Voting

A few days ago I sent in my ballot for Oregon primary elections. I like politics and government so this was exciting. I was voting for candidates seeking the Presidency, Congress, local positions, and a variety of other things. The "other things" include Oregon's Secretary of State (SOS) and Attorney General (AG) positions. As I was doing research on the candidates for these two positions I realized that A) I have no idea what I want in an SOS or AG; and B) As someone who pays a lot of attention to politics, even I didn't know who I was voting for and why. How is the average voter with a full time job, supporting a family, and with no free time supposed to make an informed decision when even a political junky like me is unable to do so?

A bit more fuel to this fire was added when my friends in North Carolina told me they have to vote for the State Commissioner of Labor. Huh? Do you know what you're looking for in that position? I sure don't.

These experiences have led me to believe that such positions at the state level should be chosen just as they are at the federal level: by the elected executive, in these cases this would be the governor. Just as the president of our country chooses their cabinet members, I believe governors should choose their "cabinet" level positions (Secretary of State, Attorney General, various commissioners, etc). Under this scenario voters would choose not only their governor, but also a broad slate of government positions determined by the ideology of the governor-elect.

Certainly their are flaws to this plan as well, but it certainly is better than people blindly voting for obscure candidates.