HONEST ELECTIONS - OREGON
NEWS
News in 2023
News in 2022
The Oregonian/Oregon Live
Hillary Borrud
Nov. 23, 2022
Political donors spent more than $70 million on Oregon governor’s race
Hillary Borrud
Nov. 23, 2022
Political donors spent more than $70 million on Oregon governor’s race
"Supporters of the top three candidates in the Oregon governor’s race spent more than $70 million trying to help their favorite candidate win, an increase of roughly 89% from the previous governor’s race."
"Between the campaigns’ direct spending and independent expenditures for and against candidates, campaigns and political action committees spent roughly $34 for each vote Kotek snagged, $27 for each vote that Drazan received and $107 for each vote Johnson got."
Willamette Week
Nigel Jaquiss
Nov. 1, 2022
Governors Associations and Tech Tycoons Write Big Checks as Camapign Enters Final Week
Kotek has not raised $26.9 millin. Drazan has raisee $22 million
Nigel Jaquiss
Nov. 1, 2022
Governors Associations and Tech Tycoons Write Big Checks as Camapign Enters Final Week
Kotek has not raised $26.9 millin. Drazan has raisee $22 million
The Republican Governors Association wrote Christine Drazan a $1.25 million check yesterday, bringing the RGA’s total support for her campaign to $7.06 million. The Democratic Governors Association gave Tina Kotek $250,000, bringing its total support for her to $6.63 million.
The Oregonian/Oregon Live
Aimee Green
October 28, 2022
Pivotal state Senate race in Clackamas County features near-record spending, TV ads
Aimee Green
October 28, 2022
Pivotal state Senate race in Clackamas County features near-record spending, TV ads
Bolstered by large donations from national and state Republicans, Kennemer has raised about $1.1 million so far this year, currently the second highest of any candidate running for the Oregon Legislature. Meek, with the help of Democratic boosters, has raised a still-impressive nearly $900,000.
Only Raquel Moore-Green, a Salem-area House member running for a Salem-area Senate seat held by Democratic incumbent Deb Patterson, has raised more this election cycle, raking in a record $1.9 million for her campaign, state finance disclosures as of Tuesday show.
Oregon Capital Insider
Gary A. Warner
October 25, 2022
Flurries of ballots, snow, and $60 million as election nears end
Gary A. Warner
October 25, 2022
Flurries of ballots, snow, and $60 million as election nears end
Round-up the numbers and the trio has amassed $20 million more than the previous record of about $40 million in the 2018 win by Democrat Kate Brown over Republican Knute Buehler.
Oregonian/Oregon LIve
Hillary Borrud
October 11, 2022
Spending on Oregon governor's race hits $47 million, smashes previous record
Hillary Borrud
October 11, 2022
Spending on Oregon governor's race hits $47 million, smashes previous record
Oregon’s three leading candidates for governor have blown through the previous fundraising record, with a combined $47.1 million in total reported donations to their campaigns four weeks before Election Day.
Four years ago, Democrat Kate Brown and Republican Knute Buehler raised a total of more than $37.8 million in the entire cycle and spent $37 million, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported.
Oregon Capital Bureau
Gary Warner
October 7, 2022
Campaign cash 'hide and seek' ends as campaign end nears
Gary Warner
October 7, 2022
Campaign cash 'hide and seek' ends as campaign end nears
Every remaining day in the campaign will set a new record for the most expensive election for public office in Oregon history.
The 2022 trio of governor candidates blew past the old record of $40 million earlier this week. It was set in 2018 when Gov. Kate Brown defeated former Rep. Knute Buehler, R-Bend.
Brown couldn't seek seek re-election this year because of term limits. Democrats have won every election for governor since 1986.
As of Friday, the 2022 governor's race gusher has topped $45 million.
Oregon Capital Insider
Gary Warner
October 6, 2022
Nike's Knight gives $1 million to GOP governor candidate in strategy shift
Gary Warner
October 6, 2022
Nike's Knight gives $1 million to GOP governor candidate in strategy shift
Nike co-founder Phil Knight is hedging his bet on the outcome of the Oregon governor's race, giving $1 million on Thursday to Republican Christine Drazan.
The move comes after Knight has given unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson $3.75 million, the largest contribution total of his long involvement in Oregon political races.
Knight's dual contributions to the two candidates helped push total fundraising for the governor's race to over $45 million, a new record for a campaign for an Oregon political office.
Knight's ultimate goal is to defeat Tina Kotek — he's given $4.75 million to date to candidates opposing the Democratic nominee. The change in tactics comes amid a flurry of polls and forecasts that show Drazan as neck-and-neck in the campaign with Kotek.
Dan Meek
Oregon Honest Elections
October 6, 2022
Donations over $250,000 during past 30 days
Oregon Honest Elections
October 6, 2022
Donations over $250,000 during past 30 days
Contributions over $250,000 in the past 30 days, according to the Oregon Secretary of State Elections Division:
Rank Date Recipient Contributor Amount
- 09/01/2022 Betsy Johnson Philip Knight, Nike founder $2,000,000
- 10/05/2022 Christine Drazan Rep. Governors Assoc $1,500,000
- 09/14/2022 Tina Kotek Dem. Governors Assoc. $1,250,000
- 10/06/2022 Christine Drazan Philip Knight, Nike founder $1,000,000
- 09/13/2022 Christine Drazan Rep. Governors Assoc. $1,000,000
- 09/29/2022 Tina Kotek Dem. Governors Assoc. $1,000,000
- 09/28/2022 Tina Kotek OR League of Conservation Voters $330,000
- 09/21/2022 Betsy Johnson Tim Boyle, Columbia CEO $300,000
- 09/23/2022 Betsy Johnson Sierra Pacific Industries $300,000
- 09/02/2022 Christine Drazan Murphy Plywood $250,000
- 09/06/2022 Betsy Johnson Kathleen Jones-McCann $250,000
- 09/08/2022 Betsy Johnson The Pape Group $250,000
- 09/14/2022 Tina Kotek AFSCME International $250,000
- 09/21/2022 Tina Kotek Stand for Children Oregon PAC $250,000
- 10/03/2022 Christine Drazan AGC Committee for Action $250,000
Oregonian/Oregon Live
Nicole Hayden/Mark Friesen
Sept. 16, 2022
Multnomah County chair candidates have gone quiet amid strict campaign contribution limits
Nicole Hayden/Mark Friesen
Sept. 16, 2022
Multnomah County chair candidates have gone quiet amid strict campaign contribution limits
This is the first fall election in which the county’s voter-enacted $500 per donor limit has been in effect. And unlike other campaign caps, which set a limit for the primary and another for the general election, the county’s $500 limit applies to both – so donors who gave that much to Meieran or Vega Pederson in the spring can’t give her a dime for the Nov. 8 runoff.
The impact has been glaring. Since May 17, Meieran has raised about $20,000 and Vega Pederson only $9,400 – each sum a tiny fraction of the fundraising totals they amassed in the primary.
Prior to 2022, Multnomah candidates’ friends, family members and political allies could give as much as they could afford. Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury, who is vacating her seat, raised $465,000 for her campaign during the last competitive race.
Pamplin Media Group
Gary A. Warner, Oregon Capital Bureau
July 22, 2022
Oregon governor's race generating tsunami of campaign cash
Gary A. Warner, Oregon Capital Bureau
July 22, 2022
Oregon governor's race generating tsunami of campaign cash
A $100,000 check from a longtime conservative Oregon political donor to Republican Christine Drazan.
One for $100,000 to Betsy Johnson's insurgent campaign from a construction industry group.
Two liberal political action campaigns top off at the same level in their total giving to Democrat Tina Kotek.
The top candidates for governor continue to pile up stacks of cash in the race to the top of Oregon's political pyramid.
The trio has raised over $17.1 million since January 2021, on pace to blow past the 2018 record of $40 million when Democratic Gov. Kate Brown beat former Republican Rep. Knute Buehler of Bend.
The mailers, the website and the ads were all paid for by the Coalition for Safe, Healthy and Prosperous Communities – but that coalition doesn’t exist in state campaign finance or business records. . . .
The organization is all but untraceable, though it shares a name with a newly-formed national nonprofit started by three prominent Republicans with ties to the oil and gas industry. Its failure to disclose its funding and spending could mean it’s violating the spirit, if not the letter, of state campaign finance laws.
The Oregonian/Oregon Live
May 10, 2022
Nicole Hayden
Labor unions financially backing Multnomah county chair Jessica Vega Pederson through mailer
May 10, 2022
Nicole Hayden
Labor unions financially backing Multnomah county chair Jessica Vega Pederson through mailer
Independent Neighborhood Action, a political action committee formed to “support the election of labor-endorsed candidates,” is sending out mailers in support of Vega Pederson in a last-minute push before the May 17 primary.
The political committee has raised $41,250, which includes a $15,000 donation from Oregon AFSCME Council 75, which represents public employees, and $10,000 donations from United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555 and SEIU Local 49, a service workers union, campaign finance records show.
With just over two weeks until Election Day, the final push for Oregon gubernatorial candidates is in full swing.
That means big money is coming in. So much so, that experts believe we could be in for another record-breaking year.
In 2018, the gubernatorial campaign between Gov. Kate Brown and Knute Buehler broke records with more than $37 million in spending.
NIKE founder, Phil Knight, who previous gave $1 million to independent Governor candidate Betsy Johnson, has now given $1 million to a new Political Action Committees called Bring Balance to Salem. The new PAC has nearly two million dollars and large business support.
The Oregonian/Oregon Live, April 29, 2022
Betsy Hammond and Mark Friesen
Oregon awash in political ads spending with S11.3 million this month;
see which campaign unleashed big bucks
Betsy Hammond and Mark Friesen
Oregon awash in political ads spending with S11.3 million this month;
see which campaign unleashed big bucks
Powerbrokers in Oregon have unleashed more than $11.3 million on political ads and other campaign spending for state and local races in April, topped by at least $5.3 million – or more than $200,000 a day – spent for and against candidates for governor.
Big spending on one current ballot measure to overturn a local ban on flavored tobacco and another potential one to punish legislators who walk out on the job helped push this month’s outlay for and against measures to $1.3 million through Tuesday.
And turbo-charged races for two seats on the Portland City Council have also helped make this month sizzle with big political spending. Altogether, more than half a million dollars were spent in the first four weeks of April alone to influence voters’ selections in those two contests.
The Oregonian/OregonLive, April 27, 2022
Hillary Borrud
Phil Knight gives $1 million to PAC to elect Republican Oregon lawmakers
Hillary Borrud
Phil Knight gives $1 million to PAC to elect Republican Oregon lawmakers
Nike co-founder Phil Knight has given $1 million to a political action committee focused on electing more Republicans to the Oregon Legislature.
Knight disclosed the huge contribution to the Bring Balance to Salem political action committee on Tuesday evening, according to state campaign finance records.
Bring Balance to Salem has not yet spent much of its total $2.7 million raised, but will support candidates who support limited government and “common sense problem solving,” according to spokesperson Zack Roday. Democrats hold majorities in both chambers of the Oregon Legislature. The political action committee is paying former U.S. Rep. Greg Walden, of Hood River, $5,000 per month for political consulting services.
Most of the money raised by Bring Balance to Salem comes from the timber industry, with $250,000 each donated by Swanson Group, Roseburg Forest Products, Murphy Company and Sierra Pacific Industries. Freres Timber kicked in $150,000 and Norman Brenden, the former chief financial officer of a chain of senior living homes, gave $100,000, according to state records.
Willamette Week, April 4, 2022
Rachel Monahan
Nike Founder Phil Knight Donates $750,000 to Betsy Johnson's Bid for Oregon Governor
The donation is the biggest thus far in the governor's race, and a new indication of Johnson's fundraising strength.
Rachel Monahan
Nike Founder Phil Knight Donates $750,000 to Betsy Johnson's Bid for Oregon Governor
The donation is the biggest thus far in the governor's race, and a new indication of Johnson's fundraising strength.
On April 1, Nike co-founder Phil Knight donated $750,000 to Betsy Johnson’s run for Oregon governor as an unaffiliated candidate. Combined with an earlier contribution in February, that brings Knight’s bankrolling of the Johnson campaign to $1 million.
That’s the largest donation of the governor’s race so far, and an indication of Johnson’s appeal to well-heeled donors who are irritated with Democratic Party policies but skeptical of Republicans’ ability to win an office they haven’t held in almost four decades.
Oregon Public Broadcasting, April 4, 2022
Dirk Vanderhart
Nike co-founder Phil Knight gives $1 million to Betsy Johnson's campaign for Oregon governor
A newly reported contribution suggests Knight will once again look to play a big role in the highly competitive race.
On Friday, records show Knight contributed $750,000 to the campaign of former Democratic state Sen. Betsy Johnson, who has left the party to run as an unaffiliated candidate. Combined with a previous $250,000 donation, Knight has now given $1 million to Johnson’s attempt to become the first governor not associated with a political party in nearly a century.
The checks, coming seven months before Johnson would actually stand for election, signal that Knight is once again hoping to play a strong role in helping his chosen candidate reach Oregon voters. That’s particularly a necessity for Johnson, who won’t be able to appeal to voters purely based on the political party next to her name.
Oregonian/Oregon Live, April 3, 2022
Hillary Borrud
Does $14.6 million buy influence? What candidates for Oregon governor say about their biggest donors
Hillary Borrud
Does $14.6 million buy influence? What candidates for Oregon governor say about their biggest donors
In what will almost certainly be a record-shatteringly expensive election, Oregon’s leading candidates for governor have collectively raised nearly $14.6 million with more than a month left before the May 17 primary.
That figure, whose magnitude is due in large part to the high number of candidates, does not include fundraising by Democratic hopeful Nick Kristof, who raised nearly $2.8 million before Secretary of State Shemia Fagan ruled that he did not meet Oregon’s gubernatorial candidate residency requirement.
Oregonian/Oregon Live, April 2, 2022
Nicole Hayden
Strict contribution limits slow reach of campaigns for Multnomah County chair
The last time there was a competitive race for the position chairing the Multnomah County Commission, it was 2014 and campaign contribution limits were a thing of the future. Deborah Kafoury, who won that contest, pulled in major donations, spent nearly $200,000 on professional campaign management and dished out big bucks for TV ads.
This go around, as four viable candidates compete to fill the seat that Kafoury is vacating, the race to the top is more muted: fundraising is inching ahead and big spending and widespread voter engagement have yet to be seen.
The Oregonian/OregonLive, March 19, 2022
Shane Dixon Kavanaught
People for Portland accused of violating Oregon election laws in blistering ad
Shane Dixon Kavanaught
People for Portland accused of violating Oregon election laws in blistering ad
A well-funded and largely anonymous advocacy group that’s repeatedly pummeled Portland-area leaders over trash, crime and homelessness faces accusations of illegal politicking and running afoul of Oregon election laws.
People for Portland targeted a “clearly identified candidate” for office in a recent online ad against local elected leaders including Metro President Lynn Peterson, alleges a union that’s endorsed her.
Under Oregon campaign finance laws, any entity that spends at least $250 to campaign for or against a candidate in Oregon must register with the state and disclose such spending as well as its sources of money.
Oregon Capital Chronicle, March 18, 2022
Julia Shumway
Oregon Supreme Court won't clear way for voters to consider campaign finance limits
Julia Shumway
Oregon Supreme Court won't clear way for voters to consider campaign finance limits
The Oregon Supreme Court on Friday rejected a last-ditch effort to have voters decide whether to limit campaign contributions to those running for public office.
Proponents of three proposed ballot initiatives had sought the high court’s intervention to be sure the measures got before voters in November.
Secretary of State Shemia Fagan last month rejected the ballot measures that would limit how much money individuals, unions and political action committees could give candidates or political action committees, created a new public funding system and required all political advertisements to include disclaimers about who paid for them.
Oregon live, March 20, 2022
Betsy Hammond
Biggest Oregon political donations in 2022? They're from timber companies, unions, Phil Knight, ex-lawmakers
Betsy Hammond
Biggest Oregon political donations in 2022? They're from timber companies, unions, Phil Knight, ex-lawmakers
Unlike the vast majority of other states, Oregon allows unlimited contributions to political campaigns – and corporate titans, former elected officials and labor unions are among those who have used their monetary muscle in 2022 to try to influence voters’ choices.
The Virginian-Pilot & Daily Press Editorial Board, The Virginian=Pilot, March 8, 2022
[While this editorial is written in Virginia about Virginia, it could equally well apply here in Oregon]
Editorial: Inaction on campaign cash
[While this editorial is written in Virginia about Virginia, it could equally well apply here in Oregon]
Editorial: Inaction on campaign cash
The House and Senate in recent weeks struck down thoughtful and modest limits on political donations and how that money can be used. What one lawmaker called “the Wild West” of campaign finance in Virginia will continue.
That’s as disappointing as it is unsurprising. Virginia lawmakers have long resisted calls to reform campaign financing and move the commonwealth away from a reliance on disclosure and transparency toward limits on donations and the use of that money.
Anchorage Daily News, March 5, 2022
Nathaniel Herz
A politically appointed commission just vaporized Alaska's campaign donation caps. Here's what happens now.
Nathaniel Herz
A politically appointed commission just vaporized Alaska's campaign donation caps. Here's what happens now.
With high-stakes gubernatorial, legislative and local elections looming, Alaska candidates can now collect unlimited campaign donations after the commission charged with enforcing the state’s campaign finance laws chose to eliminate the state’s contribution limits rather than update them to satisfy a federal court order.
The politically appointed members of the Alaska Public Offices Commission said their decision Thursday puts the onus on the state Legislature to reinstitute limits higher than the $500-per-year rejected as unconstitutional by a divided panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in July.
But it’s far from certain that lawmakers will have time to act before the end of this year’s legislative session.
Follow-up news stories:
Anchorage Press by Dermot Cole: After deceiving Alaskans for months, Dunleavy admits he wants no limits on campaign donations.
Anchorage Press by Dermot Cole: After deceiving Alaskans for months, Dunleavy admits he wants no limits on campaign donations.
The Oregonian/Oregon Live, March 5, 2022
Hillary Borrud
Oregon campaign finance violations show political donations, spending often aren't reported for months or years
Hillary Borrud
Oregon campaign finance violations show political donations, spending often aren't reported for months or years
Millions of dollars are flowing in Oregon politics this year, with the governor’s office, labor commissioner and 76 state legislative seats up for election.
If the past four years are any guide, some portion of the donations and spending will go unreported for weeks, months or even years. And even though state law requires filing within 30 days after a transaction, two days during a legislative session or seven days close to an election, candidates in most cases will face minor fines.
Willamette Week, February 22, 2022
Anthony Effinger
Oregon Attorney General Greenlights Campaign Money Measures in Win for Petitioners
Her decision means Honest Elections can take several disputes to the Oregon Supreme Court all at once—and perhaps get its measures on the November ballot.
Anthony Effinger
Oregon Attorney General Greenlights Campaign Money Measures in Win for Petitioners
Her decision means Honest Elections can take several disputes to the Oregon Supreme Court all at once—and perhaps get its measures on the November ballot.
“This is great news,” says Jason Kafoury, co-founder of Honest Elections Oregon, the group pushing to get the initiatives on the ballot this year. “This is a good day for democracy.”
In Oregon, the attorney general must vet initiative language before sponsors can gather signatures to get on the ballot. Rosenblum’s decision doesn’t override Fagan’s decision, but it means Honest Elections can take both the dispute with Fagan and any other challenges to the measures’ language to the Oregon Supreme Court all at once.
The Oregonian Editorial Board, February 13, 2022
Editorial: Derailed campaign-finance reform measures need court's help
Editorial: Derailed campaign-finance reform measures need court's help
The Oregonian, February 7, 2022
Hillary Borrud
Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan plans to kill effort to set campaign contribution limits in 2022: records
Hillary Borrud
Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan plans to kill effort to set campaign contribution limits in 2022: records
Oregon Secretary of State of Shemia Fagan plans to disqualify three proposed ballot initiatives that would have capped donations for all state elections and mandated transparency on who truly pays for political ads.
Fagan, a Democrat elected in 2020, will cite a nearly two-decade old Oregon Court of Appeals ruling that recent secretaries of state have disregarded, according to correspondence between Fagan’s lawyer P.K. Runkles-Pearson and campaign finance reform advocates. That ruling, Fagan says, requires any ballot measure that would alter state law to include the full text of that law, including provisions that the measure would leave unchanged.
Willamette Week, February 6, 2022
Anthony Effinger
Secretary of State Shemia Fagan Poised to Delay Campaign Finance Measures on Technicality
Anthony Effinger
Secretary of State Shemia Fagan Poised to Delay Campaign Finance Measures on Technicality
Secretary of State Shemia Fagan is raising hurdles for election activists who want to regulate campaign contributions in Oregon, one of just five states that have no limits.
Honest Elections Oregon, an advocacy group that won limits on contributions in Multnomah County and Portland, is trying to extend its streak and rein in big money statewide. It is sponsoring three similar ballot initiatives—43, 44 and 45—that would cap contributions to candidates for statewide office at $2,000 from individuals and $50,000 from political parties, among other limits.
The group’s efforts hit a snag this week when Fagan’s chief legal counsel, P.K. Runkles-Pearson, wrote to Honest Elections organizers Jason Kafoury and Dan Meek, telling them Fagan planned to reject the language of the initiatives because it did not include the full text of the Oregon laws that would change. A final decision from Fagan is expected Feb. 9, according to her office.
Willamette Week, February 3, 2022
Nigel Jaquiss
Phil Knight Weighs in on Governor’s Race With $250,000 Check to Betsy Johnson
Knight joins fellow billionaire Tim Boyle in supporting the unaffiliated candidate.
Nigel Jaquiss
Phil Knight Weighs in on Governor’s Race With $250,000 Check to Betsy Johnson
Knight joins fellow billionaire Tim Boyle in supporting the unaffiliated candidate.
Nike co-founder Phil Knight today made his first statement about the 2022 governor’s race, writing a $250,000 check to former state Sen. Betsy Johnson (D-Scappoose) who is running as an unaffiliated candidate.
Knight, Oregon’s wealthiest citizen, with a net worth Bloomberg estimates at $56 billion, rarely comments on politics. In the past, however, he’s been a strong supporter of both Democratic and Republican candidates for governor.
Oregon Catalyst, January 25, 2022
Taxpayers Association of Oregon
Newberg Leftist Nearly Break Money Recall Record...Yet Voters Said No Way
$140,000 on a Small Town School Race. Pro-Recall Groups Spend Huge in Newberg, Still Lose
Taxpayers Association of Oregon
Newberg Leftist Nearly Break Money Recall Record...Yet Voters Said No Way
$140,000 on a Small Town School Race. Pro-Recall Groups Spend Huge in Newberg, Still Lose
On January 18 2022, a total of six leftist PAC’s combined for $140,839.57 in campaign finance failing to recall two Newberg-Dundee school board members. Adjusted for population, that equals $4.26 per registered voter. It also amounts to a shocking $20.69 for every voter they ultimately convinced to vote yes on the recalls.
The Oregonian, Jan. 24, 3022
Hillary Borrud
Oregon initiative campaigns hope pandemic doesn't foil signature gathering this year
Hillary Borrud
Oregon initiative campaigns hope pandemic doesn't foil signature gathering this year
Oregon voters can expect a busy year in state politics, with an open governor’s race for the first time in more than a decade and huge turnover in the Legislature.
But one area could remain quiet: ballot initiatives.
Oregon is known for its unique history of making major policy changes by initiative, where citizens can place measures on the ballot by gathering enough signatures. For the second election cycle in a row, the pandemic may prove too large a hurdle.
Nicholas Kristof's campaign for governor has already raised more than $2.5 million, even as the Oregon Supreme Court considers whether he can run at all. The court is expected to rule on his eligibility after Jan. 26.
If the answer is no, Kristof will be able to keep the cash in his state campaign finance fund for use on a future race or to dole out to other candidates.
The Oregonian, January 7, 2022
Letter to the Editor, by Sen Jeff Golden representing District 3 in the Oregon Senate
Letter to the Editor, by Sen Jeff Golden representing District 3 in the Oregon Senate
Letter to Editor from Sen. Jeff Golden
Rob Davis’ Dec. 22 article “Oregon unions propose campaign finance limits that would still allow big donations -- from unions” leaves me concerned that we’re not on track to give voters what they asked for when they overwhelmingly approved Measure 107. None of the initiative proposals in the article line up with the principles that Oregonians — at least those contacting me – want to see in campaign finance reform.
They want a system that makes it easy to follow the money, which means as few complex channels for funneling money and as few kinds of committees subject to different rules as possible. They want a system that doesn’t innately favor one party over others. And they want to be sure that no person or group with notable stakes in legislative outcomes can make distractingly large contributions to those who legislate. That’s the core of genuine reform.
As things stand today, there’s a question that’s hard for legislators to avoid asking themselves on the verge of a crucial, possibly close vote: “What are my biggest donors going to think of this?” If you want policy that best serves the common good, that’s the wrong question, and Oregonians want it off the table. That won’t happen under the initiative proposals Davis describes, or any other that allows six- and even seven-figure campaign contributions. We have to do better. I think we will.
Jeff Golden, Ashland
Golden, a Democrat who represents District 3 in the Oregon Senate, is former chair of the Senate Campaign Finance Committee.
They want a system that makes it easy to follow the money, which means as few complex channels for funneling money and as few kinds of committees subject to different rules as possible. They want a system that doesn’t innately favor one party over others. And they want to be sure that no person or group with notable stakes in legislative outcomes can make distractingly large contributions to those who legislate. That’s the core of genuine reform.
As things stand today, there’s a question that’s hard for legislators to avoid asking themselves on the verge of a crucial, possibly close vote: “What are my biggest donors going to think of this?” If you want policy that best serves the common good, that’s the wrong question, and Oregonians want it off the table. That won’t happen under the initiative proposals Davis describes, or any other that allows six- and even seven-figure campaign contributions. We have to do better. I think we will.
Jeff Golden, Ashland
Golden, a Democrat who represents District 3 in the Oregon Senate, is former chair of the Senate Campaign Finance Committee.
As things stand today, there’s a question that’s hard for legislators to avoid asking themselves on the verge of a crucial, possibly close vote: “What are my biggest donors going to think of this?” If you want policy that best serves the common good, that’s the wrong question, and Oregonians want it off the table. That won’t happen under the initiative proposals Davis describes, or any other that allows six- and even seven-figure campaign contributions. We have to do better. I think we will.
Public News Service, January 4, 2022
Eric Tegethoff
Campaign Donations Limits Could Be Coming to OR in 2022
Eric Tegethoff
Campaign Donations Limits Could Be Coming to OR in 2022
Oregon is among a handful of states without limits on how much people or entities can contribute to election campaigns, but it could change this year.
So far, six proposals have been introduced.
Jason Kafoury, organizer for Honest Elections Oregon, which is behind three of the potential ballot measures limiting campaign finance donations, said money is set to play a big role in the 2022 election, illustrating the need for reining in its influence.
"That's what's led millionaires and billionaires to give six-, seven-figure checks to candidates here -- with huge amounts of money going into our governor's race -- to have on the ballot opportunity for Oregon voters to say, 'No, we want to limit what people can give to politicians,' " Kafoury explained.
Willamette Week, January 4, 2022
Jacob Fenton
Dark Money Group Launches Attack Ads on Democrats Running for Governor
"Voters for Trust LLC" has begun running online push polls that appear to be testing different lines of attack against the Democratic front-runners
Jacob Fenton
Dark Money Group Launches Attack Ads on Democrats Running for Governor
"Voters for Trust LLC" has begun running online push polls that appear to be testing different lines of attack against the Democratic front-runners
Under federal election laws, private companies can spend unlimited sums of money attacking candidates as long as the group’s “primary purpose” is not politics. Oregon law requires political ads to disclose their top donors in the last 60 days before a primary election, though it’s not clear if the wording of this ad would trigger that requirement.
The Oregonian, December 22, 2021
Rob Davis
Oregon unions propose campaign finance limits that would still allow big donations---from unions
Rob Davis
Oregon unions propose campaign finance limits that would still allow big donations---from unions
After private negotiations to control political donations broke down, labor unions have filed three dueling campaign finance initiative petitions for the 2022 ballot that are far looser than measures already proposed by good government groups.
While the two camps agree that political money needs to be controlled in Oregon, one of five states with no caps on campaign donations, they have unresolved differences.
The union proposals, submitted to Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan last week, would still allow unions and other member-based organizations to make large donations to political campaigns
News from 2021 & before
Willamette Week, August 26, 2021
NIgel Jagiss
Multnomah County Judge Greenlights Voter-Approved Campaign Finance Limits
It’s another incremental step in the long-running campaign to limit political spending.
NIgel Jagiss
Multnomah County Judge Greenlights Voter-Approved Campaign Finance Limits
It’s another incremental step in the long-running campaign to limit political spending.
In an Aug. 23 ruling, Multnomah County Circuit Judge Erich Bloch moved campaign finance limits in county races one step closer to reality.
In a 16-page ruling, Bloch found that a 2016 ballot measure county voters approved overwhelmingly—89% to 11%—does not fall afoul of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Statement by Oregon Honest Elections
Multnomah County Campaign Finance Limits on Candidates Upheld by Court
Judge rejects challenges to ballot measure approved by 89% of Multnomah County voters in 2016
August 25, 2021
Yesterday, the Multnomah County Circuit Court ruled that the campaign contribution limits adopted by Multnomah County voters in 2016 are valid under the U.S. Constitution.
At the 2016 general election, the voters of Multnomah County gave 89% of their votes to Measure 26-184, which established limits on contributions to the campaigns of persons running for Multnomah County public office. That includes the Multnomah County Chair, Commissioners, and Auditor.
"This is a reasoned and well-documented decision," said Dan Meek, attorney for the 9 residents of Multnomah County who have been briefing this matter since 2017 and who prevailed at the Oregon Supreme Court in April 2020. "I would not expect anyone to appeal it."
The constitutionality of the contribution limits was challenged by the Portland Metropolitan Association of Realtors, the Portland Business Alliance, and Associated Oregon Industries. Judge Eric Bloch of the Multnomah County Circuit Court in 2018 ruled the limits invalid under the Oregon Constitution on the basis of a 1997 decision by the Oregon Supreme Court. Upon appeal, the Oregon Supreme Court on April 22, 2020, ruled the limits valid under the Oregon Constitution, expressly reversing that 1997 decision. The Oregon Supreme Court remanded the case back to to Judge Bloch to decide whether the contribution limits violate the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, an issue that he had not initially addressed. Judge Bloch yesterday ruled that the Multnomah County limits are valid.
Measure 26-184 limits campaign contributions to any candidate for Multnomah County public office to $500 from any individual or any political committee.
Click HERE for the Court's decision and the documents
filed by the parties in the remand case.
For more information:
Dan Meek
dan@meek.net
503-293-9021
Jason Kafoury
jkafoury@gmail.com
202-465-2647
Pamplin Media (Portland Tribune), August 27, 2021
Zane Sparling
Multnomah County will enforce $500 cap campaign donations
Zane Sparling
Multnomah County will enforce $500 cap campaign donations
Multnomah County's campaign finance limits do not violate the U.S. Constitution, a judge says.It's been a long road since 88.6% of county voters approved the $500 cap to contributions from individuals and political action committees in November 2016.
The rule, which applies to the county's elected commission and auditor, spawned a five-year-long court battle after lawyers for the Portland Metropolitan Association of Realtors, the Portland Business Alliance, and Associated Oregon Industries argued the limits violated the Oregon Constitution. The trade groups did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the judge's ruling.
The Oregon Supreme Court declared the caps OK under the state Constitution in April 2020, tossing out the previous legal standard known as Vannatta v. Keisling. But the court also sent the case back down to a Multnomah County judge tasked with deciding if the rules broke the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment guarantee for freedom of speech.
On Aug. 24, Judge Eric Bloch did just that: giving the limits a clear thumbs up.
OregonLive, August 21, 2021
Hillary Borrud
Dark money group launches campaign to push Portland-area leaders for results on police reforms, homelessness, cleanup effort
Hillary Borrud
Dark money group launches campaign to push Portland-area leaders for results on police reforms, homelessness, cleanup effort
A new anonymously funded political group launched a campaign Friday to try to push elected leaders in the Portland area to move faster and coordinate better to tackle what the unnamed funders see as top challenges in the city.
Many of the things they want done, from creating safe homes for people living on the streets to reducing gun violence, are highly sought after by voters and office holders across the political spectrum. But they don’t have easy solutions, nor is there broad agreement on what steps to take to move in the right direction.
The dark money nonprofit People for Portland began airing television ads Friday that call for officials at all levels of government to “end the humanitarian crisis on our streets, reform the police department, restore public safety and clean up our once beautiful city.”
“Portland is still full of potential, but politicians are doing too little, too slowly to rescue our broken city,” a woman says in the television ad, as black and white images of tent camps, graffiti, and homicide headlines flash by.
“Let’s tell the politicians to do their job, to save the city we love,” the ad concludes, suggesting that people go to the group’s website and sign up for unspecified future political activities.
With the group’s financial backers largely choosing to remain anonymous, the two longtime political consultants running the campaign are taking a more public role in the appeal. Dan Lavey, who has worked for Independents and Republicans including Chris Dudley, and Kevin Looper, who has worked for progressive causes and Democratic candidates including Gov. Kate Brown, are partnering on the effort.
It is legal under state and federal campaign finance rules for the group’s donors to remain anonymous under their setup as a political nonprofit.
Looper said in an interview Friday that the central problem facing Portland is “the lack of courage among elected officials … which is making them more afraid of doing the wrong thing than doing something.”
The campaign will target every elected official with ties to the Portland area, including city commissioners, county commissioners, councilors at the Metro regional government, the sheriff and district attorney, state lawmakers and the governor, who they noted also comes from Portland and has a home in the city. Through digital and television ads, the total cost of which they declined provide, Lavey and Looper plan to appeal to local voters to contact their elected leaders and press them to take action on People for Portland’s priorities.
“We’ve got to get the public more engaged so that … elected officials at all levels feel the heat from the people they represent,” Lavey said.
Local leaders, particularly on the Portland City Council, are already working to try to solve most of the problems that People for Portland decries. But the group says it wants them to achieve results more quickly.
That includes mandating body-worn cameras for Portland police, something the U.S. Department of Justice called for the city to implement in July. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler directed the police bureau this month to prepare for body-worn cameras, including by researching different camera systems and seeking bids, OPB reported. Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, long a vocal opponent of body-worn devices, said she is learning ways the technology is used successfully in other cities, OPB said.
People for Portland called for the city to require the body-worn cameras in an op-ed submitted to The Oregonian/OregonLive and provided separately Friday to the newsroom.
City commissioners are already in the process of settling on six locations at which it will create shelter villages with showers, bathrooms, laundry services, mental health care and case managers. The move is tied to the City Council’s latest policy on clearing encampments, which lowered the bar to remove “high impact” camps based in part on the idea that people could move to the city-sanctioned villages.
The city and other regional and state government agencies also began a concerted effort to ramp up garbage services and dump site cleanup around Portland, after service cutbacks and lack of coordination resulted in solid waste pileups around the city over the last year. But the group says governments still need to do more and “professional sanitation is an expected basic function of government.”
Additionally, People for Portland wants Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt and other prosecutors to “prosecute those who engage in violence and vandalism” during demonstrations, according to a form letter on the group’s website. Schmidt has secured guilty pleas and multi-year jail sentences for multiple people accused of arson, breaking windows and other vandalism associated with late-night protests in downtown and other parts of town.
People for Portland cites polling it paid for from the firm FM3 Research as proof that many Portlanders agree with its priorities and want local leaders to provide faster results. According to the group, a survey of more than 800 likely voters conducted more than three months ago showed 84% of respondents agreed that tent encampments are a “humanitarian emergency” that demand more urgent action by city and county officials and 85% supported redirecting existing tax dollars to create “50 safe, sanitary villages” around the city for people experiencing homelessness. On public safety, the group cites poll results that 62% of respondents said Portland police can be reformed, 91% supported police body cameras and 49% believed the city had too few police officers. Eighty-four percent of respondents agreed that law enforcement should “aggressively prosecute the small number of people who are using protests as cover for property damage and violence.”
Finally, People for Portland polled on whether Portland voters would turn out against city and county incumbents in the next election if things did not improve. Nearly nine out of ten likely voters surveyed said they would do so.
A poll of 300 Portland residents conducted by Portland firm DHM Research for The Oregonian/OregonLive in a very similar time frame, from April 30 to May 6, found that 42% said the city should hire more police officers. Most city residents polled said the police presence should remain as is (30%) or decrease (24%).
Lavey and Looper repeatedly referred to a short time frame — Looper suggested two years — in which elected leaders must achieve substantial improvements to prevent Portland from becoming a “lost city,” in which a critical mass of people have decided not to renew commercial leases and stop supporting elements of a vibrant city such as the arts.
Andrew Hoan, CEO and president of the Portland Business Alliance, did not immediately respond to a call Friday afternoon regarding whether the group supports the People for Portland campaign.
However, two well-known business owners expressed support. Businessman and philanthropist Jordan Schnitzer, whose commercial real estate company owns properties in Portland, said he has “been approached to fund it,” met with the group and believes the campaign “has some good objectives.”
“I’m supportive of anything that helps Portland get back on track,” said Schnitzer, who declined to say whether he donated to People for Portland.
Tim Boyle, president and CEO of Columbia Sportswear Company, was open about his support for the group in an interview Friday. “I have contributed some money to polling to confirm what everybody in the city seems to think is what should be done,” Boyle said. “I care about the city, I grew up here.”
“Every elected official in the state of Oregon, especially the most senior, are all complicit in the problem that we have in Portland today,” Boyle said. “Half of them live in Portland, the other half visit Portland and for them not to be active in making headway on all the issues that are clearly visible to everybody is a disgrace.”
Boyle said that some Columbia Sportswear Company employees have cited problems in the city as a reason they left the company and some potential hires have declined jobs that would have required them to work in the city.
“I’m more than happy to be vocal about this and put my name on my vociferousness,” Boyle said. “I’m not a dark money person.”
Many of the things they want done, from creating safe homes for people living on the streets to reducing gun violence, are highly sought after by voters and office holders across the political spectrum. But they don’t have easy solutions, nor is there broad agreement on what steps to take to move in the right direction.
The dark money nonprofit People for Portland began airing television ads Friday that call for officials at all levels of government to “end the humanitarian crisis on our streets, reform the police department, restore public safety and clean up our once beautiful city.”
“Portland is still full of potential, but politicians are doing too little, too slowly to rescue our broken city,” a woman says in the television ad, as black and white images of tent camps, graffiti, and homicide headlines flash by.
“Let’s tell the politicians to do their job, to save the city we love,” the ad concludes, suggesting that people go to the group’s website and sign up for unspecified future political activities.
With the group’s financial backers largely choosing to remain anonymous, the two longtime political consultants running the campaign are taking a more public role in the appeal. Dan Lavey, who has worked for Independents and Republicans including Chris Dudley, and Kevin Looper, who has worked for progressive causes and Democratic candidates including Gov. Kate Brown, are partnering on the effort.
It is legal under state and federal campaign finance rules for the group’s donors to remain anonymous under their setup as a political nonprofit.
Looper said in an interview Friday that the central problem facing Portland is “the lack of courage among elected officials … which is making them more afraid of doing the wrong thing than doing something.”
The campaign will target every elected official with ties to the Portland area, including city commissioners, county commissioners, councilors at the Metro regional government, the sheriff and district attorney, state lawmakers and the governor, who they noted also comes from Portland and has a home in the city. Through digital and television ads, the total cost of which they declined provide, Lavey and Looper plan to appeal to local voters to contact their elected leaders and press them to take action on People for Portland’s priorities.
“We’ve got to get the public more engaged so that … elected officials at all levels feel the heat from the people they represent,” Lavey said.
Local leaders, particularly on the Portland City Council, are already working to try to solve most of the problems that People for Portland decries. But the group says it wants them to achieve results more quickly.
That includes mandating body-worn cameras for Portland police, something the U.S. Department of Justice called for the city to implement in July. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler directed the police bureau this month to prepare for body-worn cameras, including by researching different camera systems and seeking bids, OPB reported. Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, long a vocal opponent of body-worn devices, said she is learning ways the technology is used successfully in other cities, OPB said.
People for Portland called for the city to require the body-worn cameras in an op-ed submitted to The Oregonian/OregonLive and provided separately Friday to the newsroom.
City commissioners are already in the process of settling on six locations at which it will create shelter villages with showers, bathrooms, laundry services, mental health care and case managers. The move is tied to the City Council’s latest policy on clearing encampments, which lowered the bar to remove “high impact” camps based in part on the idea that people could move to the city-sanctioned villages.
The city and other regional and state government agencies also began a concerted effort to ramp up garbage services and dump site cleanup around Portland, after service cutbacks and lack of coordination resulted in solid waste pileups around the city over the last year. But the group says governments still need to do more and “professional sanitation is an expected basic function of government.”
Additionally, People for Portland wants Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt and other prosecutors to “prosecute those who engage in violence and vandalism” during demonstrations, according to a form letter on the group’s website. Schmidt has secured guilty pleas and multi-year jail sentences for multiple people accused of arson, breaking windows and other vandalism associated with late-night protests in downtown and other parts of town.
People for Portland cites polling it paid for from the firm FM3 Research as proof that many Portlanders agree with its priorities and want local leaders to provide faster results. According to the group, a survey of more than 800 likely voters conducted more than three months ago showed 84% of respondents agreed that tent encampments are a “humanitarian emergency” that demand more urgent action by city and county officials and 85% supported redirecting existing tax dollars to create “50 safe, sanitary villages” around the city for people experiencing homelessness. On public safety, the group cites poll results that 62% of respondents said Portland police can be reformed, 91% supported police body cameras and 49% believed the city had too few police officers. Eighty-four percent of respondents agreed that law enforcement should “aggressively prosecute the small number of people who are using protests as cover for property damage and violence.”
Finally, People for Portland polled on whether Portland voters would turn out against city and county incumbents in the next election if things did not improve. Nearly nine out of ten likely voters surveyed said they would do so.
A poll of 300 Portland residents conducted by Portland firm DHM Research for The Oregonian/OregonLive in a very similar time frame, from April 30 to May 6, found that 42% said the city should hire more police officers. Most city residents polled said the police presence should remain as is (30%) or decrease (24%).
Lavey and Looper repeatedly referred to a short time frame — Looper suggested two years — in which elected leaders must achieve substantial improvements to prevent Portland from becoming a “lost city,” in which a critical mass of people have decided not to renew commercial leases and stop supporting elements of a vibrant city such as the arts.
Andrew Hoan, CEO and president of the Portland Business Alliance, did not immediately respond to a call Friday afternoon regarding whether the group supports the People for Portland campaign.
However, two well-known business owners expressed support. Businessman and philanthropist Jordan Schnitzer, whose commercial real estate company owns properties in Portland, said he has “been approached to fund it,” met with the group and believes the campaign “has some good objectives.”
“I’m supportive of anything that helps Portland get back on track,” said Schnitzer, who declined to say whether he donated to People for Portland.
Tim Boyle, president and CEO of Columbia Sportswear Company, was open about his support for the group in an interview Friday. “I have contributed some money to polling to confirm what everybody in the city seems to think is what should be done,” Boyle said. “I care about the city, I grew up here.”
“Every elected official in the state of Oregon, especially the most senior, are all complicit in the problem that we have in Portland today,” Boyle said. “Half of them live in Portland, the other half visit Portland and for them not to be active in making headway on all the issues that are clearly visible to everybody is a disgrace.”
Boyle said that some Columbia Sportswear Company employees have cited problems in the city as a reason they left the company and some potential hires have declined jobs that would have required them to work in the city.
“I’m more than happy to be vocal about this and put my name on my vociferousness,” Boyle said. “I’m not a dark money person.”
Columbia County Spotlight August 4, 2021
Anna Del Savio
Campaign finance reform proposed in Columbia County
Anna Del Savio
Campaign finance reform proposed in Columbia County
A group of Columbia County residents aim to get a campaign finance reform bill on the ballot.
Residents filed the proposed ballot measure wit the county elections clerk earlier this summer.
The Columbia County Campaign Fiance Regulation Ordinance would limit the dollar amount that individuals or grooups could donate to fund campaign for local elections.
The Oregonian, June 12, 2021
Hillary Borrud
Politicians Running for Oregon Legislature could reap huge taxpayer funding for campaigns under public funding proposal
Hillary Borrud
Politicians Running for Oregon Legislature could reap huge taxpayer funding for campaigns under public funding proposal
"Oregon legislative candidates who agree to accept only small donations would receive a six-to-one public match, under a proposal based on cities including Portland.
It’s the one win still possible for advocates of campaign finance reform in the final weeks of the session, after lawmakers gave up on an attempt to set contribution limits in the face of opposition from groups and individuals that traditionally pour big money into state House and Senate campaigns and other Oregon races."
More.
The Oregonian, June 2, 2021
Oregon lawmakers appear unlikely to limit campaign contributions as key proponent moves to drop effort
"Despite voters’ overwhelming support for campaign contribution limits, Oregon lawmakers appear close to giving up on efforts to pass such limits this legislative session. On Tuesday, a central proponent proposed that the Legislature scrap donation caps and instead focus on creating a state program to match small donations with public funds."
More.
Oregon lawmakers appear unlikely to limit campaign contributions as key proponent moves to drop effort
"Despite voters’ overwhelming support for campaign contribution limits, Oregon lawmakers appear close to giving up on efforts to pass such limits this legislative session. On Tuesday, a central proponent proposed that the Legislature scrap donation caps and instead focus on creating a state program to match small donations with public funds."
More.
Salinas, Hardesty, Colquitt Don't Let Big Money in Politics Drown Out All Our Voices
By Oregon state Rep. Andrea Salinas, Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty and Rosa Colquitt, Chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon's Black Caucus.
May 30, 2021
Published in the Portland Tribune
"As we have seen many states enact laws to restrict access to democracy while seeing money erode public trust in our political system, Oregon should take the opposite track and expand democracy in the Legislature.
Many think of getting big money out of politics as a corruption issue. However, it is so much more than that. Limiting the amounts ultra-wealthy individuals and corporations can give in political races not only improves our democracy, but it also changes who can run and ultimately who can be elected. The Oregon House is considering House Bill 3343, which we see as one possible model of rectifying this issue."
More.
By Oregon state Rep. Andrea Salinas, Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty and Rosa Colquitt, Chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon's Black Caucus.
May 30, 2021
Published in the Portland Tribune
"As we have seen many states enact laws to restrict access to democracy while seeing money erode public trust in our political system, Oregon should take the opposite track and expand democracy in the Legislature.
Many think of getting big money out of politics as a corruption issue. However, it is so much more than that. Limiting the amounts ultra-wealthy individuals and corporations can give in political races not only improves our democracy, but it also changes who can run and ultimately who can be elected. The Oregon House is considering House Bill 3343, which we see as one possible model of rectifying this issue."
More.
Now that campaign donation limits are legal in Oregon, the specifics that lawmakers are negotiating in private would set much higher limits than voters have approved and allow the broadest possible array of entities to continue pouring big money into state politics.
While the general public can’t attend those meetings, big political donors have been allowed in, according to lawmakers and donors’ testimony referencing the private proposals.
Statesman Journal, May 11, 2020
Salem City Council campaign spending breaks records, $200K in contributions
"With more than $200,000 in cash and in-kind contributions, 2020 campaigns for the four Salem City Council seats are setting records.
It is the priciest city government election season in Salem history, according to an analysis of the campaign contributions and expenditures from the Oregon Secretary of State.
Salem City Council campaign spending breaks records, $200K in contributions
"With more than $200,000 in cash and in-kind contributions, 2020 campaigns for the four Salem City Council seats are setting records.
It is the priciest city government election season in Salem history, according to an analysis of the campaign contributions and expenditures from the Oregon Secretary of State.
WOW! |
OR Supreme Court finds limits on campaign contributions to be constitutional! |
OR Supreme Court decision here.
Statement by Oregon Honest Election
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Oregon Supreme Court Upholds Constitutionality of Limits on Political Campaign Contributions
April 23, 2020 Decision reverses 1997 case, validates contribution limits adopted by Multnomah County voters in 2016; same limits were adopted by Portland voters in 2018 |
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Statement by Oregon State Majority Office of the OR State Legislature
Statement by Oregon State Majority Office of State Legislature
The Jurist Legal News and Research (University of Pittsburgh)
News Media coverage
The Oregonian - Oregon Supreme Court rules campaign contribution limits are legal in Oregon
Willamette Week - In historic Ruling, Oregon Supreme Court Says Campaign Contribution Limits Are Legal
Portland Mercury - Oregon Supreme Court Upholds Multnomah County Campaign Finance Limits
KATU - Oregon Supreme Court rules limits to campaign contributions OK
KOIN - Oregon Supreme Court: Campaign contribution limits Legal - Ruling said $500 limits in Multnomah County are OK
KGW - A New era in campaign finance: Oregon Supreme Court OKs contribution limits
Willamette Week - In historic Ruling, Oregon Supreme Court Says Campaign Contribution Limits Are Legal
Portland Mercury - Oregon Supreme Court Upholds Multnomah County Campaign Finance Limits
KATU - Oregon Supreme Court rules limits to campaign contributions OK
KOIN - Oregon Supreme Court: Campaign contribution limits Legal - Ruling said $500 limits in Multnomah County are OK
KGW - A New era in campaign finance: Oregon Supreme Court OKs contribution limits
Willamette Week, 12-25-19
Oregon Trail Lawyers Give Big to An Unlikely Recipient - Bend Republican Senator Tim Knopp
OTLA almost always gives to Democrats. Its check to Knopp is our contribution of the week.
"The Oregon Trial Lawyers Association is one of the bulwarks of the Democratic Party. Nearly all of the $574,000 the group contributed last year went to Democratic candidates or causes. But earlåier this month . . ."
Oregon Trail Lawyers Give Big to An Unlikely Recipient - Bend Republican Senator Tim Knopp
OTLA almost always gives to Democrats. Its check to Knopp is our contribution of the week.
"The Oregon Trial Lawyers Association is one of the bulwarks of the Democratic Party. Nearly all of the $574,000 the group contributed last year went to Democratic candidates or causes. But earlåier this month . . ."
OR Honest Elections files complaints in Portland/Multnomah County election campaigns
Statements by OR Honest Elections:
Complaints Filed Against Campaigns of Ted Wheeler and Others for Violations of Campaign Contribution Limits Adopted by Portland Voters 12-19-2019
Complaint Filed Against Campaign of Lori Stegmann for Multnomah County Commission for Violations of Campaign Contribution Limits Adopted by Voters. 12-19-2019
Complaint Filed Against Campaign of Lori Stegmann for Multnomah County Commission for Violations of Campaign Contribution Limits Adopted by Voters. 12-19-2019
Campaign finance reform advocates press Portland candidates to follow $500 donation limit Southwest Connection, Dec. 20, 2019
Complaint Filed with City Auditor, Says Mayor Ted Wheeler's Campaign Disregards Portlanders' Wish to Cap Contributions., Willamette Week, Dec. 19, 2019
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, 3 other local candidates hit with campaign finance complaints Oregon Live Dec. 19, 2019
Mayor Wheeler Target of Complaint for Accepting Large Campaign Donations. Portland Mercury, Dec. 19, 2019
OPB, Nov 15, 2019
Oregon Supreme Court Considers Whether to Overturn Landmark Campaign Finance Ruling
The Oregon Supreme Court on Thursday considered whether it will overturn one of its more notable rulings – the two-decade-old decision that struck down the state’s voter-approved campaign finance limits.
Oregon Supreme Court Considers Whether to Overturn Landmark Campaign Finance Ruling
The Oregon Supreme Court on Thursday considered whether it will overturn one of its more notable rulings – the two-decade-old decision that struck down the state’s voter-approved campaign finance limits.
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Yamhill County News Register, Nov 5, 2019 Charter amendment passes in favor of care centers The law immediately drew fire from the leaders of the Oregon Health Care Association, which spent approximately $160,000 ($125,000 cash and the rest in-kind).......Defenders of the law, in comparison, spent hundreds of dollar for lawn signs and random speaking engagements. |
Oregon Live, December 21, 2018 The Oregon Governor's race is over. Kate Brown's campaign is not A “platinum circle” sponsorship costs $50,000 and, as the governor’s campaign reminded invitees, “Kate Brown Committee can accept unlimited contributions, and can take corporate contributions.” |
Portland Tribune, December 31, 2018
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler raises $58,500 in three days
The biggest contributions? The winner was $25,000 from Local 48 of the International Brotherhood of Electric Workers, followed by $10,000 apiece from Nike, Inc. and Peter Stott, a trucking magnate and investor.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler raises $58,500 in three days
The biggest contributions? The winner was $25,000 from Local 48 of the International Brotherhood of Electric Workers, followed by $10,000 apiece from Nike, Inc. and Peter Stott, a trucking magnate and investor.
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Oregon Live, November 20, 2019 Political spending in Oregon governor's race tops $37 million, shatters old record Political spending on the Oregon governor’s race exceeded $37 million this cycle, fueled by public employee unions, one in-state mega donor, and national political parties and advocacy groups. Together, Brown and Buehler spent roughly double the previous record of $18 million set by Democrat John Kitzhaber and Republican Chris Dudley in 2010. KATU 2 News, November 7, 2018 Gov Kate Brown wins reelection; Rep. Knute Buehler concedes race Gov. Brown is quoted ""No one person should be able to buy the governor’s office," she said. "We need to fight for campaign finance reform. I will lead that fight."" OPB, November 6, 2018 Portland Voters Pass Campaign Finance Limits Portland voters have passed a campaign finance measure that limits large contributions in political campaigns and requires candidates in city elections to disclose their funders in advertisements. The measure, which amends the city charter, was passing with 87 percent of the vote in favor and 12 opposed in unofficial returns as of Tuesday night. |
Portland Mercury, November 8, 2018
Portland City Council Race Shows Impact - And Limits - of City's New Campaign Finance Limits The folks behind Measure 26-200 say that if their $500 individual donation limits had been in place during this election cycle, the script in the Smith-Hardesty race would have been flipped. Because a large amount of Smith’s individual donations were in excess of $500, her fundraising would have been limited to about $100,000, rather than the $700,000 she did raise. The measure's rules would have had a much smaller impact on Hardesty, who relied more on small individual contributions. Her roughly $300,000 in campaign contributions would have been reduced to about $230,000. See also this Willamette Week story dated October 16, 2018 titled The Portland City Council Candidate Who Has Raised Less Money Has More Small Donors. Willamette Week, Oct. 28, 2018 Michael Bloomberg Gives Biggest Individual Contribution in Oregon Political History Bloomberg's $1.5 million check is the biggest from any individual since the state began keeping electronic records of campaign contributions in 2006. (Knight's checks to Buehler, although larger in aggregate, have been two contributions of $1 million each and one of $500,000.) |
KDRV, October 25, 2018
Sky's the Limit: Oregon's Unfettered Campaign Finance Laws
...the growing number of Oregonians who feel that money should not have a such a prominent place in politics must wonder — does it have to be this way?
The answer is no. Not exactly.t
Sky's the Limit: Oregon's Unfettered Campaign Finance Laws
...the growing number of Oregonians who feel that money should not have a such a prominent place in politics must wonder — does it have to be this way?
The answer is no. Not exactly.t
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Willamette Week, October 18, 2018 Knute Buehler Reels in Another Million-Dollar Check From Phil Knight The Nike co-founder has now given the GOP candidate for governor $2.5 million, providing him fundraising lead over Gov. Kate Brown. Willamette Week, October 7, 2018 Laurene Powell Jobs and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg Among Kate Brown's Latest Contributors The incumbent continues her strong fundraising but GOP challenger Knute Buehler is catching up "Money continues to pour into what is already the most expensive governor's race in Oregon history, with a month still to go before the Nov. 6 election day. "In the past week alone, incumbent Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, reported raising $1.2 million." The Oregonian, September 22, 2018 Jordan Cove LNG campaign contributions raise questions Jordan Cove, a subsidiary of Calgary-based Pembina Pipeline Corp., has made $150,000 in political campaign contributions since Sept. 2017, according to Oregon's campaign finance database. The money went to state and local candidates and political action committees that support its plan to build an export terminal for liquefied natural gas on the North Spit of Coos Bay and a 36-inch diameter feeder pipeline that would stretch across southern Oregon. Street Roots, June 15, 2018 Real estate interests dominate politics in Oregon's coastal communities But as the housing market heats up, real estate interest are putting their money into elections - and locals are finding they can't compete. |
Oregon Center for Public Policy, October 3, 2018 Follow the Money on Measure 103 Whose taxes do big corporations care about — yours or theirs? As Election Day nears, three of the nation’s largest corporations are attempting to scare Oregonians into voting for a ballot measure whose real purpose is to protect their bottom line, not the wallets of working families. The Oregonian, October 5, 2018
Campaign Cash, Who's paying for the Oregon governor's race Between them, Brown and Buehler have raised more than $21 million, breaking the previous record of $18 million spent in 2010, when Democrat John Kitzhaber beat Republican Chris Dudley. So where did they get all that money? Wealthy Oregon business people, Californians, public employee unions, national political groups, the timber industry and a manufacturer trying to fend off Oregon air pollution regulations, The Oregonian/OregonLive found. Willamette Week, September 6, 2018 Nike Founder Phil Knight Writes a Million-Dollar Check to Republican Candidate for Oregon Governor Knute Buehler Nike co-founder and chairman emeritus has now given Buehler $1.5 million in his race against incumbent Kate Brown |
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The Oregon Progressive Party is one of several groups collecting signatures for a citizen initiative petition to amend the state’s constitution to allow limits on campaign contributions and expenditures. If supporters get enough signatures, the measure would be on the statewide ballot in 2020
They were successful. The measure is 26-200 on the City of Portland November ballot. |
East Oregonian, Mar. 31, 2018
Groups push limits on Oregon campaign contributions Effort to impose limits comes as group gives Oregon an “A plus” rating for allowing unlimited contributions. SALEM — As one of several states that doesn’t limit how much individuals, businesses or unions can contribute to candidates, parties or causes, Oregon has earned an “A plus” rating from a Virginia-based group founded by an advocate of deregulating campaign finance. The rating comes as supporters of campaign finance reform are renewing efforts to amend the Oregon Constitution to allow such limits. |
Willamette Week, March 28, 2018
Realtors Back a Landlord in a Packed Democratic Primary
The donation: $10,000
Who got it? State Sen. Rod Monroe (D-East Portland)
Who gave it? The Oregon Realtors Political Action Committee
Why is it interesting? The realtors have now given Monroe $15,000 this election cycle, more than they've given any other legislative candidate. He faces former State Rep. Shemia Fagan (D-Clackamas) and Unite Oregon nonprofit leader Kayse Jama in the Democratic primary. Longtime incumbents like Monroe rarely face serious primary competition.
The donation: $10,000
Who got it? State Sen. Rod Monroe (D-East Portland)
Who gave it? The Oregon Realtors Political Action Committee
Why is it interesting? The realtors have now given Monroe $15,000 this election cycle, more than they've given any other legislative candidate. He faces former State Rep. Shemia Fagan (D-Clackamas) and Unite Oregon nonprofit leader Kayse Jama in the Democratic primary. Longtime incumbents like Monroe rarely face serious primary competition.
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Proponents of limits on money in politics file initiative to effect City of Portland elections
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Willamette Week, Dec. 22, 2017
Voters Could See a 2018 Initiative to Limit Campaign Donations in Portland City Council Elections Advocates have filed an initiative petition to impose limits on campaign contributions for candidates in Portland City Council elections. The petition, filed Dec. 20 by Ron Buel and B. Elizabeth Trojan, needs 34,156 signatures by July 6 to successfully make it to the ballot in November 2018. The proposal would limit individual contributions to $500 per candidate per year, and cap a person's aggregate donations at $5,000 each year |
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Willamette Week, October 11, 2107 Tobacco giant Altria is blowing money around Salem, including to Democratic gatekeeper The world's largest tobacco company, Altria, is opening its checkbook to be sure that its friends stay in line. "The tobacco giant gave $33,500 to the House Republican caucus, $30,500 to the Senate Republican caucus, and—its largest contribution to any individual lawmaker—$5,000 to Senate President Peter Courtney (D-Salem), without whose approval nothing happens in Salem." The Oregonian, August 16, 2017 Phil Knight contributes $500,000 to Republican gubernatorial candidate Knute Buehler "Republican gubernatorial candidate Knute Buehler's campaign got a major boost this week, with a $500,000 contribution from Nike co-founder Phil Knight." Willamette Week, September 6, 2018 Nike Founder Phil Knight Writes a Million-Dollar Check to Republican Candidate for Oregon Governor Knute Buehler Nike co-founder and chairman emeritus has now given Buehler $1.5 million in his race against incumbent Kate Brown Willamette Week, November 10, 2016 What's an Open Oregon House Seat Worth? Try nearly $2 million. Candidates in House District 51 (Happy Valley) shatter previous spending record. "...the candidates competing for an open Oregon House of Representatives seat in House District 51 (Happy Valley and Clackamas) appear to have set a new spending record for a legislative race. "Democrat Janelle Bynum and Republican Lori Chavez-DeRemer have raised a combined $1.93 million." Oregon Public Broadcasting, October 23, 2016 What's the Most Expensive Political Battle in Oregon? Measure 97 "The campaign for Measure 97 has received $10.8 million in contributions, while opponents have contributed $18.3 million, according to Secretary of State Jeanne P. Atkins’ office." The Oregonian, September 16, 2016 Michael Bloomberg donates $250K to Kate Brown campaign Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has received a $250,000 campaign contribution from New York billionaire Michael Bloomberg. The Register-Guard reports that Bloomberg's donation marks the largest single contribution she has received in recent years. |
The World, May 15, 2017 Measure opponents exceed $1 million in combined donations and spending "More than $1 million dollars has been donated or spent to crush a controversial ballot measure that targets the proposed Jordan Cove liquid natural gas export terminal and Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline. The staggering amount has made the campaign the county’s most expensive in its history." OPB News, April 21, 2017 Jordan Cove Donates Big to Squash Measure Opposing Oregon LNG Terminal "Opponents to a proposed ballot measure that threatens the Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline and Jordan Cove projects are funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars into Coos County to ensure that the ordinance fails at the polls next month." See also: Oregon County Faces Gas Industry Funding, Lobbyists in Battle to Halt LNG Project More reasons why we need limits on campaign contributions and expenditures:
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