By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com
Yachats-area residents should expect to see a lot of campaigning for the Oregon Legislature this spring and fall.
The state senator and representative for the Yachats area – Sen. Arnie Roblan and Rep. Caddy McKeown, both Democrats from Coos Bay — announced with little fanfare in late 2019 that they would not run for office again this year.
Roblan’s Senate district stretches from Tillamook County in the north to Coos County in the south and includes all of Lincoln County.
McKeown’s districts stretches up from Coos, Douglas and Lane counties to include only the Yachats area of Lincoln County.
But the two open seats in a Democrat-leaning but more moderate rural area could give Republicans a chance to pick up a seat in both chambers of the Legislature.
Roblan, 71, was elected to two four-year terms from Senate District 5 after five terms in the Oregon House.
McKeown, 62, was first elected in 2012 to House District 9 and in three subsequent elections.
In 2019, Roblan played a central role in passing Democrats’ and public employee unions’ top priority, a $1 billion-a-year business tax to fund early childhood and K-12 education improvements. At the same time, he drew criticism from environmentalists and some in his own party for joining two other Senate Democrats in blocking House Bill 2020, the controversial cap-and-trade/climate change legislation that failed last session.
McKeown’s district is more moderate than many Democratic districts in Oregon, which is reflected in her being one of only two House Democrats to vote against the cap-and-trade legislation.
In House District 9, registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by just 541 voters, about 1 percent of the electorate.
Roblan’s Senate district is bluer, with Democrats outnumbering Republicans by 4,741 voters, an advantage of five percentage points. But in 2018, Roblan won a three-way race by just 349 votes.
Timber Unity, a popular movement that emerged in opposition to HB 2020, gained supporters on the coast where fuel intensive businesses such as logging and fishing are important to the economy. Its members are likely to seek GOP challengers for both seats, wrote Nigel Jaquis, who covers the Legislature for Portland-based Willamette Week.
Some interest so far; lots of money needed
But running for a seat in the Legislature is also not for the faint of wallet.
In 2018, McKeown, facing a second challenge from Republican Terry Grier, spent almost $1 million in her primary and general election campaigns. In 2016 Roblan spent $642,000.
So far two Democrats and one Republican have filed to run for the positons.
Melissa Cribbins, an attorney and Coos County commissioner since 2013, has filed for Roblan’s seat in the May Democratic primary election.
Dick Anderson, the mayor of Lincoln City, filed for the seat in the Republican primary.
Mark Daily of Coos Bay, a small business owner and two-time Coos Bay City Council member, has filed in the Democrat primary for McKeown’s seat. No Republicans have filed yet.
Roblan, in a news release in November, said after 50 years of working as an educator and legislator “I have made the decision to retire so that I can spend more time with my family.”
Roblan is a member of the Oregon Coastal Caucus and founded the annual Oregon Coast Economic Summit, which convenes business and community leaders across the state to focus on strategies to revitalize coastal communities.
“It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve the hard-working and independent-minded people of the Oregon Coast,” Roblan said in his retirement announcement.
McKeown was a member of the Coos Bay School Board and International Port of Coos Bay commission before being elected to the House. She also served on the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission and Energy Trust of Oregon board.
“Over my four terms, I have been proud to work across the aisle to bring significant investments to our communities on the South Coast,” she said in her retirement announcement. “It has truly been an honor.”