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Left: U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley. Right: Oregon state Sen. David Brock Smith. Merkley has served in Congress for nearly 18 years and faces challenger state Sen. David Brock Smith.
Courtesy of the campaigns
Elections
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley was headed for retirement. President Trump’s actions changed his mind
Bryce Dole
The longtime Oregon Democrat faces state Sen. David Brock Smith, a Republican from Port Orford.
Four headshots show images of a young woman with long dark hair, a woman with red hair, a woman with blond hair and black glasses, and a man with gray hair and a gray jacket.
Contributed/Jackson County Board of Commissioners
Elections
Jackson County commissioners seek fourth terms as challengers call for change
Jane Vaughan
The Oregon Coast Community Action building in Coos Bay. The nonprofit, founded in 1965, runs programs including Head Start, housing help and food distribution.
Oregon Coast Community Action
Children and Family
A CASA shutdown leaves Coos and Curry foster children waiting for advocates
Theo Greenly
A close-up of a brown mosquito with white markings feeding on a human.
CDC
Elections
Jackson County mosquito district asks voters to expand funding
Justin Higginbottom
JPR NEWS | FEATURED >
On The Jefferson Exchange
A child explores the natural environment in a still image captured from the award-winning documentary film, In Our Nature.
  1. Medford screening brings stories of outdoor learning to the Holly Theatre
  2. How Cal Poly Humboldt researchers are turning internet cables into earthquake sensors
  3. Jackson County clerk walks voters through ballot safeguards
JPR MUSIC >
NPR | FEATURED >
NPR Headlines
A person walks past a voting sign at the East Point Library on Tuesday, the first day of early voting, in Atlanta.
  1. These swing voters regret voting for Trump and it's influencing their midterm choices
  2. Ukraine resumes attacks on Russian oil refineries, officials say, after brief truce
  3. School roof collapse kills at least 29, injures more than 3 dozen in Pakistan
OREGON NEWS >
FILE -- Gov. Tina Kotek and state Sen. Christine Drazan debate in Eugene, Ore., on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. Kotek and Drazan held their third and final debate in Bend on Oct. 13.
Will Yurman
/
Pool LookOut Eugene-Springfield
Elections
Kotek, Drazan square off in final debate of governor’s race
Dirk VanderHart
The two candidates for governor met in Bend Tuesday night for their final debate, touching on issues specific to Central and Eastern Oregon — and included plenty of familiar lines.
FILE - A federal judge has dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit seeking Oregon's unredacted voter rolls. In this Nov. 8, 2022 file photo voters at the Multnomah County Elections Division in Portland.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff
/
OPB
Elections
Trump pressed states for info on millions of voters in the midterms. It’s mostly failed
Jonathan Shorman
FILE — A data center in Umatilla, Ore., seen on April 3, 2026. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has directed environmental regulators to pause permitting for new or expanding data centers until July 2027.
Saskia Hatvany
/
OPB
Environment, Energy and Transportation
Gov. Kotek expands Oregon data center moratorium
April Ehrlich
The Curry County Administrative Annex building, with American flag flying in front of the building and "Curry County" displayed above the entrance.
Theo Greenly
/
JPR
Elections
Curry County Commission candidates split on spending, agree on nickel mine
Theo Greenly
FILE - Kaori Eder, pens "children over politics” on a sign board during a Portland Public Schools board meeting at the Dr. Matthew Prophet Education Center in Portland, Ore., in April 2026.
Eli Imadali
/
OPB
Education
In Oregon, inconsistent efforts from distracted leaders keep education outcomes from improving
Elizabeth Miller
CALIFORNIA NEWS >
San Diego’s Lake Hodges Dam under repair in fall of 2022. The dam is expected to be replaced in the next decade. The dam, built as a multiple arch design, was completed in 1918, and purchased by the City of San Diego in 1925.
John Gastaldo
/
CalMatters
Environment, Energy and Transportation
Dozens of California dams need repair as El Niño winter draws closer
Rachel Becker
An audit found 57 California dams in poor or unsatisfactory condition, and the 40 riskiest sit near big coastal cities.
The Alturas Indian Rancheria gas station, located on a federal allotment in Yreka, with the tribe's excavation work in the background on July 15, 2026. The Bureau of Indian affairs says the tribe is trespassing on this property.
Justin Higginbottom
/
JPR
Economy and Finance
Alturas Indian Rancheria is entering prediction market business with Kalshi partnership
Justin Higginbottom
The California State Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., is seen on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024.
Juliana Yamada, File

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AP Photo
Elections
Prop. 43 would make special taxes harder to pass. That’s the point, say anti-tax advocates
Yue Stella Yu
Aztec dancers perform in front of a crowd of more than 2,000 spectators at the Indigenous Peoples Day Sunrise Gathering on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco on Oct. 12, 2026.
Melanie Henshaw
/
CalMatters
Race and Ethnicity
Thousands mark Indigenous Peoples Day on Alcatraz as tribes decry Newsom’s vetoes of tribal bills
Melanie Henshaw
Birds flock over the San Luis Canal in Kettleman City on March 8, 2025.
Jae C. Hong
/
AP Photo
Elections
How would Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton manage California’s most precious resource, water?
Rachel Becker
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