Saxton Wins Straw Poll, Mannix a Distant Third

Photo of Ron Saxton Courtesy: www.votesaxton.com

(Seaside AP) - Portland lawyer Ron Saxton won the support of fellow Republicans Sunday at the annual Dorchester Conference after he told them he has the best chance to defeat Governor Kulongoski, the Democratic incumbent, in November.

State Senator Jason Atkinson, a 35-year-old Jacksonville Republican who's run a mostly grassroots, low-budget campaign, finished a surprising second in a straw poll taken at the conference.

That left former state Representative Kevin Mannix, the Republican nominee for governor in 2002, a distant third.

The straw poll is NOT a scientific poll.

Saxton says it shows that Oregon Republicans are intent on winning back the governor's office after five successive losses to the Democrats.

The straw poll was the highlight of the weekend gathering of more than 600 Republican activists from around Oregon.