Oregon's 6th Congressional District. (Courtesy of govtrack.us) Four Republicans are running in the primary for Congressional District 6, which is Oregon’s newest, created in 2022 based on the Census. The district includes Polk and Yamhill counties, as well as parts of Marion, Clackamas and Washington counties. Unaffiliated voters make up the largest share of registered voters, at 38%, followed by Democrats at 30% and Republicans at 25%, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. The district is competitive, with current U.S. Rep. Andrea Salinas winning in 2022 by 2.5% against Republican Mi ..read more

The House chambers at the Oregon State Capitol on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Oregon Capital Chronicle) Regardless how this election year goes, the next representative of state House District 31 in northwest Oregon will be a political newcomer.  The two Republicans running for their party’s nomination in the May 21 primary, Realtors Darcey Edwards and Aaron Hall, have not previously held elected office. And only one Democrat seeks the office, 21-year-old tax consultant Jordan Gutierrez, who is also campaigning for the first time. Each hopes to replace Rep. Brian Stout, R-Columb ..read more

U.S. Rep. Andrea Salinas is seeking reelection in Oregon's 6th Congressional District. (Campaign photo) Rep. Andrea Salinas is the first-term representative of Oregon’s 6th Congressional District, the state’s newest, which was created two years ago based on the latest Census. A Democrat, she won by just 2.5% against Republican Mike Erickson, and now she’s running for reelection in the district, which includes Polk and Yamhill counties, as well as parts of Marion, Clackamas and Washington counties.  In the primary, she has one opponent: Cody Reynolds. According to his Secretary of State f ..read more

University of Wisconsin-Madison protesters sit around tents on May 1, 2024, as police work to dismantle their encampment on Library Mall. (Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner) WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden responded Thursday to weeks of protest on college campuses calling for a ceasefire in Gaza with a brief statement that the right to protest should be protected, but “not the right to cause chaos.” “We are not an authoritarian nation where we silence people or squash dissent,” Biden said from the White House’s Roosevelt Room. “In fact, peaceful protest is in the best tradition of how America ..read more

Amy Ryan Courser (left) and Monique DeSpain are vying for the Republican nomination in Oregon's 4th Congressional District. (Campaign photos) A lawyer and Air Force veteran and a marketing consultant and former Keizer City councilor are vying for the Republican nomination to represent Oregon’s 4th Congressional District in the May 21 primary.  Monique DeSpain has no previous elected experience, though she’s worked in recent years as a lawyer for Salem area Rep. Kevin Mannix, a prominent state Republican. Amy Ryan Courser spent four years on the Keizer City Council and ran twice for her p ..read more

Jeff Gudman and Elizabeth Steiner are competing for the Democratic nomination for treasurer. (Campaign photos) The central campaign issue in Oregon’s Democratic primary contest for state treasurer turns out to be the nature of the job itself.  Maybe that shouldn’t be rare. Probably few voters consider the actual work a president, senator or school board member does when casting their ballots, though we should. In the case of the current Democratic treasurer primary in Oregon, quite a few voters likely will. That’s partly because of the contrasting backgrounds of the two candidates on the ..read more

Gov. Tina Kotek talks to the Oregon Capital Chronicle in the ceremonial office of the state library in Salem on May 17, 2023. (Michael Romanos/Oregon Capital Chronicle) After weeks of criticism from within and outside her office and the departure of key staff, Gov. Tina Kotek is abandoning plans to expand first lady Aimee Kotek Wilson’s role in the office.  Kotek announced her change of heart in a statement Wednesday and answered questions from reporters during an afternoon news conference, repeatedly apologizing for the way she handled giving Kotek Wilson a larger role in policy decisio ..read more

Demonstrators supporting Palestinians in Gaza barricade themselves inside Hamilton Hall, an academic building at Columbia University which has been occupied in past student movements, on April 30, 2024, in New York City. (Alex Kent/Getty Images) WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson argued Tuesday that protests on college campuses calling for a ceasefire in Gaza have crossed the line and represent a threat to Jewish students — one day before lawmakers in that chamber are set to vote on a bipartisan bill that would define antisemitism for the Department of Education. Johnson, a Louisia ..read more

State Rep. Janelle Bynum (left) and Jamie McLeod-Skinner are in a tough fight for the Democratic nomination in the 5th Congressional District. (Campaign photos) A new poll paid for by Janelle Bynum’s congressional campaign shows the state representative with a slim lead over fellow Democrat Jamie McLeod-Skinner days before ballots will be mailed out.  The phone poll of 402 likely Democratic voters in Oregon’s 5th Congressional District, conducted between April 26 and 28 by Democratic polling firm Brilliant Corners, found that 37% of respondents said they would vote for Bynum or were lean ..read more

Dave Henslee and Diane Linthicum are competing in the Republican primary for state Senate District 28 in central and southern Oregon. No Democrats are running so the primary winner will have the job. (Campaign photos) Two Republicans are competing for the Klamath County Senate district currently held by Republican Sen. Dennis Linthicum: Linthicum’s wife and a Klamath County commissioner.  No Democrats are seeking the seat in the heavily Republican 28th District, which stretches from the California border to central Oregon just south of Bend and includes all of Klamath County and parts of ..read more