You know it's a tough year for Democrats when the wacky leftwing state of Oregon, dominated by the self-proclaimed weirdos in Portland, might be dumping the Dems in the governor's mansion.
As a reminder, THIS is the person that Oregon is looking to replace:
Yeah, to go from wacky Covid snowglobe masker Kate Brown to ANY Republican would be a huge move for the Republicans.
The right-wing candidate has help, however, as there's an independent spoiler candidate clearing the path to the governor's mansion.
From The Hill:
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report shifted the Oregon gubernatorial race toward Republicans on Friday, moving it from "lean Democrat" to "toss up."
Three candidates are vying for the seat of Gov. Kate Brown (D), who is term-limited: former state House Speaker Tina Kotek (D), former state House Minority Leader Christine Drazan (R) and former state Sen. Betsy Johnson (I).
Cook Political Report attributed its ratings change to the fact that Johnson could act as a disruptor in the race given her fundraising advantage and her TV ad spending, leading to tied polling between Kotek and Drazan.
Hey, a win is a win is a win.
I don't care if it takes a spoiler candidate, as long as the Republican can make it to Salem that's all that matters.
"There's a clear trend of both Kotek and Drazan pulling in the low 30s, while Johnson has yet to poll higher than the mid-20s, though she has argued that will rise post-Labor Day," the Cook Political Report notes.
The nonpartisan election handicapper noted that Republicans could have a chance flipping the governor's mansion because of Brown's lower approval ratings and pointed to at least one ad in which Drazan sought to tie the two Democrats together. Still, Oregon hasn't elected a Republican to the governor's seat in decades.
The last Republican to win governor in Oregon was elected in the Reagan wave, serving from 1979-87.
Since then it's been all blue. But maybe this hugely unpopular Democrat party can change things now.
It would be a major victory for all the sane people in Oregon who are tired of Portland politics.
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