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Pushing Candidates on the Issues
A compiler of information on politicians is pushing for issue oriented campaigns.

Project Vote Smart, with a bipartisan board of directors, asks candidates for Congress and the General Assembly to answer a questionnaire on top issues, but response has been declining. So this year, Vote Smart made up the answers for congressional candidates who didn't respond, using candidates' speeches, actions, voting records and responses to questionnaires from other interest groups.

The response rate for Illinois congressional candidates was 44 percent. It was 75 percent in the mid-1990s. The response rate for General Assembly candidates was 18 percent.

"They are not answering the questions on the issues because they are afraid to," says Project Vote Smart board member Adelaide Kimball. "They're scared of opposition research, they're scared of their opponents, and their consultants are telling them, stick with your message."

Project Vote Smart candidate information is at www.VoteSmart.org. The "Vote Easy" site, which allows voters to input their views on issues and find the candidate most closely aligned, is at www.VoteEasy.org.

(Illinois Radio Network)
09 21 10 by Newsroom
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