❖ 1: That is a great question, friend. I am glad you asked. The five major periods in Oregon
began in 1859 and lasted until 1902, this was called The Party Period. Essentially
During this era, political parties played a central role in shaping the state’s political
landscape. The arrival of the transcontinental railroad in the late 1800’s helped bring
significant political change. While the Democratic Party was still influential during this
period, the arrival of new residents down south and the midwest fired up dominance in
the Republican Party. In spite of the fact that Republicans had taken over the two parties
constantly collaborated, allowing there to be a period of political stability. Next, we saw
A Republican State begin in 1902 and last until 1954. Although the name is pretty selfexplanatory, during A Republican State we saw the Progressives Emerge, they were a
group focused on reforming the government and promoting social justice. Although the
majority of the party was Republican, there were battles within because of the
Progressive and Conservative sides, and they did not always agree on the political
process. The Golden Era lasting from 1954 to 1978 was a shift in time where Oregon’s
political culture was a renewed emphasis on environmental protection and progressive
legislation. This era was characterized by a strong bipartisan spirit, with lawmakers from
both the Republican and Democratic parties working together to achieve common goals.
The strong leadership of moderate Republican figures like Mark Hatfield, Tom McCall,
and Bob Packwood facilitated this spirit of cooperation and policy innovation. The
Golden Era saw the passage of landmark environmental legislation, including the creation
of the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board. Right after the Golden Era, from 19782012, A State Divided emerged after we saw the introduction of the Oregon Health Plan
and the Oregon Education Act. During this period we began to see a lot of change in
Oregon, however, due to the tough times the economy was facing these programs were
only partial. From 2012 to now, we have seen Democrats take control politically and
within the government. This period was called An Emerging Liberal Dominance. The
decline of traditional rural industries, the growth of urban centers, and increased ethnic
and racial diversity played a big role in Oregon’s shift towards liberal dominance. Oregon
remains a Blue state with no sign of political calmness in the future as both sides are
currently very divided with social media playing a big role in that.
❖ 2: In Oregon’s History they have had a major shift toward Urban Liberalism, Oregon has
had a trend of population growth concentrated in urban areas, driven by a booming
economy, particularly in the high-tech sectors such as Portland, Salem, Eugene, and other
Urban centers. The population has increased since 1980, with those sectors now
generating about 80% of the state's economy and housing 70% of the population. The
flourishing of these Urban Centers has caused a decline in Rural industries like timber
and natural resources. Alongside urbanization, Oregon's population has become more
ethnically and racially diverse. This diversity is reflected in the legislature, where the
number of minority representatives has increased, although it remains underrepresented
compared to the state’s overall minority population. The decline of traditional rural
industries and the rise of liberalism have weakened the influence of conservative
activists. Despite Democratic dominance, the state's tax laws, particularly the lack of a
sales tax and the presence of property tax limitations, continue to pose challenges in
raising revenue1516. Republican legislators retain some influence in this area due to the
state constitution's requirement of a 60% majority to raise revenue.
❖ 3: Oregon began experimenting with mail-in voting in 1981 for local elections. Over
time, the state recognized the benefits in terms of higher voter turnout and reduced costs,
which led to the gradual expansion of mail-in voting. In 1998, voters approved Measure
60, making Oregon the first state to conduct all elections exclusively by mail. By the
2000 presidential election, Oregon became the first state to hold a presidential election
entirely by mail. This system allows voters more time to research candidates and ballot
measures while providing secure ways to return ballots through mail or designated drop
boxes. The initiative and referendum process, part of what became known as the “Oregon
System,” began in 1902 with a citizen-approved constitutional amendment. This gives
Oregon voters the ability to propose new laws or reject those passed by the Legislature.
The initiative process allows registered voters to place new statutes or constitutional
amendments on the ballot by collecting a set number of signatures. Similarly, the
referendum process allows voters to reject laws passed by the state legislature. This direct
democratic system became a national model, demonstrating Oregon’s commitment to
citizen participation. While mail-in voting has helped bring more voters there are still
concerns about voter fraud and the potential for increased influence of special interest
groups through mail-in campaigns. Similarly, the referendum increased citizen
participation in government, as well as giving the ability for voters to bypass the
legislature and enact laws directly, creating the potential for greater responsiveness to
public opinion. A downside to it includes the Potential for initiatives to be poorly drafted
or to be influenced by special interest groups, the risk of undermining the role of the
legislature, possibility of "tyranny of the majority" where minority rights are not
adequately protected.
❖ 4: The media is playing a huge role in politics now as that is where the majority of new
voters will get their news, along with that digital footprint has had just a big impact as
any trace politicians leave on the internet comes back and gets exposed and reposted by
either the other side, or people active on the media. Now that Gen-Z are legal voters Tik
Tok specifically is having a big fight between both sides creating videos about each other
on why one side is better than the other. With how weak Gen-Z is mentally a lot of these
social media videos are propaganda and misinforming and unfortunately, Gen-Z is not
smart enough to do their research and they believe that anything they see on TikTok or
Instagram is true. Misinformation has won a certain side a lot of votes by Gen-Z and has
been publicly exposed. The Kamala Hq page on TikTok is a big example of propaganda,
posting a lot of misinformation and gaining support in the comment section from younger
users which is their target audience. If you pay attention to the sounds, editing, and words
used it is very clear who they are trying to reach. The younger generation became very
dependent on TikTok. The Media is also very controlled, in many debates and questions
they have shown very clearly which side they support, as the government is in control of
certain news channels and companies. They are also in control of what they want us to
see and what they don’t want us to see.