Election frustration: Secretary Tobias Read on midterms concern

From KLCC Studios, this is Oregon on the Record.

I'm Michael Dunn. The person in charge of Oregon elections and a steadfast champion of the state's vote-by-mail system is asking citizens to use drop boxes? What gives? Well, with the Trump administration actively sowing chaos for the upcoming midterm election, Secretary Tobias Reid and his staff are working to ensure every vote in Oregon counts, no matter what rhetoric or action comes out of the White House. You'll hear this secretary today and hear how he's planning to safeguard the election. Then, in the second part of the show, you'll hear from our own reporter about the very somber and touching ceremony that happened at Autzen Stadium a few days ago to remember 9-11 on this 25th anniversary and to pay tribute to the first responders on that fateful day. That's next on Oregon on the Record. It's often said that the United States doesn't have a national election, but 50 individual state elections, and that other than running for office, the president has no role in the election process. Well, this year seems quite different. Today on the show, you'll hear from the person who's actually in charge of our elections, Secretary Tobias Reid, and you'll hear how he is very concerned about President Trump's efforts to insert himself in the midterms. Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Reid. Secretary, thank you. Thank you so much for coming on and talking with us.

Thank you.

Yeah. So, boy, we're a little less than two months away from the midterms. Kind of wanted to get from you. How are you feeling about how the process of voting is going to go here in Oregon?

I feel very confident. We have run safe, accurate, fair elections by mail for nearly 30 years in Oregon, and we're going to continue to do that. Oregonians should feel very confident about that. Despite all the back and forth and the turmoil from the federal administration, we know how to do this. We are going to give every eligible Oregonian the chance to vote conveniently and hold government accountable.

certainly from the federal government. We've heard a lot about rigged elections and voter fraud. Just tell Oregonians about how pervasive is voter fraud. I know many people say it is incredibly, incredibly small. We want to hear it from you.

It's true. It's vanishingly rare. One great study that's Oregon-specific looked at 60.9 million ballots cast in Oregon over about 20 years and found 38 cases of improper voting. Not 3,800, not 38,000, 38. Of course, I wish that number were zero, and we're always looking to get even better at it. But that is a number that is not affecting the outcome of any election. It is not any kind of justification for the pretty outrageous positions and policies that the federal administration is pursuing. So Oregonians should feel very confident about all the checks and security that are embedded in our process, and they need not take my word for it. They can go visit their county clerk. Every county clerk, including Tommy Gong in Lane County, welcomes that kind of visitation, and you can see for yourself what's happening. There is a lot of security. We are the gold standard nationally.

But of course, you're reliant on the