District attorney elections and Oregon's criminal justice status quo (OPINION)

Oregonian (editorial):

Oregonians will soon be receiving their ballots for the May election, but there is an incredibly important elected official that most voters will have no influence selecting: our county district attorney (DA).

From 2004-2014, 78 percent of Oregon district attorney races were uncontested. In other words, nearly eight out of every 10 district attorney elections in Oregon were over before they began.

Read the full article here. Discuss below.