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OUR VIEW Our View: Ds, Rs go after the new kid on the block MailTribune.com Writer Posted Jul. 2, 2015 @ 12:01 am Posted Jul. 2, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> Oregon's Democratic and Republican parties continue to take potshots at the state's fledgling third major party, the Independent Party of Oregon. While the Ds and Rs have a legitimate point to make regarding the intent of voters registered with the IPO, they would be better advised to spend their energy shoring up their own ranks.    Oregon's Independent Party — the one with the capital I, not to be confused with small-i independents, officially known as nonaffiliated voters — qualified for major-party status in February, when Kate Brown, then secretary of state and now governor, announced the party had exceeded 5 percent of the registered voters in the previous gubernatorial election. The IPO made the cut by just three voters. The party is up for re-verification next month, and could lose its status if its membership drops below  108,739. By May, the latest count available, its total stood at 108,811. But last week, the Democratic Party released the results of a March survey it commissioned of 400 Independent Party members. The survey found that only 52 percent knew they were registered with the Independent Party, while 22 percent thought they were not affiliated with any party — small-i independents. The remainder thought they were registered with another party. Worst of all for the IPO, the survey reported that a little less than half of the respondents would stay with the Independent Party if given a chance to re-register. The Democrats and the Republicans say this shows the new party's  numbers are overstated, and it likely doesn't deserve to be given major-party status. That's a fair criticism, given the Independent Party's confusing name, its relatively low profile in an off-year with few partisan races on the ballot, and its innocuous, middle-of-the-road platform. But if the Democrats and Republicans go after the IPO with legislation, as they have threatened to do, they run the risk of looking like playground bullies protecting their turf. The fact is that neither party has controlled a majority of the state's voters for a long time. Statewide, 37.6 percent of voters are Democrats, 30 percent Republicans. Nonaffiliated voters are not far behind, at 24 percent. Add those to the Independent Party's 5 percent, and the result is nipping at the Republicans' heels at 29 percent. If the same survey were done of registered Democrats and Republicans, who knows how many would know their affiliation? More to the point, how many registered Ds or Rs would elect to stay if given the option of switching? The secretary of state could settle this little spat with a one-time mailing to every registered voter, telling them what party they were registered with and offering them the option of changing. Don't hold your breath waiting for the Ds or the Rs to propose that, however. They might not like the result. The two big parties should spend less time worrying about an upstart third party and more time figuring out why more voters don't want to join them.   MailTribune.com Writer Posted Jul. 2, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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