Governorship of John Kitzhaber

Kitzhaber was elected governor in 1994 with 51% of the vote.

Kitzhaber won the 1994 election against former Republican Congressman Denny Smith with 622,083 votes (50.95%) compared to Smith's 517,874 (42.41%). Minor party results included American Party candidate Ed Hickam with 58,449 votes (4.79%) and Libertarian Danford P. Vander Ploeg with 20,183 votes (1.65%).[1][2]

Kitzhaber's first term was largely uneventful.

He introduced the Oregon Children's Plan to identify and assist at-risk children and their families. Kitzhaber allowed two executions to be carried out in his first term, despite his moral opposition to the practice: Douglas Franklin Wright in 1996 and Harry Charles Moore in 1997. In 2011, he said "they were the most agonizing and difficult decisions I have made as Governor... I have regretted those choices ever since."

In the biggest landslide since 1982, Kitzhaber defeated activist Bill Sizemore with 64.4% of the vote in the 1998 election.

Kitzhaber was challenged in 1998 by Republican anti-tax activist Bill Sizemore. Sizemore had founded Oregon Taxpayers United, a political action committee that lobbied against tax increases and promoted ballot measures limiting the use of union dues in political campaigns, in 1993. After The Oregonian published information on Sizemore's questionable business practices. At the end of the election, Kitzhaber received 717,061 votes (64.4%), easily defeating Sizemore's 334,001 votes (30.0%). Kitzhaber won all but one (Malheur) county, a rarity in Oregon. This is the biggest landslide since Republican Vic Atiyeh won with 61.4% of the vote in 1982.[3] This election also had significantly more third party candidates including Libertarian Richard P. Burke (20,200 votes/1.81%), Pacific Green Blair Bobier (15,843/1.42%), Reform candidate Roger G. Weidner (10,144/0.91%), Natural Law candidate Patti Steurer (7,823/0.70%), and Socialist Trey Smith (5,772/0.52%).[4]

Kitzhaber meeting with doctors at the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland, shortly before his third term.

During his second term, Kitzhaber created multiple natural resources related policy initiatives including The Oregon Plan for Salmon and Watersheds. This plan worked to restore dwindling runs of threatened salmon species to Oregon's rivers and streams. The plan was a collaborative effort forcing local, state, and federal agencies to work with private landowners to restore watershed health and recover threatened salmon runs.[5]

Kitzhaber made the controversial decision to breach multiple dams in the state to help restore salmon populations.[6][7]

Kitzhaber was a staunch supporter of Oregon's comprehensive land use system and worked to manage growth in the Willamette Valley and other parts of the state. He heavily protected the protection of farmland and the enforcement of the urban growth boundary.

In order to gather information to help develop sustainable communities, he established the Governor's Growth Task Force and the Willamette Valley Livability Forum. He created the Community Solutions program to focus the efforts of multiple state agencies, local government, and other groups in collaborative problem solving and coordination to manage various community development projects throughout Oregon. [8]

The Constitution of Oregon is unique in that it has no term-limits, but prevents more that two simultaneous terms. Because of this, Kitzhaber was ineligible for re-election in the next election.

In the closest election in recent Oregon history, Kitzhaber defeated former NBA star Chris Dudley with a margin of less than 2%.

Kitzhaber gives his acceptance speech for the extremely close 2010 election.

Kitzhaber in 2010.

In 2010, Kitzhaber defeated Secretary of State Bill Bradbury and Roger Obrist in the Democratic primary. He went on to face former Portland Trail Blazer Chris Dudley, who defeated Party Chair Allen Alley, former candidate Bill Sizemore, and six others in a crowded primary. This election was called a tossup with 10 polls favoring Kitzhaber, and 11 favoring Dudley. In the end, Kitzhaber won with 716,525 votes (49.3%), compared to Dudley's incredibly close 694,287 votes (47.8%). Dudley had led in early vote counts, but Kitzhaber's wide margins in Multnomah and Lane counties eventually erased Dudley's lead.[9] This was the first time Oregon used its new cross nomination system, a form of fusion voting. In this system, a candidate for partisan public office can be nominated by up to three political parties.[10] Kitzhaber was nominated by the Independent Party of Oregon in addition to the Democratic Party. Third Party candidates included Constitution candidate Greg Kord (20,475/1.41%) and Libertarian Wes Wagner (19,048/1.31%).

On November 22, 2011, Kitzhaber announced that he would allow no executions to occur in Oregon while he is governor, calling the issuing of death sentences "compromised and inequitable".[12] This commuted inmate Gary Haugen who refused to be pardoned, wanting to be executed. Senior Judge Timothy P. Alexander, assigned to Marion County Circuit Court, ruled that Haugen could reject the governor's reprieve of his execution and move forward in his efforts to die by lethal injection. Kitzhaber appealed the decision to the Oregon Supreme Court,[13] which decided in the governor's favor on June 20, 2013.[14]

In 2012, Rolling Stone magazine named Kitzhaber one of "The Quiet Ones: 12 Leaders Who Get Things Done".

Kitzhaber presided over the failed launch of Cover Oregon, the state's Affordable Care Act insurance exchange website.[15] He was also in governor during the 2014 collapse of the Columbia River Crossing infrastructure megaproject, amid opposition from Republicans in Washington's state Senate and Clark County, Washington's government.[16][17]

First Lady's scandals

In 2014, the Willamette Week exposed a previously unknown marriage between First Lady Cylvia Hayes and an Ethiopian immigrant in 1997. Hayes admitted to the union, which was dissolved in the early 2000s, and said it was an illegal green card marriage into which she entered for money during a difficult period in her life. Kitzhaber was unaware of the marriage until the Willamette Week's investigation.[18] Kitzhaber later admitted at a debate that he was "taken aback and hurt" to learn of it.[19][20]

Just days later, local news stations reported that Hayes was involved in another criminal scheme in 1997 involving a marijuana grow operation in Washington, to which Hayes also admitted.[21][22]

Kitzhaber with Lt. Gen. Tran Quang Khue, Deputy Chief of General Staff of the People's Army of Vietnam and General Raymond F. Rees in 2012.

Kitzhaber with Washington Governor Christine Gregoire announcing the Columbia River Crossing Project.

Kitzhaber was questioned over Hayes' consulting business and whether the first lady improperly used her position and relationship to the governor. Kitzhaber asked for an ethics review into Hayes' business activities,[23] which the state commission declined to look into.[24] Kitzhaber defended Hayes publicly.

Kitzhaber defeated state legislator (and later Secretary of State) Dennis Richardson in 2014 by a margin of about 6%.

Kitzhaber at a bill signing in 2013. (On the far left is congressional candidate Cliff Bentz, then a state legislator).

Kitzhaber easily won the Democratic primary and legislator (and later Secretary of State) Dennis Richardson won the crowded Republican primary by a comfortable margin. Kitzhaber's fiancé was faced with scandals, originally thought to hurt him more than it did. Most news outlets had called the election for Kitzhaber by 9:00 p.m. on election night, and despite Kitzhaber's acceptance speech, Richardson refused to concede due to the close tally until later.[25] Kitzhaber was cross-nominated by the Working Families Party of Oregon, and Richardson was cross-nominated by the Independent Party of Oregon. In the end, Kitzhaber received 733,230 votes (49.89%) and Richardson received 648,542 votes (44.13%). Third party candidates included Pacific Green Jason Levin (29,561/2.01%), Libertarian Paul Grad (21,903/1.49%), Constitution candidate Aaron Auer (15,929/1.08%), and Progressive Chris Henry (13,898/0.95%)

Kitzhaber was sworn in for a historic fourth term as governor on January 12, 2015.[27] The state saw the largest Democratic majorities in the Oregon Legislative Assembly since he became governor in 1994.[28] In his inaugural address, Kitzhaber indicated his fourth gubernatorial term would be the last one he would seek, saying it "will complete the arc of my political career". He said his primary focus for his fourth term would be on socioeconomic inequality in Oregon during his last four years as governor of the state.[29]

First Lady Cylvia Hayes. The subject of Kitzhaber's scandals.

Despite his efforts to focus on policy, Kitzhaber continued to grapple with controversies related to his fiancée and her work as a consultant and for the state. At a press conference on January 30, 2015, he said Hayes would play no further role in his administration, although he confirmed the couple still plans to marry.[30] The Oregonian, which endorsed him in his 2010 and 2014 campaigns, called on him to resign, though Kitzhaber refuse to do so.[31] Senate President Peter Courtney, Speaker of the House Tina Kotek, and State Treasurer (and later Portland Mayor) Ted Wheeler all released statements calling on Kitzhaber to resign. On February 12, the Willamette Week reported that Kitzhaber's executive assistant had tried to have thousands of the governor's emails deleted the previous week.[32] The next day, Kitzhaber announced his resignation (effective February 18, 2015). After 28 months of investigation, in 2017, the federal government declined to continue its investigation.

In January 2019, Kitzhaber agreed to pay $20,000 in civil penalties to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission for conflicts of interest involving Hayes while he was Governor.[33] That month, Hayes also agreed to pay the Commission fines totaling "$44,000 for ethics violations arising from her use of public office for personal profit."[34][35]