It's easier not to put your name on something. Congressman Earl Blumenauer also snubbed Vote Smart's test. Trying to sort through voting records is difficult and time-consuming, and they can be easy to misunderstand, she says. Some politicians also complain that the test is too rigid and too simplistic to capture their sophisticated views. That's the rationale used by state House minority whips Dan Gardner and Jo Ann Bowman, both Portland Democrats, and Andrea Hungerford, a Democratic House candidate in West Linn.
Candidates can also add a short sentence to clarify their stance on a particular issue.
To their credit, at least Bowman, Gardner and Hungerford explained their reasons for not taking the test. Other candidates, such as Republicans David Mayfield of Oregon City and Cletus Moore Jr. of Portland, didn't even return WW 's call. Mayfield and Moore did, however, each send Vote Smart alibi letters that were suspiciously alike. Obviously, many candidates didn't find the test so flawed or threatening. Gov. John Kitzhaber, Sen. Ron Wyden, House Speaker Lynn Lundquist, House Majority Leader Lynn Snodgrass and 71 percent of all Oregon candidates did complete the test.