Four-vote margin in Clatsop County recall election

Kari Chisholm FacebookTwitterWebsite

In Clatsop County, they've just finished counting the ballots in a recall campaign against two of their county commissioners. (They were under fire due to their support of the Bradwood Landing LNG facility.)

One commissioner, Jeff Hazen, handily defeated the recall. But the other, Ann Samuelson, lost her effort to stay on the county commission - by a vote of 1013 votes to 1009 votes.

Four votes.

As Evan Manvel over at the OLCV blog notes, "if just two of those people who voted "yes" changed their votes to "no" the recall would fail."

So, yes, your vote counts. And all your volunteer time and all your financial donations also count. No one ever designs a campaign plan to win by such a razor-thin margin - but it does happen.

There are apparently a few outstanding challenged ballots and there will, of course, also be a recount. So, stay tuned. There's more on the Clatsop County story from the Daily Astorian (including the fascinating note that this is the second time in two years that Samuelson has been recalled from an elected post.)

  • Dan (unverified)
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    Clatsop County residents have been through a lot with these Commissioners. For anyone who has ever attended a hearing, the two who were up for recall were shameless LNG promoters despite a huge base of public opposition against LNG (2/3 of Clatsop voters went against the Bradwood project in a 2008 referendum vote, a direct vote on changes to county laws being made for the Bradwood project). In this recall, given the fact that those supporting the recall were outspent by at least a 4:1 margin, these are remarkable results and show the continued deep opposition to LNG in the County. As long as Houston-based NorthernStar keeps dishing out cash and poisoning Oregon's politics, this type of citizen action is going to be necessary.

  • Dan (unverified)
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    Clatsop County residents have been through a lot with these Commissioners. For anyone who has ever attended a hearing, the two who were up for recall were shameless LNG promoters despite a huge base of public opposition against LNG (2/3 of Clatsop voters went against the Bradwood project in a 2008 referendum vote, a direct vote on changes to county laws being made for the Bradwood project). In this recall, given the fact that those supporting the recall were outspent by at least a 4:1 margin, these are remarkable results and show the continued deep opposition to LNG in the County. As long as Houston-based NorthernStar keeps dishing out cash and poisoning Oregon's politics, this type of citizen action is going to be necessary.

  • eliza (unverified)
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    Huge congrats to Clatsop County voters for voting to remove a commissioner that has done everything possible to MIS-represent the people on the LNG issue! The proposed LNG development on the Columbia River would devastate critical salmon habitat, local economies, the lives of landowners on the related pipeline routes and undermine any attempts to achieve energy independence in the U.S. It is heartening to see such strong and organized opposition to these developments in Clatsop County and all over the state. Any state level elected official pushing for LNG development in Oregon should consider this a clear statement of opposition to LNG and a big warning that Oregonians will not sit idly by while their elected leaders turn their backs on the will of the people.

  • Vonda Kay (unverified)
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    I agree with Eliza that there is a bigger picture here. Oregon and Washington have come a long way in the past few decades in attracting companies which manufacture efficient and renewable energy products that sell internationally ,and come with established , long term, well paying jobs. I believe those who voted for this recall are aware that any link to foreign fossil fuel internationals is a step backward. Constituents expect servants of the public to be foreward thinking stewards who understand potential assets which will benifit the regional economic geography economically and environmentally. International energy conglomerates are pressing hard for long term infrastructures now that it has finally been established that this continent does indeed have enoough of its own natural gas to support our nation as we move forward with renewables indigneous to our specific geographies. Big money can at times be a bad thing! Time is what is needed here and the continued support of forward thinking Oregonians and Washingtonians who have " put their votes where their trust is." Politicians take note.

  • Cheryl (unverified)
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    I have lived in Clatsop County over 30 years and in the last year and a half, Clatsop County voters have chosen to recall 2 of 3 county commissioners. When will our elected officals get it that they need to represent the folks who elected them, not the Texas guys with pie in the sky promises?

  • Greg D. (unverified)
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    Interesting to watch representative democracy come to the end of the road. Don't like how your elected official votes? Recall now, don't wait for the next election. Don't like the tax package the legislature approved? Use the initiative or referendum process to vote it down now, don't wait for the next election to replace your elected representative.

    Not the way I learned about government in my civics class those many years ago, but today's world is all about instant results.

  • Demoduck (unverified)
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    Clatsop is a Blue place but all the Commissioners are either GOP or the one recalled was a DINO. They have been underwritten by the Teabaggers and ultra-conservative groups. They have somehow conned the unions into thinking despoiling the Columbia River is a good move for jobs. Thank Goodness the local Democrats organized and prevailed despite huge outside spending to defeat the recall.

  • Gayle (unverified)
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    <h2>Four seems to be the magic number in Clatsop County. When the Planning Commission was deciding whether to amend the Comprehensive Plan, allowing Bradwood Landing to be built in an area totally unsuited to a large facility, it took the gang of four to rule against common sense even when the county staff and the hired expert consultant had recommended denying the permit. Recall is the last resort when constituents see their rights being voted away by elected officials who are more interested in listening to big-money outside interests. How many more times will the voters have to resort to this step? Four?</h2>

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