Dirk VanderHart
Reporter | Oregon State Capitol CorrespondentDirk VanderHart is JPR's Salem correspondent reporting from the Oregon State Capitol. His reporting is funded through a collaboration between public radio stations around the Northwest called the Northwest News Network. Before barging onto the radio in 2018, he spent more than a decade as a newspaper reporter—much of that time reporting on city government for the Portland Mercury. He’s also had stints covering chicanery in Southwest Missouri, the wilds of Ohio in Ohio, and all things Texas on Capitol Hill.
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The new map is less tilted in Democrats' favor than an initial proposal for redrawing the state's congressional districts. Republicans worry it will still lead to Democratic dominance. -
So far, a legislative session on new political maps has seen a broken deal, a threatened walkout and now a positive coronavirus test.
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The Senate passed new political maps Monday, but an ongoing impasse in the House could blow up a highly charged special session.
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Following hours of testimony and accusations of gerrymandering, the state's majority party unveiled maps it says meet "the highest legal standards." An analysis tool suggests the plan biased.
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The maps released on Friday are just a starting point as lawmakers work to pass a final plan. They could chart wildly divergent political paths for the state.
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The once-a-decade redistricting process will begin in earnest Friday, when lawmakers give their first pitch for how to reshape the state's political landscape.
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If the projections hold, the refund — which takes the form of credits on 2021 tax returns filed next year — would be Oregon’s largest-ever kicker.
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Lawmakers are required to hold public hearings as they redraw legislative and congressional districts.
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Laws that allow ballots to be mailed on Election Day and keep more voters on state rolls are the target of two referendum petitions.
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The revamped restrictions come as new evidence shows vaccinated people can readily spread the new delta variant.
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Video of the incident shows the demonstrators fighting with police, and at least one person using mace on officers. After they were forced out of the state Capitol, some in the crowd vandalized the building and assaulted journalists.
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Oregon Democrats who took Republicans to task for walking away repeatedly say the situation in Texas is fundamentally different. Republicans disagree.
