Republicans are saying multiple instances of a racial slur in a 1971 memoir by Democratic state Senator Jeff Golden, who is running for reelection, are reason for him to resign.
While three Ashland City Council seats will be undecided until November, a number of other elected offices within the Ashland saw only the incumbents filing for office, though additional candidate information could be published later this week.
Two candidates have dropped out of the race for Ashland City Council as the city waits on signature verification to release the forms of additional candidates who filed by the Aug. 8 deadline. City Recorder Melissa Huhtala said she is waiting to hear from Jackson County to confirm the signatures of additional candidates and will post candidate information after this step is complete.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Friday to overturn nearly 50 years of abortion rights protections sparked an outpouring of condemnation in Oregon where reproductive rights are protected by law and Democrats hold the majority of state offices. A rally is planned for 7 p.m. Friday on the Ashland Plaza.
Many drivers passing by Ashland Plaza on Saturday honked in support of individuals wielding signs with sayings like, “Enough is enough” and “Protect kids, not guns,” part of a nationwide day of demonstrations led by the “March for Our Lives” organization. Participants called for action on gun legislation in the wake of the deaths of 21 people at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24, the worst school shooting since 26 were slain at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut, in 2012.
Ashland City Councilor Stefani Seffinger will not seek a third term on the council, she announced Saturday, a week after successful surgery to remove a melanoma. She intends “to continue to serve the last months of my term with dedication,” she said in a statement circulated to city staff members and posted on her Facebook page.
With the hope of stabilizing Ashland Parks & Recreation Commission funding and reducing pressure on the of the city of Ashland’s budget, a “group of community members” will seek to put a funding initiative on the November ballot this fall, APRC Chair Rick Landt announced in a letter sent Sunday night sent a letter to Mayor Julie Akins and councilmembers, and copied to City Manager Joe Lessard and City Recorder Melissa Huhtala.
Walkovers ruled in Southern Oregon’s primary balloting, with Ashland’s incumbent state representative and senator hovering around 99 percent approval from their party’s voters. Primary races in the two county commissioner seats were similarly one-sided in three of the four contests, with no candidate on the ballot on the fourth.
Oregon appears headed toward a low turnout by its nearly 3 million voters – and potentially a new historical low in a midterm election. The final count won’t be known until next Tuesday. The Legislature last year extended the timeline for mail-in ballots. Those postmarked by 8 p.m. on Election Day will be counted, provided they arrive within a week. As of Tuesday at 8 p.m., the Secretary of State’s Office showed that nearly 28% of the state’s 2.9 million registered voters had turned in their ballots.
A march is set to start from the Ashland Public Library at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 14, and head north for four blocks up East Main Street sidewalks to the Ashland Plaza for a “Bans Off Our Bodies” rally decrying a draft Supreme Court decision leaked last week that, if finalized, would overturn the 1970 court decision that recognized a pregnant woman’s right to make a choice whether to have an abortion.
The Ashland Independent Film Festival announced Monday the nonprofit’s six on-screen film lineup as a documentary showcase coming April 14-20 to the Varsity Theatre. Each Varsity feature will be paired with a short documentary directed by a local filmmaker.
Oregon drivers who for decades have been banned from touching gas pumps could soon have the right to fuel their own cars, under a bill the state House overwhelmingly approved Monday.
After announcing last week that the ski-snowboarding area broken its all-time season attendance record, Mt. Ashland Ski Area managers announced Sunday that its season has been extended to April 23, adding two weekends on to a schedule that typically would have ended on April 9.
During a visit to Central Point Sunday, Deb Haaland, U.S. Secretary of the Interior, announced $21 million was on its way to Oregon to help reduce the risk of wildfires. Joining her were U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, and Mike Shaw, chief of fire protection at ODF.
A procession celebrating spring wound its way from the ice rink on Winburn Way to the Ashland Plaza on Saturday afternoon, drawing an estimated 150 participants with a like number of spectators.
Reader photos: Carlyle Stout of Ashland took these photos in Lithia Park after the last storm on March 1.
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