C2 Wednesday, November 3, 2010 • THE BULLETIN
ELECTION 2010
• Find your complete election scorecard on Page A2.
U.S. CONGRESS
Voters return Wyden, Walden to D.C. By Keith Chu The Bulletin
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Rep. Greg Walden, R-Hood River, appeared to buck the antiincumbent trend Tuesday, and were headed to re-election by wide margins. Wyden won his third full Senate term over Republican law professor Jim Huffman, of Portland. Even in a pro-Republican year, Huffman failed to raise enough money to make a dent against his well-funded and popular opponent. Although the next Senate will have fewer Democrats than the current one, Wyden said he’s confident he can work with Republicans to continue moving his ideas forward. “Now the question is translating what Oregon has shown in being bipartisan to the big issues that Congress has to wrestle with,” Wyden said. “I’ve always
said nobody — not Democrats, not Republicans or independents — had a monopoly on good ideas, and I’m going to work with anybody who has solutions to get things done.” Walden won his seventh term in the U.S. House, defeating Democratic challenger Joyce Segers, the former owner of a Florida medical billing company who now lives in Ashland. The seat represents Central, Eastern and much of Southern Oregon. Walden, who has seen his star rise within the Republican caucus in the House over the past two years, has never won re-election with less than 60 percent of votes. Although he had initially planned to be in Medford on election night, Walden appeared onstage with Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, in Washington, D.C., Tuesday to celebrate the GOP’s election gains. The Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call reported
U.S. House
U.S. Senate
U.S. Senate race results by county
• 2ND DISTRICT
Ron Wyden (D)
Joyce Segers
Greg Walden
Democrat 55,841 votes
Republican 167,151 votes
25%
74.8%
Ron Wyden
Jim Huffman
Democrat 604,189 votes
Republican 436,840 votes
56.15%
40.6%
Jim Huffman (R)
As of 10:56 p.m. Tuesday
Columbia Washington Clatsop Gilliam Multnomah Hood River Tillamook
Sherman
Clackamas Yamhill Polk Marion Lincoln
Umatilla
Wallowa
Morrow Union
Wasco Wheeler
Baker
Jefferson Benton
Linn
Grant
Initial election results
Crook
Tuesday evening that Walden had been chosen to head the party’s transition to take control of the House. Walden spokesman Andrew Whelan didn’t respond to an e-mail or phone messages seeking confirmation.
Lane
Marc Delphine
Rick Staggenborg
Bruce Cronk
Libertarian 10,929 votes
Progressive 9,818 votes
Working Families 13,377 votes
1%
0.9%
1.2%
Coos
Keith Chu can be reached at 202-662-7456 or at kchu@bendbulletin.com.
Lake
Douglas
Josephine Curry Jackson
Initial election results
Deschutes Malheur
Harney
Klamath
Source: The Associated Press
STATE LEGISLATURE
District 53 voters stand by state Rep. Whisnant By Scott Hammers The Bulletin
State representative
Republican Gene Whisnant won a fourth full term in the Oregon State Legislature on Tuesday night, easily outdistancing his Democratic opponent in the race for House District 53. Early returns showed Whisnant with a comfortable lead over John Huddle, the Democratic candidate for the seat representing nearly all of Deschutes County outside Bend and Deschutes River Woods, including Sisters, Redmond, Sunriver and La Pine. Whisnant, a Sunriver resident and retired Air Force colonel, was initially appointed to the seat in 2003, when thenRepublican Ben Westlund was appointed to fill a state Senate seat. He has faced limited opposition since — no Democrat filed for the election in 2004, and Whisnant won 59 percent of the vote in 2006 and 67 percent in 2008. “I appreciate the vote and the trust of the people,” Whisnant said. “I hope it hopefully
• 53RD DISTRICT
Oregon legislative trend After Tuesday’s vote, Democrats look to narrowly hold a majority in both chambers in Salem for the 2011 session. If they retain the majority, Democrats will be able to advance policy bills unabated, but perhaps without the necessary 60 percent “supermajority” needed to raise new revenue — 18 votes in the Senate and 36 in the House.
By Kate Ramsayer
DEMOCRATS
18 Gene Whisnant
Democrat, Independent 5,484 votes
Republican 15,006 votes
The Bulletin
Senate distribution — 30 total seats Current session
John Huddle
New session REPUBLICANS
12
DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
12
73.1%
10
Contested as of 10:47 p.m.
26.7% Initial election results
reflects all the hard work I’ve done, for the people of this state and the people of House District 53.” Huddle, a La Pine-area resident who works as a school psychologist, was running for office for the first time. “That’s the way it goes,” Huddle said. “We knew this would be a difficult and a real unpredictable election.” Scott Hammers can be reached at 541-383-0387 or at shammers@bendbulletin.com.
GOP’s John Huffman re-elected in District 59
House distribution — 60 total seats Current session DEMOCRATS
36
New session REPUBLICANS
24
DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
24
21
Contested as of 10:47 p.m. Source: The Associated Press and Oregon Legislative Administration Office
Andy Zeigert / The Bulletin
Republican John Huffman appears to have defeated Democrat Will Boettner in the District 59 Oregon state representative race in initial returns. District 59 covers much of Central and Eastern Oregon, including Jefferson, Gilliam, Sherman, Wasco and Wheeler counties, as well as most of Grant County and small parts of Deschutes, Clackamas and Marion counties. “I think it says that the voters have watched how hard I work and how much I care about the district,” Huffman said. “They’re sticking with the guy they know votes for the district and understands the district.” Huffman, of The Dalles, was appointed as a state representative in 2007 and elected in 2008. He is a commercial property developer and owner, and previously owned a radio station. His campaign stressed limited government and the importance of private businesses in driving the economy. He also stated that Oregon had to control its spending.
State representative • 59TH DISTRICT
Will Boettner
John Huffman
Democrat, Working Families 6,243 votes
Republican, Independent 14,426 votes
30.2%
69.7%
Initial election results
The Legislature now needs to focus on jobs and the economy, he said. Lawmakers need to make tough decisions on state budget issues, and not get sidetracked by partisan politics. Boettner, of Fossil, is a geologist and paleontologist who consults with ranchers on groundwater issues. He had said the district needed more active representation. Kate Ramsayer can be reached at 541-617-7811 or at kramsayer@bendbulletin.com.
Treasurer
Measures
Continued from C1 Gov. Ted Kulongoski appointed Wheeler to the job in March after then-incumbent Treasurer Ben Westlund, of Tumalo, died of cancer. In his seven months on the job, Wheeler instituted reforms in the wake of an investigation by The Oregonian into expenses and travel by his department’s investment officers. He also issued a warning to the state to curb its bond spending, saying, in effect, that the state had maxed out its credit limit. Telfer, a member of the Senate Finance and Revenue Committee and former Bend city councilor, gained rapid prominence in her first legislative session, becoming a go-to person for Senate Republicans in their examination of state spending. Telfer, 60, had argued that her history as a certified public accountant and small-business owner made her more qualified for the position. Wheeler, 48, the former chairman of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners, disagreed, citing his history in the financial sector, working for an investment firm and as a financial analyst. In the race, Wheeler outspent Telfer by a margin of 4-to-1, spending about $630,000 compared with Telfer’s roughly $160,000. Both candidates lacked statewide name recognition going into the race. Wheeler’s campaign polls had reported roughly 20 percent undecideds going into the week before the election, causing the incumbent to feverishly
Continued from C1 The measure creates a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 25 years for individuals convicted of four felony sex crimes, and requires a 90-day jail sentence for a third DUII conviction. The measure does not include funding to house additional inmates, which state officials estimate will cost between $43.4 million and $63.6 million over the first four years. Voters rejected Measure 74, an expansion of the state’s medical marijuana law. The measure would have authorized the creation of dispensaries, shops where state-approved medical marijuana patients and growers would have been allowed to buy and sell the drug. The state estimated that a tax on the earnings of growers and dispensaries would have generated as much as $20 million per year. Measure 75, which would have opened the door to building the state’s first privately owned casino in suburban Portland, was soundly defeated, losing in lopsided fashion in every county in the state. Proposed by two Lake Oswego businessmen, the casino would have distributed 25 percent of gambling proceeds to state and local governments, a payment the backers estimated could have been as high as $147 million annually. Voters approved three measures making minor adjustments to how the state does business — Measure 70, which expands the veterans’ home loan program; Measure 72, which will allow the state to issue general obligation bonds to finance the purchase or repair of state property; and Measure 76, which makes permanent the practice of dedicating 15 percent of Oregon Lottery income to parks and natural resources.
Rob Kerr / The Bulletin
Chris Telfer, right, watches results with County Clerk Nancy Blankenship on Tuesday at the Deschutes Services Building. raise money for ads right up until the end. Wheeler said he plans to continue working in a bipartisan manner to improve the state’s economy. “It’s been a long campaign,” he said. “I’m glad it’s over.” Nick Budnick can be reached at 503-566-2839 or at nbudnick@bendbulletin.com.
Ted Wheeler thanks supporters at an election night party in the “Screening Room” at the Hotel deLuxe in Portland. Doug Beghtel The Oregonian
Scott Hammers can be reached at 541-383-0387 or shammers@ bendbulletin.com.