Election of California Secretary of State will affect the national vote.
THE CHRONICLE RECOMMENDS
Why Bowen earns our vote
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Sunday, October 22, 2006
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THE TWO major-party candidates for California secretary of state could not be more different in style or in philosophy about the role of the office.
Incumbent Bruce McPherson, a Republican, is an engaging, low-key centrist with great faith in modern electronic voting systems and great concern about the potential for shenanigans at polling places. Sen. Debra Bowen, a Democrat who brings a lawyerly edge and high-tech guile in her approach to public policy, is highly skeptical about the current safeguards on electronic voting systems.
One trait these two veteran politicians share is a high level of competence. It's unfortunate they are running for the same statewide office. Either of these two candidates, who both offer legislative experience and straight-shooter reputations, could do a capable job as secretary of state.
McPherson, appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to replace Democrat Kevin Shelley after his resignation, proved an excellent choice to restore integrity to an office embroiled in scandal and charges of partisan gamesmanship.
While McPherson has handled the job with professionalism and a nonpartisan sensibility, one of our concerns is his contentment with the efficacy and impregnability of modern voting systems. He derisively accuses Bowen of running on the problems in "Ohio and Florida," as if the lingering questions about the past two presidential elections could be easily dismissed.
There is a tendency in mainstream politics to dismiss skeptics of electronic voting as kooks or conspiracy theorists -- the "black helicopter crowd" is the vogue term of marginalization for them. In truth, however, there are highly qualified scientists on both sides of the question of whether modern voting machines are vulnerable to hacking or manipulation.
In Bowen, California would have a secretary of state who is asking the right questions and has the grounding to know when she is getting straight answers. She recognizes that a conversion to electronic voting systems must be accompanied by appropriate safeguards -- such as paper trails and open source software -- that maintain public confidence in the electoral process.
Bowen's 14 years in the California Legislature demonstrated her commitment to the issues and values desired in a secretary of state. She has been an effective advocate for open government -- pioneering the use of the Internet to make campaign finance and legislative records readily available to the public, and authoring an array of bills to make the initiative process more transparent.
Beyond that, Bowen has proved to be one of the most focused and effective representatives in the 120-member Legislature, especially on consumer and privacy protection. She takes on tough issues, stays with them and gets results. Her work in Sacramento, for example, has produced laws that have reduced the risk of identity theft in California.
Debra Bowen gets our endorsement for secretary of state.
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URL: vny!://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/10/22/EDGMQKEJ0A1.DTL
