Five Oregon Counties Vote to Secede and Join Idaho
19 May 2021
Five rural Oregon counties voted on Tuesday to secede from the state of Oregon and join the state of Idaho.
The
Idaho Statesmanreported:
Thousands of people in eastern Oregon voted Tuesday for their elected officials to consider ditching their state and becoming part of Idaho.
Voters in Sherman, Lake, Grant, Baker and Malheur counties all voted for ballot measures that would lead to them becoming Idahoans. People in Union and Jefferson counties had already voted in favor during the November election. . .
The vote is only the first step of the “Greater Idaho” project, which would allow some Oregon counties to join a state that advocates say more closely aligns with their political preferences.
5 Oregon Counties Vote for Becoming Part of Idaho
Greater Idaho, May 19, 2021
Five counties in eastern Oregon voted for becoming a part of Idaho on May 18: Sherman, Lake, Grant, Baker, and Malheur counties. No counties voted against. The average was 62% in favor. Two additional Oregon counties had already voted in favor in November: Union and Jefferson.
In the five counties that voted on this issue, the average turnout was 43%, much higher than the statewide average of 25% for this election.
The ballot measures are a part of an effort to move the Oregon/Idaho border to extend Idaho’s jurisdiction over rural, conservative counties of eastern and southern Oregon. The ballot measures are intended to put pressure on the state legislatures of Oregon and Idaho to negotiate an interstate compact to relocate their common border. “This election proves that rural Oregon wants out of Oregon. If Oregon really believes in liberal values such as self-determination, the Legislature