When State Sen. Kate Brown announced that she wouldn’t be seeking to once again be the Majority Leader in the Senate, it confirmed numerous rumors that she was looking at a higher office.

She’s now made it official: She’s running for Secretary of State. With redistricting coming up in 2010, plus several campaign reforms (like stricter rules for initiative petitions) on the line, the SoS position will be highly important over the coming years.

Brown’s campaign’s website is here, and her full press release is after the jump.

STATE SENATOR KATE BROWN TO RUN FOR SECRETARY OF STATE

Portland, (OR) – Democratic State Senator Kate Brown announced today she would seek her party’s nomination for Secretary of State in 2008. Brown recently resigned her position as Senate Majority Leader, after nine years as the leader of the Democratic caucus and sixteen years in the Legislature.

“My legislative career has been extremely satisfying,” said Brown. “Over the years we have accomplished much to make Oregon a better state. The time has come for me to take my proven leadership skills and problem solving abilities to a new level. I want to be Oregon’s next Secretary of State. If elected, I will bring the same dedication and hard work ethic I demonstrated in the legislature to being Secretary of State. I will serve my full term and will fulfill my duties with integrity, fairness and common sense.”

Brown announced her candidacy today, as she begins raising money and reaching out to Oregonians fulltime. An official kick-off event will be scheduled in the fall.

“Among the many important parts of this job, the Secretary of State is the keeper of Oregon’s democracy,” said Brown. “After years of chairing the Senate Rules and Elections Committee, which dealt with most aspects of election law and campaign finance measures, I am uniquely qualified to preserve the integrity of our elections.”

Senator Brown noted her work leading the effort to make campaign finance reporting in Oregon more transparent and accountable to Oregonians, requiring more detailed and more frequent reporting, and moving campaign finance reporting to a real-time, searchable online database. The new rules, required by Brown’s bill (2005 HB 3458), took effect January 1, 2007. The upcoming election will be the first statewide election under the new reporting requirements.

“Throughout my time in the legislature, I’ve also worked to make government itself more accountable and efficient. We tried various ways to look at state agency spending through the budgeting process to ensure wise use of resources. As Secretary of State, I will use the Audits Division to ensure all our state programs are using taxpayer dollars efficiently and effectively. Even in times of economic growth like we are experiencing today, we must be vigilant to ensure we get the most bang out of our limited bucks,” added Brown.

Oregonians can go to www.KateBrownForOregon.com for more information about the campaign and to lend their support.