On Tuesday we went to court in a final attempt to have 4,600 uncounted ballots opened and counted in this race. The judge agreed that leaving thousands of ballots uncounted in this election will cause irreparable harm to those voters and to the Measure 92 campaign. But he ultimately ruled that Oregon law didn’t allow him to issue the order to stop the count.

These voters did everything right; completing, signing and returning their ballots on time and yet they have been denied the right to vote. We strongly believe we would win the election if those votes were counted.

We have examined all legal options and have found there are none that could succeed in getting the remaining votes counted before the election is certified. Challenging election results is permitted in Oregon, but a successful challenge doesn’t change the outcome of that election. It simply sets aside the results and orders a new election be held.

Given the razor-thin margin in this race, and the failure to count every valid ballot, we believe that Oregonians will never know for sure the true outcome of this race. That said, we intend to abide by the judge’s decision and will not pursue any further legal action.

If this race proves anything, it’s that people from every county in Oregon and across the country care deeply about our right to know what’s in the food we eat – and while we didn’t win this election, we grew in strength and number and now hundreds of thousands of voters share our belief that genetically engineered food should be labeled.

Throughout this race, we have been awed by the deep commitment and unfailing hard work of the supporters and activists who believed in Measure 92. You always stepped up when we needed you, and we really can’t thank you enough.

We’ll be in touch over the coming weeks with more ways you can continue to help the labeling movement.

We’re not done. We’re just getting started.

Thank you,

Paige, Andy and the rest of the Yes on 92 team