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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend February 17, 2006 SOU lecturer will run for Congress Carol Voisin of Ashland faces two other Oregon Democrats vying to challenge Rep. Greg Walden in November By ROBERT PLAIN for the Mail Tribune ASHLAND — A local housing commission member and Southern Oregon University lecturer is running for Republican Greg Walden’s seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Democrat Carol Voisin says she is making her first foray into politics on a national level because "the concerns of Oregonians are not being met." "He (Walden) voted the straight George Bush line," Voisin said. "I won’t do that. I will vote for Oregonians." Voisin said her greatest qualification for public office is that she is not a politician. "I want to be a congresswoman, not a politician," she said between classes Wednesday in SOU’s Stevenson Union. "My focus will not be Washington, D.C." Advertisement Her specific platform focuses on making education, health care and affordable housing more pressing national issues. "Our public school system is a mess," she said. "The federal government should be providing the funding while letting local people run the schools." About health care and the economy, she said, "I believe that everyone has a right to affordable health care and to earn a decent return for their work." Like Walden, Voisin said she will work hard on environmental issues in Oregon. But she said she will work to protect the state’s natural heritage. "Logging can’t be done in isolation," she said. "Walden is for the timber industry and I am not. But I’m not against logging, it just needs to be done with the ‘three E’s’ (ecology, economy and equity) as the moral imperative." Born and raised in the Midwest, Voisin has lived in Southern Oregon for five years. She said she was involved in politics in the Bay Area, where she worked on Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown’s campaign. She said she also helped to elect several Berkeley City Council members and was active in the League of Woman Voters. Here, she has been on the housing commission since 2004, is a Community Emergency Response Team volunteer and is active with the Jackson County Democratic Central Committee. She’s unmarried and has no children. "I’m an ordinary working woman," she said. Voisin’s resume touts her doctorate in theology, experience running her own business, and work as an administrator in higher education and in senior-citizen housing. While she is critical of Walden, she said her first priority is the Democratic Party primary, for which she has stiff competition. Democrats Chuck Butler of Baker City and Scott Silver of Bend have already announced their intention to run against Walden. "I think I have a better chance of beating Greg Walden than do the other two candidates," she said. "If we win the primary, it’s on to Walden." That will be no easy task with a popular incumbent like Walden in a largely rural, conservative district. Walden won in 2004 with 71.6 percent of the vote. She will officially announce her candidacy at the new Jackson County Democratic Headquarters in Medford, 40 S. Central Ave., at 11 a.m. today. Then, in late March, Voisin plans to embark on a two-week campaign road trip to Eastern Oregon where she will introduce herself to the more rural parts of the 2nd Congressional District. Robert Plain is a reporter for the Ashland Daily Tidings. He can be reached at 482-3456 or [email protected]. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Computer Security Discount Hotel Reservations Casinos Canada dvd-r Generic Viagra Myspace Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Student Loans Sudoku Online Advertisement s Advertisement