With just a few weeks to go before Californians vote in the June 6 primary, two termed-out legislators hope to reclaim the state's top elections office for Democrats.
State Sens. Debra Bowen (D-Marina del Rey) and Deborah Ortiz (D-Sacramento) are running for secretary of state with the hope of challenging the incumbent, Republican Bruce McPherson, who was appointed by the governor.
McPherson, running unopposed in the primary, got the job last year after Democrat Kevin Shelley, elected in 2002, resigned amid investigations into campaign fundraising and his office's use of federal election money.
Secretary of state: An article in the May 14 California section on two Democrats running for secretary of state indicated that a member of incumbent Bruce McPherson's transition team in 2005, a former deputy secretary of state, became a member of the lobbying firm representing electronic voting system manufacturer Diebold Inc. According to the firm, GCG Rose and Kindel, Adan Ortega Jr. was an independent subcontractor when he worked for McPherson and later became an employee.
Neither Bowen nor Ortiz -- or McPherson, for that matter -- is well-known statewide. In a recent Field Poll gauging public interest in state races, six in 10 voters said they had no idea whom they would choose for secretary of state, and most had no opinion on the candidates.
Both Bowen and Ortiz are known in Sacramento, however: Bowen for her aggressive protection of privacy and voting rights, and Ortiz as a leading voice for healthcare and public accountability with the state's $3-billion stem cell research bond.
Ortiz said her vision is to fashion the secretary of state's office into a public watchdog for voting rights. In the Senate, she has favored more enforcement money for the state Fair Political Practices Commission, which investigates campaign finance complaints and has been underfunded for years.
She supports eventual public financing of campaigns to reduce the need for legislators to raise money -- a position Bowen shares.
"I want to use the office to inspire people to vote and to rebuild a lot of the relationships that have been harmed extremely under Kevin Shelley," Ortiz said, adding that many county registrars have complained of tensions with the office over deadlines to install new voting machines.
It is more important to rebuild bridges, she said, than "create fear and distrust of our democratic process" -- a swipe at Bowen's recent hearings as chairwoman of the Senate Elections Committee highlighting problems with electronic voting systems.
Ortiz favors exploring ways to make voting easier to encourage greater participation, including centralized polling places so voters can cast ballots near work and more opportunities to cast ballots by mail.
