Education
He finished third in a three-way primary, but ultimately finished second behind nominee Kevin Mannix.
He finished third in a three-way primary, but ultimately finished second behind nominee Kevin Mannix.
A Republican, his highest elected office has been Oregon Commissioner of Labor and Industries, which he held from 1995 to 2003. Roberts was the first Republican elected Oregon labor commissioner in forty years. In 1995, his first year in office, he supported legislation which was enacted making the office of Commissioner of Labor and Industries nonpartisan.
Roberts previously served as a Lane County commissioner from 1989 to 1995.
A nonpartisan office, Roberts was appointed in October, 1989, then elected in May, 1990 and reelected in 1992 before being elected labor commissioner in 1994, defeating four-term incumbent Mary Wendy Roberts (no relation). He was re-elected in 1998, defeating State Representative Mike Fahey.
In that nonpartisan election, Roberts carried every county in Oregon. Roberts, the most recent Republican to hold statewide office (other than United States Senate) in Oregon, ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for the United States. Senate in 1996 (finishing well behind Senate President Gordon Smith and Superintendent of Public Instruction Normal Paulus in the special election primary in December, 1995) and for Governor of Oregon in 2002.
He was considered a contender to take on incumbent United States. Senator Ron Wyden in 2004, but did not enter the race.
He also ran for the Oregon Supreme Court in 2006, coming in first in a three-way primary but then losing to Virginia Linder in the general election. From 2009 to 2013, Roberts wrote a biweekly political column for the Oregonian newspaper in Portland. until September 2013. In October 2013, he was selected to be the director of the Oregon Lottery by Governor John Kitzhaber and was confirmed by the Oregon State Senate the following November.
An attorney, Roberts lives in Eugene where he grew up.
Roberts is a graduate of Sheldon High School (1971) and the University of Oregon School of Journalism (Bachelor of Science, 1975). He also has degrees from the University of Oregon School of Law (Juris Doctor, 1978) and the New York University School of Law (Master of Laws in Taxation, 1980)
Roberts, Jack (November 28, 2009).
"Getting "global" in our thinking about global warming". The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (January 7, 2010).
"Measures 66 and 67: A reluctant vote in favor".
The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (August 21, 2010). "Before there was a Tea Party there was Barry Goldwater and his book".
The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (September 9, 2010).
"What"s a conflict of interest: Considering the scope of state ethics laws (Kitzhaber & Hayes)". The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (February 10, 2011). "The Brewing Court Battle Over Health Care Reform".
The Oregonian.
Roberts, Jack (September 22, 2011). "University of Oregon: Pursuing excellence in a state committed to mediocrity". The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (October 6, 2011).
"Is Rick Perry confused on immigration or are we?".
The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (August 9, 2012). "Alberto Salazar and Nike deliver on their Oregon Project with world-class runners".
The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (October 4, 2012).
"Labor v. environmentalists: Democrats split over coal". The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (with Angus Duncan) (November 10, 2012).
"Bipartisanship needed: Keeping climate science and climate politics apart". The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (December 13, 2012).
"Nike gives Oregon an early Christmas Present".
The Oregonian. Roberts, Jack (December 27, 2012). The Oregonian.
"Political parties are playing a dangerous game with the fiscal cliff".