Statesman Journal mini-questionnaire for 2012 Primary Election Thank you for responding to this questionnaire, which is for

use by Statesman Journal Editorial Board members in evaluating candidates for potential endorsements. Your answers also will be shared with reporters and may be published in the newspaper and/or on our website, StatesmanJournal.com. Remember: Any information you provide may be made public. Please fill in your answer to each question and return this questionnaire to the Editorial Board as an attached Word document. The editorial board e-mail: Salemed@StatesmanJournal.com Deadline for submitting your questionnaire: 9 a.m. Tuesday, April 3
Questions? Contact Editorial Page Editor Dick Hughes, 503-399-6727, dhughes@StatesmanJournal.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Your name: Paul Damian Wells Age: 51 (Birthday April 15th, 1960).
(If your age will change before the May 15 primary, please indicate your birthday. We want to make sure we use accurate ages in editorials and news coverage. )

Political party (if this is a partisan office): Democrat. Position you are seeking (name of position, district number): Secretary of State. I plan to attend the editorial board meeting scheduled for: N/A. Number of years living in the area you seek to represent: 28 years. Are you a full-time resident of that area? Yes. City/town of residence: Forest Grove. Family (name of spouse/partner, number and ages of children if at home, number of grown children): Divorced, 4 grown children, all self supporting. Education: BSEE Electrical Engineering, Purdue University 1984, AAS Machine Manufacturing Technology, Portland Community College 2010. Current occupation/employer: CNC Machinist, American Precision Industries, Hillsboro (CNC = Computer Numerical Control, new machining centers are computer controlled.) Employment, military and volunteer history: United States Marine Corp 1978 1979. Please list all public offices to which youve been elected, and when: N/A

Please list any unsuccessful candidacies for public office, and when: N/A Other prior political and government experience: Voting Rights Advocate 1990 Present. How the public can reach your campaign (remember that this information may be published): Mail address: N/A E-mail address: pdamianw@thekeel.org Web site URL: www.thekeel.org Phone: N/A Fax: N/A Please limit your response to each of the following questions to about 75 words. 1. Why did you decide to run for this office? Im actually an Independent voter and I dont believe I should be forced to vote for the lesser of two evils every election. I change my registration to Democrat or Republican and, every 2-4 years, I run as a candidate for statewide office to address the issue of Fair and Open elections. If I dont speak to this issue no one will. 2. How much will your primary campaign cost? Approximately $15,000. (Legal Fees and advertising.) 3. Key endorsements you have received: None 4. Have you ever been convicted of a crime, been disciplined by a professional licensing board/organization or had an ethics violation filed against you? If so, please give the details. None 5. Have you ever filed for bankruptcy, been delinquent on your taxes or other major accounts, or been sued personally or professionally? If so, please give the details. None 6. Why should people vote for you? What separates you from your opponent(s)? Be specific. The Secretary of State is the Chief Elections Officer for Oregon and should be a vocal advocate for the rights of all citizens to participate in elections as voters or candidates. The other candidates in this race are partisan extremists who simply will not support fair and open elections. Their party comes first, the voters second. 7. What are the three most important issues you would address if elected? How? (75 words
for each issue)

A. Abolish Partisan Primaries and establish Top Two Nonpartisan primaries for all elected offices. I dont believe this can be accomplished by legislation alone. The court rulings that upheld Partisan Primaries must be overturned first. I have already retained legal counsel to begin the process of identifying relevant evidence and drafting a pleading for a multi-plaintiff lawsuit. I can do this as a voter, but the Chief Election Officer really should be taking the lead. B. Initiative Reform. Groups form an Assembly of Electors to draft a petition. The petition then goes to the legislature where it is treated like any other bill except; The Assembly can veto any amendments and the bill must be voted on by both chambers before adjournment. If the bill does not pass, the number of signatures required to place the initiative on the ballot is based on the number of votes garnered in the House. C. Signature sheets in the form of postcards should be allowed. The name and address of the voter is preprinted on the postcard along with the return address of the appropriate filing officer or petition committee. Groups hand deliver or mail the postcard to voters along with a copy of the petition. Voters then have the opportunity to read the petition, sign the postcard and send it back. Just like a Voters pamphlet and ballot. 8. What do you see as other important issues? If youre on a fishing boat in the middle of the ocean, it usually makes sense to argue about where the fish are. If the boat has sprung a leak however, the location of the fish really isnt all that important. Our government institutions at levels are being crippled by partisan extremism. Our ship of state has sprung a very big leak. Talking about the audit department, the forestry board, etc. really isnt that important. 9. What magazines, newspapers and Web publications do you regularly read to keep up on the news and developments in your areas of interest? None. 10. Any skeletons in your closet or other potentially embarrassing information that you want to disclose before it comes up in the campaign? I have made plenty of mistakes in my life, but you will have to find out about them yourself. Im not helping you.