Tim McCloud on running for secretary of state, top issues, what’s going right

Michaela Bourgeois
·8 min read

KOIN 6 News contacted candidates who are running for Oregon secretary of state in 2024, asking them to respond to these four questions:

  • Why are you running for secretary of state? If elected, what would be your top priorities?

  • What is your prior government/civic experience?

  • Sometimes, the secretary of state has to decide whether to remove candidates from the ballot. How would you have handled the decision whether to remove former President Donald Trump from the 2024 ballot and the decision to remove 2022 gubernatorial candidate Nick Kristoff?

  • In 2023, Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade joined the nationwide #TrustedInfo2024 campaign to increase trust in election officials amid the spread of misinformation surrounding elections and voter information. If elected, how would you build trust in Oregon elections?

  • A Reed College study, published in 2023, found county election offices in Oregon are struggling to retain and recruit workers amid a “toxic” political landscape, inadequate funding, and a rapidly changing workload. How will you support Oregon election workers?

  • What do you think is going right in the secretary of state’s office? How would you build on it?

  • What changes do you want to bring to the Oregon Secretary of State’s office?

Tim McCloud is running as a Republican. Here are his responses.

Why are you running for secretary of state? If elected, what would be your top priorities?

By voting for Tim McCloud, Oregonians are voting for someone who can absolutely identify with the hardships of everyday people across the entire state. I am someone who is prepared to lead the Secretary of State’s office while advocating for, and listening to, the needs of out local constituencies before foreign and special interests. I am someone who believes in the values of dedication, commitment, hard work, and integrity. These are also the values that represent the many other Oregonian families and individuals that I meet, as well as ones that I know personally.

I’ve spoken to thousands of people who want to see solutions to the issues plaguing our state. Unfortunately, I don’t believe the other candidates possess the type of focus or resilience required to address these challenges. It isn’t pretty to say, but wars aren’t won by walking away from the lines of battle. This means that the right candidate is going to follow through and challenge Oregon’s overgrown agencies and systems; meaning the ones that burden the daily lives of Oregonians, via antiquated and costly practices. In this situation, we need someone who can leads innovation and set higher expectations for exceptional stewardship of taxpayer dollars. I believe the “game of politics” will precent other candidates from doing the same.

What is your prior government/civic experience?

I have career experience in the governmental, nonprofit and businesses sectors, which includes small business ownership. I have an education background in Small City Management and Public Administration, and have chaired several government commissions and committees. I have also worked with, and manage staff and facilities for Oregon’s most vulnerable populations; intellectual and developmentally disabled individuals; behaviorally-challenged individuals; and youth in the court systems. I currently work in Business Development and Information Systems management.

Sometimes the secretary of state has to decide whether to remove candidates from the ballot. How would you have handled the decision whether to remove former President Donald Trump from the 2024 ballot and the decision to remove 2022 gubernatorial candidate Nick Kristof?

Both of these cases were appropriately decided by the judiciaries of the U.S. Supreme Court and Oregon Supreme Court, respectively. Trump is allowed on the 2024 ballot, and Kristof, as a full-time resident of New York, was not allowed on the 2022 Oregon ballot. The role of the Secretary of State is to enforce the laws and rules for elections throughout our state; not to exact personal agendas against individual candidates or allow themselves to be purchased by special interests. It is time for Oregon to turn the page on this “crony style” of thinking. In a freedom-based society, all qualified candidates must be eligible to represent the people, and all threats to a secure voting process must be thoroughly addressed.

In 2023, Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade joined the #TrustedInfo2024 campaign to increase trust in election officials amid the spread of misinformation surrounding elections and voter information. If elected, how would you build trust in Oregon elections?

Hashtag campaigns more closely represent self-adulation than they do anything to demonstrate the authentic health and status of any voting system. Now, the Secretary of State’s office is more invested than ever before in silencing criticism about the elections process via expensive and unjust surveillance on the public. Hundreds of thousands of dollars are being spent to train biased “artificial intelligence,” and to monitor millions of social media posts written by Oregonians. The intent is to identify statements or positions that may then be used against individuals. A gross misuse of taxpayer dollars spent targeting lawful expressions of our First Amendment rights!

Additionally, the Secretary of State’s office historically follows a “mantra” that denying election concerns from the public means that the concerns are invalid. According to Secretary of State data over a period of 19 years, roughly 2 convictions a year were obtained related to voter or elections fraud. Each conviction presents a situation in which many ballots were potentially compromised, leading to what may develop into fraudulent outcomes. When the statistics such as these are minimized by the agency primarily charged with certifying elections, each instance becomes another damaging example of failing to build on the public’s trust and to secure our elections processes. Similarly, any attempt to wrongfully dissuade public concerns regarding elections complaints may be viewed as a subversive means of silencing public dissent.

As Secretary of State, I will ensure that the entire framework and process for elections-based complaints are analyzed entirely, and will not be satisfied until we restore public trust in the process – eradicating all existing opportunities for election fraud in Oregon.

A Reed College study, published in 2023, found county election offices in Oregon are struggling to retain and recruit workers amid a “toxic” political landscape, inadequate funding, and a rapidly changing workload. How will you support election workers?

Recognition of Oregon’s so-called “toxic” political landscape may actually be the result of unaddressed perceptions related to a systemic disenfranchisement of “certain voters.” As part of Oregon’s critical infrastructure, the Office of the Secretary of State must support election workers. It is evident that in some counties, leadership is desperately needed, and there have been troubling instances in which leaders are not held accountable. Drawn-out, secretive tally counts and unsecured ballot drop boxes are just a few areas where the voting process has recently demonstrated very serious security gaps.

As Secretary of State, I will take steps to support elections workers and volunteers in a number areas, including seeing that credible threats of violence are properly addressed. I will oversee the issues of security directly; following through on the public’s growing demand for closed-circuit monitoring of ballot processing in all 36 counties. Additionally, I may coordinate with Sheriffs in every county to ensure that election infrastructure, personnel, and ballots are secure throughout the voting cycle.

The Secretary of State’s office will also support counties in the recruitment of volunteers which may be needed to fulfill county operations, verify ballots, and ensure both transparency and timely reporting. The Oregon elections system belongs to the people of Oregon. The system must demonstrate the necessary and expected capacities to secure ballots throughout the entire process and report results without error, which is a huge win for freedom in Oregon.

What do you think is going right in the secretary of state’s office? How would you build on it?

The Secretary of State’s office has been proactive in its communications with the public, recently pointing out that there will be future attacks on our right to vote. Rightfully so! One of these attacks is Ranked-Choice Voting, or STAR Voting for Oregon, which is expected to appear on the Oregon ballot during this coming fall. Also known as “preferential voting,” ranked-choice voting is a co=sponsored attack by the Oregon Legislature on the individual’s freedom to vote for candidates that they choose. As Secretary of State, I vow to hold firmly at the frontline of fair, efficient elections and election integrity. The honorable system of representation via democracy not only supports free speech but is a lasting value that separates America from that of a third world dictatorship. I urge people to vote “No” on Ranked Choice Voting, because we must ensure that no new forms of corruption are allowed to evet take root in Oregon.

As Secretary of State, I will continue to build on existing channels of communication with the public, while also taking action to address the causes for concern within the elections process; no matter how small these issues may seem at the outset. I would also like to assemble a committee made up of members from the business community that would be designed to improve the functionality of interactive processes within the Secretary of State’s responsibility; including activities pertaining to obtaining or renewing a business license in Oregon.

What changes do you want to bring to the Oregon Secretary of State’s office?

I will restore public trust in the elections system; ensuring a system that works for everyone, not just the “traditional beneficiaries” of major party politics. There are a number of functional improvements to be made via the Secretary of State’s office, including improvements to the complaints process; ensuring functionality of important web features; and changing a culture of perceived “antagonism” by the office into one of collaboration with the Oregon public; ensuring that the public is a partner in our election systems.

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