Jumping ship

When my friend Jazz left the Republican party a year ago it really wasn't news when a long time Oregon Republican politician leaves the Republican party it is. When he does it in order to run for governor as an independent it's even bigger news.
Westlund in race for governor of Oregon

SALEM -- Ben Westlund, a state senator from Bend described by some as a "maverick," shed his Republican Party label Tuesday and announced plans to run for governor as an independent.

If he makes it on the ballot, Westlund would become a wild card in the November general election, giving voters a broader choice and complicating the campaigns of the two major party nominees.

Westlund, 56, gave a speech blistering the current state of partisan politics in Oregon.

"It has become standard operating procedure for both parties to posture, preen, position -- all for the single-minded purpose of gaining control" of the Legislature and statewide political offices, he said.

Westlund, who has been in the Legislature since 1997, now must gather 18,368 signatures from Oregon voters by Aug. 29 to qualify for the ballot. Under a new state law, the signatures must come from people who don't cast a vote in a party primary.

His announcement stirred an immediate and intense political debate about whether his moderate stands might suck votes away from a Democrat or whether his conservative voting record would hamper the Republican.

While he is certainly ideologically an old school Republican he is not one of the 16th century Bible thumpers who control the Oregon Republican party. He has come out in favor of gay marriage and universal health care. With the Democrats less than enthusiastic with Democratic governor Ted Kulongoski and the Republicans likely to run another mullah he could make it an interesting race.