Vote like a pro: Why you need to think differently about voting locally

Originally published in the Portland Business Journal on April 22, 2023. Voting for city officials changes in 2024, but the primaries still apply for county, metro, state, and federal elections.

In Portland, two signs of spring are everywhere: front yard flowers and the political candidate lawn signs that take root among them. On our screens, political ads and endorsements are coming to a crescendo. Every day, I watch colleagues engage - or disengage - with our local political process.

As businesspeople who are deeply invested in the success of our city, we ought to vote smarter, including prioritizing our presence in the primary election.

Selecting the elected officials who will influence the taxes we pay, schools our kids attend, and the environment in which we live is one of the most important civic responsibilities we have. As businesspeople, we’re also affected by their decisions on corporate taxes, zoning, employment laws, and more.

Yet when choosing candidates, we tend to regress to student council criteria. Instead of voting for who you like most, who’s trending, or being influenced by speculative gossip, we must vote strategically, pragmatically, and with our collective future in mind.

As Portlanders, we’re all players in this game. To effectively play, win, or change the game, you must first understand how it works. You may disagree with the rules, but that’s not going to change the game in the coming election cycle. Flipping the table over (i.e. opting out or writing in) doesn’t win the game, it just forfeits your vote to the other players.

To start, always vote in primary elections (in our case, in May). Thinking of Election Day as happening only in November dramatically shortchanges us in the process precisely when our vote stands to make a bigger difference.

In Portland, mayoral and city council races are runoffs, which means that if one candidate gets 50% or more of the vote, they win in May. Our next city commissioners could be chosen this month, not in November.

Also: be registered with a major party. As Multnomah County Elections explains, “if the major party (Democrat or Republican party) does not open the primary, candidates listed on a primary nominating ballot for a major political party are limited to those registered with that political party.” In other words, you can’t even play this round of the game if you’re not on a team. If you don’t like our system, there are channels to work toward changing it. But abstention from voting is antithetical to creating that change.

Next, take time to understand the job of each office. Recent debates suggest that many of the candidates themselves don’t understand what they can and can’t do once in office, making promises that have nothing to do with their actual scope of power.

Imagine you’re on the selection committee for the next leader of your organization. What would you look for? Smart committees would look for relevant experience, subject matter expertise, leadership and management skills, a compelling vision, and evidence that they can do what they say they’ll do.

While diversity is important, please don’t underrate effectiveness in favor of minority representation. Many Portlanders overvalue “lived experience” as a qualifier for public office. Anti-racism expert Ibram X. Kendi argues that what you feel is not the barometer of success; outcomes are. His emphasis on results may seem radical, but history has proven this to be true. We should elect people who are demonstrably capable of securing and enacting policies that will make life better for people of color, women, and other historically disadvantaged groups, whether they themselves are part of those groups or not.

Check the receipts. Vote for the candidates who are best suited for the job based on their experience, comprehension of the job, and record of creating results. Vote in the primary elections and again in November. Between Oregon’s voter pamphlet, mail-in ballots, and information available online, it’s easy to vote wisely and to determine whether candidates can deliver on their promises.