John Frohnmayer is running as an Independent Party candidate for the Senate seat currently held by Sen. Gordon Smith. His website discusses changing the “politics of partisanship to the politics of remedy,” and advocates the necessity of a third party in American politics.

One would expect, therefore, that he would throw his support behind fellow third party candidate Ralph Nader in the presidential contest.

But then one would be wrong.

It turns out that Frohnmayer is an Obama fan.

“He is the only person in the presidential race who is talking about bring us together,” Frohnmayer explained. “The whole reason for third voice is to do the same thing.”

Frohnmayer doesn’t see Nader in the same light; although he believes that in some cases, the candidate’s vision has been useful for the United States. “It is not a vision of how America needs to work,” he said.

Frohnmayer is primarily concerned with the resolution of problems, specifically in the Senate. He believes that if there is a coalition of independent voices in the legislative body—say half a dozen or so—those unaligned legislators will be able to bring the major parties to the table, and move the agenda towards the resolution of problems.

“The third voice is an honest broker,” Fronhmayer said.

In Obama, he sees a candidate who understands that view. “He has the concept of enough of ‘them’ and ‘us,’” Frohnmayer said. “[Obama] sees that we have to reconstruct an American in which we try to unify ourselves.”

When asked whether his vote for Obama might undermine his third party platform (his campaign site proclaims that “it’s time, in Lincoln’s words, to think anew and act anew, and that means shedding the stranglehold of political Parties and voting for real change,”) he replied that he understands the necessity of parties, which provide a critical mass to get things done, but that we “have lost sight of the fact that we still have to work together.”

Frohnmayer believes that Obama keeps that in mind, and as a result, has been able to mobilize many who have otherwise been disengaged.

“Obama has come with a certain freshness, and that is why he has attracted many young people who are disaffected with the political system,” Frohnmayer continued.

Hillary Clinton, in his view, is not quite as fresh, “simply because of her background and history.”