Dirk VanderHart
Dirk VanderHart covers Oregon politics and government for OPB. Before barging onto the radio in 2018, he spent more than a decade as a newspaper reporter—much of that time reporting on city government for the Portland Mercury. He’s also had stints covering chicanery in Southwest Missouri, the wilds of Ohio in Ohio, and all things Texas on Capitol Hill.
Dirk’s byline has appeared in USA Today, The New York Times, The Houston Chronicle, The Columbus Dispatch, The Oregonian, and more. He’s got a journalism degree from Michigan State University.
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Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has rolled out her first budget plan. She's focused, not surprisingly, on big investments in housing, education and behavioral health. -
The announcement highlights resentments that have lingered between lawmakers in Salem for years.
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The GOP's dreams of taking control of the state Senate fizzled on election night, though the party did make gains.
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Oregon voters appear to have impaired the ability of state lawmakers in the minority party to block contentious bills by fleeing the Capitol, a maneuver Republicans employed in 2019 and 2020.
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The relatively slow pace of ballot returns doesn't mean Oregon voters won't turn out in sizeable numbers — just that they're not doing so yet.
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After three years, and several revisions, it seems everyone agrees the system for dealing with harassment complaints in the statehouse is broken.
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The GOP is almost certain to eat into Democratic supermajorities this year. The question is by how much.
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Republicans on the House Conduct Committee said Kotek created a hostile workplace for another lawmaker in 2019. Democrats disagreed.
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The Democratic nominee for governor has been increasingly critical of Gov. Kate Brown as she tries to create distance.
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In the Oregon race for governor, the Democrat, Tina Kotek, and the Republican, Christine Drazan, are in a dead heat thanks to the independent, Betsy Johnson, who has outraised her competitors.
