Only one Lebanon area Oregon legislative candidate participated in the nonpartisan Project Vote Smart's Political Courage Test this year by answering a series of political issue questions.

"The test is a simple yes or no question: are you willing to tell voters your stand on issues?" said Adelaide Kimball, Project Vote Smart board member and senior adviser. "We're simply measuring a key aspect of public integrity."

"Voters want to know where candidates stand on the issues. That's why I filled out the questionnaire," said Thackaberry, a Democrat challenging Republican incumbent Sherrie Sprenger in the House District 17 race. "I think it reflects negatively on anyone who doesn't stand up and define what their positions are."

Sprenger, who did not to complete a questionnaire, said simply checking a box doesn't give voters a complete view of her position on an issue.

"I've always been willing to discuss my position with voters. I have no problem sharing my views in the context of a conversation," Sprenger said.

The questionnaires are on record for years, leaving politicians vulnerable to charges they didn't vote the way their responses to the Vote Smart questions indicated they would, she said, adding that new information may become known during a bill's committee vetting process that changes how she intends to vote.

"Concerns may arise we hadn't identified before that have a great impact on people," Sprenger said. "I have a commitment to my constituents to make votes after I understand an issue."

Rep. Phil Barnhart (D-Eugene) agrees with Sprenger that the issue positions presented by Vote Smart don't fully represent candidates' views.

"Issues don't break down the way they (Vote Smart) think they do. I don't think elections lend themselves to that," he said.

Barnhart said he prefers questionnaires that allow candidates to write their position on issues rather than just checking a box.

In the Senate District 9 race, neither Republican incumbent Fred Girod nor his Democrat challenger Bob McDonald filled out a Vote Smart questionnaire.

They are hardly alone in not responding. Barack Obama and John McCain refused to participate in Project Vote Smart. McCain was a founding board member of the organization and until this year had always taken the Political Courage Test and encouraged other candidates to do the same. McCain was removed from Vote Smart's board of directors this year for not taking the test, Kimball said.

Oregon Sen. Gordon Smith (R) also is a Vote Smart founding member. Both Smith and his Democratic challenger Jeff Merkley completed a 2008 questionnaire.

Candidates who answer yes are given a series of questions that are relevant to their particular race. The questions are based upon research done by volunteers and interns. Questionnaires are reviewed by political scientists and political journalists and Vote Smart's board to ensure they are nonpartisan.

Each issue on the questionnaire has a series of positions; candidates are asked to mark those they support. Questions for the Oregon legislative race are broken down into nine categories:

€ Abortion

€ Budget and tax issues

€ Campaign finance and government reform

€ Crime

€ Education

€ Employment issues

€ Environment and energy

€ Gun control

€ Health

€ Social issues

Oregon once had the highest rate of participation, with 75 percent of state legislative candidates and 79 percent of congressional candidates returning a questionnaire in 1998. In 2006, the number of Oregon congressional candidates taking part in the test had fallen to 16 percent, a trend mirrored nation wide, Kimball said.

"There's not much difference between Republican and Democrats' campaign tactics," Kimball said. "They are advised by their campaign teams to play it safe, don't answer questions on issues their opponents are strong on, and rely on polls."

Candidates can write short explanations of their position on the questionnaire. Still, many are reluctant to expose themselves to their opponents by participating.

"If you are not willing for your opponent to know your position, how can you possibly expect to inform voters?" Kimball said.

Project Vote Smart will publish the position papers of any candidate who answers at least 70 percent of the test's questions on its website, which receives over a million hits a day, according to Kimball.

In addition to the completed questionnaires, candidates' voting records are on Vote Smart's website.

Project Vote Smart is a nonprofit organization founded in 1992 at Oregon State University. In 1999, Project Vote Smart moved to a 150-acre ranch in Philipsburg, Mont., in order to expand its facilities to house the virtual army of volunteers who compile voting records and enter questionnaire responses into databases.

Vote Smart does not take donations from organizations or individuals with union or corporate ties. More information may be found on the web at www.votesmart.org.