County commissioners from the six counties in Senate District 16 appointed Rachel Armitage to fill the remaining year of former State Senator Betsy Johnson’s empty seat. Armitage, a former legislative assistant in 2016 and 2017, according to her campaign website, is a Warren Ore. resident. She currently works at Reed[Read More…]
politics
County to fill vacant state senate seats Friday
Washington County Commissioners are meeting virtually Friday, January 14 at 9 a.m. to interview candidates to replace District 16 Sen. Betsy Johnson who resigned Dec. 15 to focus on her run for Oregon’s governorship, and at 1:30 p.m. to interview candidates to replace Sen. Chuck Riley (D-Hillsboro) who announced last[Read More…]
From the newsroom: Writing a letter to the editor, more statehouse news, and more local news
What a year 2021 was to run a newspaper in Oregon. I said something similar at the end of 2020, and little has changed. Like any small business, running a newspaper during a pandemic is hard. We’ve grappled with staffing issues due to the pandemic, lack of income due to[Read More…]
Sen. Betsy Johnson will resign to focus on run for governor
Betsy Johnson will end her 20-year career in the state Legislature on Wednesday to focus all her attention on her non-affiliated run for governor. Johnson, who left the Democratic Party in October to launch her campaign, said in a video shared Tuesday that she would resign as state senator to[Read More…]
Legislature passes rent relief extension, targets cartel cannabis grows during special session
Oregon lawmakers during a special session on December 13 voted to pass a series of bills approving more than $400 million in spending to protect farmers, tenants and landlords, and to increase law enforcement in rural areas. Senate President Peter Courtney (D-Salem) said Oregonians can be proud of their legislature. “We[Read More…]
Redistricting draws most rural far western Washington County communities into House District 31
A zoomed-out view of the entire newly drawn House District 31, which will be used for the 2022 election. Map courtesy Oregon Legislature Thanks to the 2020 Census, new legislative maps have been drawn, approved, and signed into law to be used for the 2022 election. And while there is[Read More…]
State Senator Betsy Johnson announces unaffiliated run for governor
State Senator Betsy Johnson in the Banks BBQ Parade on Sunday, August 22, 2021. Photo: Chas Hundley State Senator Betsy Johnson, a Democrat who serves the northwest corner of Oregon in the state legislature, including Gales Creek and Banks, will run for governor under no party’s banner in 2022, Johnson[Read More…]
Brown calls special legislative session to tackle redistricting
The Oregon Capitol building in Salem. Photo: Chas Hundley Oregon’s legislators will head back to Salem following Governor Kate Brown’s call to convene a special legislative session to tackle congressional and legislative redistricting. Following the decennial census, held last in 2020, the Oregon Constitution requires the legislature to draw new[Read More…]
Sen. Jeff Merkley to host online town hall for Washington Co. constituents
Senator Jeff Merkley (center, in yellow) at a town hall in Banks on January 13, 2018. Photo: Chas Hundley Oregon’s junior senator will hold a virtual town hall for Washington County residents on June 29, a tradition for Sen. Jeff Merkley, though in non-pandemic years, the events are generally held[Read More…]
‘Sine Die’: The highlights of Oregon’s historic 2021 legislative session
The Oregon Capitol building in Salem. Photo: Chas Hundley The Oregon Legislature wrapped up Saturday, marking the end of an eventful session that included high profile legislation, a resignation and the first expulsion of a legislator in state history. The session, which began Jan. 21 after a two-day delay from[Read More…]
