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Meet Ben Westlund: Independent Candidate for Oregon Governor

Jul-27-2006 17:34
Tim King Salem-News.com Your Vote '06

An Oregon politician who has left the Republican party says there is no excuse for the state's lack of health care.

(SALEM) - Ben Westlund has been taking names since switching away from the Republican party to run for the office of Oregon Governor as an independent candidate. Dropping off signatures in Salem, Oregon, he says people are ready for a change.

Westlund says his campaign started well and has only gained momentum. Voters throughout Oregon he says, are jumping on board.

Teams working for the Independent candidate from Bend, Oregon have gathered more than 38,000 signatures have been gathered, those signatures will put his name on the Ballot this November.

One of Westlund’s priorities is the lack of health care for Oregon’s citizens. He doesn’t pull his punches when he talks about how sweeping changes would be under his watch.

His former party did little in Oregon to help the sick and the poor. Even through the mid-90's, Oregon was moving in a good direction. But the current Governor has angered public employees and educators on different occasions, and all funding discussions of significance in recent years with regard to education have been bitter.

After stopping in Salem, Westlund was off to Lane County to continue dropping off signatures that he says will make him a firm candidate for Oregon’s top elected office.

Special thanks to Kevin Hays for contributing to this report.

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