illustration by Leo Zarosinski This isn’t any surprise, but it’s finally official: same-sex marriage advocates say they’re abandoning a petition effort to get the state’s now-illegal definition of marriage out of the Oregon constitution. “We are very confident we no longer need the ballot measure,” Oregon United for Marriage Deputy Campaign Manager Amy Ruiz wrote […]
Election 2014
Posted inNews
Their Candidate Lost. But the $15 Minimum Wage Fight’s Just Begun.
photographs by denis c. theriault Nick Caleb lost his council race. He’s still attending Living Wage Wednesdays outside Portland City Hall. Last night could have been dispiriting for Nick Caleb, the Concordia professor who ran to keep Dan Saltzman from a fifth term on the Portland City Council, after he managed only 18 percent of […]
Posted inNews
Here: A Quick Election Wrap-Up
Illustration by Ryan Alexander-Tanner What’s that, then? You’re dying to know who and what emerged victorious in yesterday’s most interesting primaries, and only the Mercury can tell you? You’re in luck. We’ve got some free time, and we’re great at taking screenshots. (Need more context? Check out our endorsements, and our delightful live blog, and […]
Posted inNews
It’s the Mercury‘s Primary Election Live Blog!
Welcome to the Blogtown Election Vulture’s Lair! In this post? Everything you need to know—and a bunch of stuff you didn’t—about tonight’s May primary election results. Will the Portland Public Water District become a thing we actually have to deal with? Will Jim Francesconi and Deborah Kafoury find themselves in a fall runoff for Multnomah […]
Posted inPortland
Hey, You! Vote! Today! WE LITERALLY CANNOT MAKE IT ANY EASIER FOR YOU
Portlanders’ ballots are due at 8 pm tonight, and this election—though it might not seem like it—is a pretty big one. As we wrote in our big endorsement feature (“The Outsiders Want In,” April 30), That water supply everyone went insane over last year? Its governance is very much in question. The mental health care […]
Posted inNews
Advocates: Ruling on Marriage Equality in Oregon Due at Noon Monday
Illustration by Leo Zarosinski Almost two weeks ago, the advocates pushing to legalize same-sex marriage in Oregon this year were glumly contemplating a worst-case scenario. A national group was trying to tangle a federal court case that’s expected give Oregonians the right to marry anyone they want—potentially forcing advocates to push ahead with an expensive […]
Posted inNews
The Mercury Didn’t Endorse Dan Saltzman—Even if a Campaign Mailer Makes It Seem That Way
This seems like a helluva good reason to stand up and do a slow clap for Commissioner Dan Saltzman’s re-election campaign. Because they’ve got a damned fine sense of humor over there. As you well remember, the Mercury has decided not to endorse the four-term commissioner’s bid for a fifth term—backing his main challenger, Nick […]
Posted inNews
Hales’ Aide Says the Mayor Asked Him To Diss Water Effort—But Not In Official Capacity
An aide to Mayor Charlie Hales has admitted to state investigators he criticized the proposed Portland Public Water District at the mayor’s request, an alleged violation of Oregon elections law. But Josh Alpert made the case to state elections officials he made an April presentation at a downtown law firm as a volunteer for the […]
Posted inNews
The Leader of Seattle’s $15 Minimum Wage Movement is in Town Tonight
If you’re at all interested in the push for a higher minimum wage in Portland—or even if you’re convinced its Communist nonsense that will sink the economy—there’s a good opportunity this evening to get a sense of the movement. Kshama Sawant, the Socialist who won a surprising upset last year to earn a seat on […]
Posted inNews
Gay Marriage Foes Probably Won’t Save Oregon’s Ban, But They’ve Delayed its Death
Oregon’s gay marriage ban will be friendless in court tomorrow, after all. US District Court Judge Michael McShane has denied a last-minute bid by marriage equality foes to delay oral arguments scheduled for tomorrow afternoon—or at least allow attorneys for the National Organization for Marriage to have a say. And, since Oregon Attorney General Ellen […]
Posted inNews
Some Water Rhetoric for Your Afternoon
A month after people pushing a new water and sewer board unveiled their first web ad for the measure, the opposition is hitting back. In a slickly produced video—with strong notions about what “odd” and undesirable neighbors look like—the Stop the Bull Run Takeover campaign acquaints voters with its main contention: That the proposed water […]
Posted inPortland
Portland Tribune Parent Company Donates Money to Water District Effort As Editorial Board Pans It
Portland news organizations are already telling you how to vote in the high-stakes May ballot measure deciding who controls Portland’s water, sewer and stormwater systems (the Oregonian had its say on Saturday). But one local media company is voicing its opinion outside of the editorial pages. RB Pamplin Corporation—which owns a variety of local and […]