Secession movement advances in US state
Residents of Oregon’s Crook County have voted to join in a secessionist movement that would carve off most of the Democrat-controlled state’s territory and make it part of neighboring Idaho.
Voters approved the ballot measure by a 53.4% majority on Tuesday, following their neighbors in 12 other eastern Oregon counties in seeking to secede from their state. The result isn’t binding, but it marks a declaration of voter sentiment about the so-called Greater Idaho movement.
“The voters of eastern Oregon have spoken loudly and clearly about their desire to see border talks move forward,” said Matt McCaw, executive director of the secession movement. “With this latest result in Crook County, there’s no excuse left for the legislature and governor to continue to ignore the people’s wishes.”
The Greater Idaho movement began in 2020, reflecting a growing divide between the largely conservative residents of eastern Oregon and the more populous cities in the western part of the state. As in such states as New York, Illinois and Minnesota, Oregon’s governance is dictated by Democrat-controlled cities that have more votes than sparsely populated regions that favor Republicans.
For instance, New York Governor Kathy Hochul won her state’s 2022 election by capturing around 80% of the votes in Manhattan and the Bronx, even as her Republican rival dominated in 49 of 60 other districts. The 13 Oregon counties that have voted to join Idaho span around two-thirds of their state’s land area, but they account for only about 10% of its population.
The proposed secession would shift Idaho’s border about 200 miles westward. It would require approvals from state lawmakers in Oregon and Idaho, as well as the US Congress, to go into effect.
Backers of the movement have argued that breaking away from western Oregon would resolve the state’s cultural divide by redrawing “outdated” borders that were created 163 years ago. “Moving the Oregon-Idaho state line to get better government for eastern Oregon is an idea that is attracting the attention of people from all over the world who are looking for peaceful solutions to our problems,” the Greater Idaho organization said in a statement.
Portland, which accounts for about 15% of Oregon’s population, ranks as one of the most far-left cities in the nation and has been a hotbed for anarchist radicalism. The city was gripped by more than 100 straight nights of Black Lives Matter and Antifa riots in 2020 and 2021.
