Know Thy Neighbor Unless the Referendum Fails

Filed under:Wacky Oregon — posted by Anwyn on October 18, 2007 @ 10:23 am

Turns out publicly posted names and addresses cut both ways.

The groups gathering signatures to put Oregon’s domestic partnership law on next year’s ballot failed by 116 signatures. The second referendum failed shortly thereafter.

Know They Neighbor Oregon, the group that threatened to post all signers’ names and addresses for “protection” or maybe to know where they needed to do more “education and work,” they’re not sure, will not publish the signers now that the referendum has failed, “as [they] have said,” though I didn’t spot exactly where they’ve said it before, “above all [because] it would provide opposition groups with a database of contacts for a repeal attempt that they have been discussing.”

A nice lady at the office of the Secretary of State tells me that petitions, whether successful or not at putting their measure on the ballot, stay on file for six years and that anybody can go down to Salem and look at them. Those motivated enough will still be able to go back to the well for next year’s signatures. But at least those motivated to triangulate their “neighbors” over political disagreement (but it’s about the FAMILY!!!) won’t have a handy electronic database with which to do so. Eah. Maybe it was that $3,000 Know Thy Neighbor said they needed to make copies of the signatures that was the deal breaker.

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