IF YOU’RE STILL SHOCKED by the emergence of formerly dark horse candidates like Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump, you shouldn’t be. Their campaigns were brought to life by millions of Americans who are tired of toiling under politics as usual, while change inches forward at a snail’s pace. And if you haven’t noticed, these same feelings of disenchantment have found their way into Portland’s May primary election.
For those just arriving in town: The faces currently populating city council are essentially the same faces that have been there for the last 20 years. We elect overwhelmingly white, moneyed people to steer the ship—players who often tip their hats in reverence to the West Hills power brokers and the Portland Business Alliance (PBA).
This is largely because Portlanders have repeatedly refused to consider a districting form of government used by so many American cities, which would offer better representation to those who might not be so white and well-heeled. (But that’s not on the ballot, and so an argument for another day.)
Right now, it’s up to us to decide on a future Portland. And from the groundswell of discontent the Mercury has been hearing (and writing about) for the last year or so, the merry parade of business-as-usual politicians and their wealthy supporters should be worried. We’re in the midst of a housing emergency, which directly feeds into the homelessness crisis, which directly feeds into the panicky, immoral actions of NIMBYs and the PBA. The police union continues to be its own worst enemy, putting contract provisions above the citizens it polices—and squirming away from recommendations made by the US Department of Justice. Meanwhile, Portland’s streets continue to erode, while developers continue to gentrify, pushing people of color and the creative class away from the “highly livable” city they helped create. (And then there’s the earthquake thing… but, again, a discussion for another day.)
What we’ve been hearing from our readers and many of the outlier candidates in this election season is that it’s time to shake things up. Americans and Portlanders are tired of politicians holding hands with big money, while simultaneously throwing their hands up about what they believe cannot be accomplished. Developers can be forced to curb their greed, the police union can be forced to act with equity, and the wealthy can be forced to stop criminalizing homelessness. But it all depends on a community finding its voice, and electing leaders with vision and fire in their bellies—then supporting those leaders with action.