A push by gun rights supporters to eject one of Oregon鈥檚 top Republicans has misfired.
As of the 5 p.m. deadline on Tuesday, a campaign to recall Senate Republican Leader Fred Girod had not turned in any signatures, according to the Secretary of State鈥檚 Office. The effort would have required 8,922 valid signatures from voters in Girod鈥檚 district to force a recall election.
The recall campaign emerged in April, not long after Girod and five other Senate Republicans took to the chamber floor to . That opposition was not sufficient for gun rights groups that had grown accustomed to Republicans blocking controversial bills by refusing to show up to pivotal votes.
鈥淚n the face of an onslaught of dangerous and crippling legislation, Oregon鈥檚 Republican Senate Leader has refused to stand up to protect his constituents,鈥� the chief petitioner, Molalla resident LaVaedra Newton, wrote in paperwork filed with the state. 鈥淔aced with legislation that threatens the safety and financial stability of Oregonians, Senator Fred Girod had refused to use the single tool available to defend the people who elected him. He needs to be replaced with a real leader.鈥�
Newton has not responded to requests to discuss the effort. Nor has Rob Taylor, a Bandon-based conservative talk radio host who is listed as an 鈥渁uthorized agent鈥� for the effort.
Exactly how widespread the attempt to recall Girod became is unclear. Campaign finance records show a gun-rights group, the Oregon Firearms Federation, spent nearly $14,000 on the effort, including mailing petitions to registered voters and . That website contains a link for visitors to print out a copy of the petition and accuses Girod of being a 鈥渢urncoat鈥� who supports the 鈥渆xtreme leftwing agenda鈥� of Oregon Democrats.
OFF Executive Director Kevin Starrett did not immediately respond to an inquiry about the effort.
For Girod, a longtime lawmaker who helps control the flow of resources for Senate campaigns, the recall effort had not presented much worry.
鈥淚f they want to spend a bunch of money trying to take me out, they鈥檙e welcome to do it,鈥� he told OPB in April. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think they鈥檒l be successful.鈥�
But the dynamics behind the recall revealed among Senate Republicans, who had presented a largely united front in repeated walkouts in 2019 and 2020. While Girod and five other Republicans attended a vote on the gun control bill earlier this year 鈥� and so helped Democrats achieve the 20-person quorum needed to conduct business 鈥� five other Republican lawmakers chose not to attend.
Girod said the caucus had discussed a unified walkout over the gun bill, but that staying away from Salem until the session ended in late June was 鈥渘ot doable.鈥�
The failure of the campaign targeting Girod marks at least the eighth time a petition to recall a state official has fizzled since 2019. were focused on Democratic Gov. Kate Brown, while others targeted , R-Hood River, and former, D-Astoria.
The latest defeat is likely welcome news to another Senate Republican. A similar recall effort against Sen. Lynn Findley, R-Vale, .
As of the latest filings with the Secretary of State, that campaign had reported no financial transactions.
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