Project Vote Smart

GREAT DIVIDE RANCH, MT., January 9, 2012 – Project Vote Smart released the 2012 Political Courage Test results today for Oregon's special election showing neither major party congressional candidate running for the state's 1st Congressional District seat was willing to answer even the most basic issue-related questions addressed inside the Test.

Among candidates Suzanne Bonamici,  Robert Cornilles,  James Foster, and Steven Reynolds, and following repetitious requests by mail, fax, and e-mail including contacts from key leaders of their own parties, only Libertarian candidate Foster and Progressive candidate Reynolds submitted the Test.

For two decades, the Political Courage Test has asked all candidates one central question: “Are you willing to tell citizens your positions on the issues you will most likely face if elected?” Candidates who reply “yes” to that question are presented with several issue categories in which they are asked to indicate support for given principles, or reply using their own language entirely

Oregon candidates' unwillingness to provide voters with their issue positions is part of a growing national trend among candidates, as Test response rates have steadily fallen from a high of seventy-two percent (72%) in 1996, to an all-time low of thirty-eight percent (38%) in 2010. Project Vote Smart has found that party leaders and consultants from both major parties advise candidates not to respond to the Test for two primary reasons: it will limit the candidates’ ability to control their campaign messages and it will expose them to opposition research.

“When candidates decide to hide behind talking points and manipulative campaign tactics, they are contributing to a deliberate dumbing down of the American electorate,” said Richard Kimball, Project Vote Smart President. “When you keep your opponent in the dark, you keep the voter there as well.”

The Political Courage Test is a collaborative effort between the Project and over 200 political scientists, journalists, and leaders from across the political spectrum, speaking to the Test's unmatched neutrality and objectivity. Issue areas addressed in the Test are researched using polling data, the majority, minority and third party platforms, State of the Union and Response speeches, State of the State and Response speeches, and legislative agendas.

View a copy of the Congressional Political Courage Test.

For Political Courage Test results and more factual data on each candidate including voting records, public statements, interest group ratings and more, visit us online or speak with our researchers via the toll-free Voter’s Research Hotline (1-888-VOTE SMART). 

Contact: Carly Griffin, 406-859-8683, carly@votesmart.org  

About Project Vote Smart: Founded by 40 national leaders such as Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford, Vote Smart researches the voting records, backgrounds, issue positions, campaign contributions, interest group ratings, and public statements of more than 40,000 candidates and elected officials. This information, as well as ballot measures and voter registration information is available through www.votesmart.org, the Voter’s Research Hotline (1-888-VOTE SMART), free publications (U.S. Government Owner’s Manual), and the new VoteEasy interactive application. Inaugurated in 1992, Project Vote Smart is non-partisan and nonprofit in mission, and is funded entirely by foundation grants and individual contributions.