Dennis Richardson, the GOP candidate for governor, has a new ad out and it's aimed at the group that loves incumbent Democratic Gov. John Kitzhaber the most—women voters. Polling shows that Kitzhaber's strongest support comes from well educated women, and particularly, young women.
The new ad produced by state Rep. Richardson (R-Central Point) is short—just 15 seconds—but it makes a clear claim: that Kitzhaber's assertion that he supports equal pay for equal work is not true, or at least not borne out by his actions in office.
The basis for Richardson's assertion is reporting the Salem Statesman Journal did about public employee pay gaps earlier this year. Reporter Hannah Hoffman found that like most employers, the state pays female employees less than it pays men and that the gap in Kitzhaber's office is even wider than the state average.
Here's what Hoffman found:
Kitzhaber campaign spokeswoman Amy Wojcicki says the ad is a diversion.
WWeek 2015