
Several Democratic candidates appeared
to rally Service Employees International
Union volunteers at the SEIU Local 49 hall
in southeast Portland before they headed off
to canvass Washington County neighborhoods
on Saturday morning.
Labor Commissioner
Brad Avakian, attorney general candidate
John Kroger, secretary of state candidate
Kate Brown and U.S. Senate candidate Jeff
Merkley each took their turn thanking the
volunteers and urging them to reach out to
as many voters as possible.
The statewide candidates especially urged
the 75 volunteers gathered to promote
Merkley’s candidacy. The Oregon House
Speaker has been in a dead-heat with U.S.
Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Pendleton), and his
fellow Democrats were determined to see him
oust the west coast's last Republican
senator.
“The nation is looking to Oregon to make
this man the 60th vote in the Senate,”
Avakian told the fired up crowd.
“It’s time for Smith to go,” Kroger said.
When Merkley took the microphone, the
standing-room only crowd cheered as he
promised changes in policies ranging from
health care to trade to the war in Iraq. He
said that by working to create more jobs the
American economy could get back on track.
“There is no government program of any
kind that equals a living-wage job,” Merkley
said.
After Merkley spoke, the crowd went to go
knock on doors in nearby Washington County
to make sure that voters, who only have
three days left, were turning in their
ballots.
According to SEIU officials, SEIU
volunteers have already knocked on 25,000
doors this week.