lic statements by the oppo- sition campaign prompted a lawyer for the Yes on 103 cam- paign to send a cease-and-de- sist letter to the opponents ear- lier this month, claiming they had violated state law by mak- ing “false statements” in cam- paign materials about the mea- sure, and demanding they stop. “My client has been, and continues to be, damaged by numerous false statements made by Vote No on 103 and its coalition members regard- ing Measure 103,” wrote attor- ney Jill Gibson. The Vote No on 103 cam- paign shot back, denying that they published any mate- rial that qualifies as a “false” statement about a candidate or measure; and argued that the claims of false statements were “potentially libelous.” “Your client needs to apolo- gize for making its false accu- sations and needs to retract its defamatory statements,” wrote attorney Steve Berman. Q: Does the District Seaside, Oregon would protect from taxation. Supporters of Measure 103 said the prohibition cov- ers “any raw or processed food or beverage intended for human consumption.” Oppo- nents claim the measure would apply to a broader range of goods and entities, including restaurants. 10TH STREET SUB-BIDS REQUESTED Fight over Measure 103 ASTORIA TRANSIT CENTER Seasonally adjusted unemployment in Clatsop County was 3.7 percent in August, unchanged from the previous month but lower than a year ago. Seasonal rates compare expected trends with real- ity. Economists expected the county to lose 130 jobs with the wind-down of sum- mer, but the county shed only 30. The private sector cut 50 jobs, while government added 20. Food manufactur- ing and hospitality each cut 40 positions last month. The county’s total nonfarm payroll employment in August was 18,700, 220 more than the year prior. Leisure and hospi- tality added 250 jobs over the past year, along with 110 in retail and 40 in construction. Professional and businesses services lost 120 jobs over the year, and nearly 100 state gov- ernment jobs were reclassified into the private sector. The county’s unem- ployment rate was tied for 10th-lowest in the state with Deschutes County. It was lower than the Oregon (3.8 percent) and national (3.9 percent) rates. Complaint: Grocers used workers to distribute campaign flyers Appliance & Home Furnishings “We Service What We Sell” 503-861-0929 529 SE Marlin Avenue, Warrenton, OR Hours: Mon-Fri: 8-6pm • Sat: 9-5pm • Sun: 10-4pm Hughes- Ransom Mortuary www.hughes-ransom.com
