A week of knocking on doors in the rain, making phone calls, and tabling in the cold left me with the flu, but the 200 signatures for IP 302 that my wife and I collected from Elgin residents were all worth it! Over 150,000 Oregonians signed the petition to place a repeal of Governor Tina Kotek’s gratuitous transportation tax and fee increases on the ballot in November 2026. The Governor and legislative Democrats passed the largest tax increase in Oregon history despite overwhelming opposition testimony, dismissing the disapproval as the annoying chatter of a select few.
Governor Kotek then not only dragged her feet on signing the bill to limit the amount of time that a repeal petition could circulate, she hid the fact that she had signed it from the public to further prevent the people from having adequate time to make their voices heard. Well, Governor, the results are in and we got 150,000 signatures in just a week, nearly double what was needed to get this on the ballot! It sounds like it is time for the Governor to bring legislative Democrats and Republicans back to the table to draft a transportation package that works for all Oregonians.
It would be in any other State, anyway. This is Oregon, and Queen Kotek cannot fathom why the peasants do not want to be further impoverished for the benefit of a bloated bureaucracy. And we peasants will suffer for it. KDRV reported this decree from Governor Kotek: “the emergency funding that the legislature provided to keep Oregon’s roads, bridges, and transit systems safe and working will be suspended immediately,” if the Secretary of State certifies the petition signatures to send IP 302 to the ballot.
One of my main reasons for opposing the transportation package is that House Republicans under Christine Drazan introduced a balanced ODOT budget with no fee or tax increases that was supported by two of IP 302’s chief petitioners, Representative Ed Diehl and Senator Bruce Starr. I had assumed that Governor Kotek read the proposal but rejected it anyway. How foolish I was. According to an additional statement made to KDRV, Governor Kotek said, “The proponents of the referral do not have a viable backup plan for making sure Oregonians have basic transportation services, please ask them to explain their plan in detail.” Governor, the plan was released in April and comes up on the first page of a Google search. Do you really think voters are that stupid?
In the face of fierce popular resistance from Oregonians of all political persuasions, Governor Kotek has chosen to ignore the people and their elected representatives. To answer the title question, no. Tina Kotek cannot hear us now. Because she does not want to hear us. And I am betting the same coalition of voters who caused her to lose the popular vote in 2022 will be even more displeased with her elitist brand of petty tyranny – only this time there won’t be a third mainstream candidate to split the vote. So keep ignoring the voters, Governor. The voters will ignore you at the ballot box next year.
Alex For Elgin 
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