Oregon has long been an evenly divided state.

People often have asked me why Oregon voters will seemingly adopt contradictory positions, and why some elections in Oregon are so close. The fact is that for quite some time Oregon has been very evenly divided between conservative and liberal philosophies. Oregon has a large number of voters who are either strongly conservative or strongly liberal, and a smaller number who fall in the middle.

Of course, it's always difficult defining liberal and conservative, because these polar definitions fail to take into account many factors that influence voter decisions. For example, political activists in other parts of the country often find it difficult to accept when I tell them that many Libertarians in Oregon are environmentalists as well.  The "conservative" view of Libertarians does not mesh with the "liberal" view of environmentalists, but it happens in Oregon.

I will never forget the day in 1990 when, while working to elect Barbara Roberts Governor of Oregon, we heard the pollster give his report. He started off saying "Well, I have good news, and I have bad news. The good news is that more people in Oregon than in any other state identify themselves as liberal. The bad news is that more people in Oregon than in any other state identify themselves as conservative." The poll showed that 48% of Oregon voters identified themselves as liberal, and 48% identified themselves as conservative, while only 4% identified themselves in the middle.

This is why it has been possible for very liberal candidates and very conservative candidates to both do well. Each has a strong base to start from, and just needs to add a little more to the base to win.

While this picture has changed somewhat during recent years, swinging Oregon towards the Democrats, we still have a strongly divided electorate, and it is important to remember that.