GOP boycott in Oregon halts bills on guns, abortion and more
Republican members of the Oregon Senate have extended their boycott into a second day, delaying bills on gun safety, abortion rights and gender-affirming health care
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Most Republican members of the Oregon Senate failed to show up for the second straight day Thursday, delaying action by the majority Democrats on bills on gun safety, abortion rights and gender-affirming health care.
The stayaway prevented a quorum, with Senate President Rob Wagner calling for another try on Friday. Republican lawmakers have used walkouts in the past, but this time — if they continue to stay away — they’ll be testing a law approved overwhelmingly in a ballot measure last November that bans lawmakers with 10 unexcused absences from running for reelection.
The boycott comes as several statehouses around the nation, including in Montana and Tennessee, have become battlegrounds between conservatives and liberals. Oregon has increasingly been divided between liberal population centers like Portland and Eugene and its mostly conservative rural areas.
The leader of Senate Republicans, Sen. Tim Knopp, spoke on the phone Thursday with Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek after telling journalists Wednesday that a derailed legislative session would jeopardize the governor's legislative agenda, including tackling homelessness.
