- 13 liberal counties in Oregon support the move to conservative Idaho
- Crook County became the latest to approve Greater Idaho Measures on Tuesday
- Supporters want to escape progressive politics and high taxes
Thirteen counties in liberal Oregon have expressed support for measures to begin negotiations to secede from the state and join conservative Idaho.
Crook County was the latest to approve the Greater Idaho Measure after a vote on Tuesday.
The proposal seeks to move the border with Oregon 200 miles west, meaning 14 counties and several partial counties would fall under Idaho state lines.
Organizers behind the Greater Idaho movement say eastern Oregon residents are being alienated by the state’s progressive policies, which they blame for high crime rates.
They argue that a move to Idaho would allow residents to benefit from lower taxes and provide better representation and governance.
More than a dozen fed-up liberal counties in eastern Oregon have voted in favor of measures to begin negotiations to secede from the state and join conservative Idaho
“The Oregon/Idaho line was established 163 years ago and is now obsolete,” according to the movement’s website.
“It doesn’t make sense in its current location because it doesn’t match the location of Oregon’s cultural divide.
“We want an economy that is not hampered by Oregon regulations and taxes, including environmental regulations.
“We’re still going to have federal and Idaho regulations, and that’s enough. Idaho knows how to respect rural areas and their livelihoods.”
Measure 7-86, as it was known, passed by 53 percent in Crook County in the latest boost to the Greater Idaho campaign.
However, the vote is not legally binding and merely means that residents are in favor of informing state and federal representatives that they support negotiations to annex part of Oregon.
“Voters in eastern Oregon have spoken loud and clear about their desire to see the border talks move forward,” said Matt McCaw, executive director of Greater Idaho.
“With this latest outcome in Crook County, there is no longer an excuse for the Legislature and the Governor to continue to ignore the wishes of the people.
The proposal, pictured, aims to move the Oregon border 200 miles west, meaning 14 counties and several partial counties would fall under Idaho state lines.
Organizers behind the Greater Idaho movement say Eastern Oregonians are being alienated by the state’s progressive policies, which they blame for high crime rates
“We call on the Governor, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Speaker of the Senate to sit down with us and discuss the next steps toward transforming governance for the people of Eastern Oregon, and also that the Legislature will hold hearings on what a potential border change will look like. .’
“For the past three years, we’ve been reaching out to voters directly and asking them what they want for their state government,” President Mike Carter added.
“What they are telling us through these votes is that they want their leaders to push the envelope.
“In our system, it is the people who are in charge, and it is time for the leaders who represent them to do so.”
The last time Oregon’s state line was moved was 1958, although it was a minor adjustment.
According to NewsNationA recent poll showed that people in Idaho also strongly support the proposal.
Similar plans have been proposed elsewhere in the country, including in Texas, where a senator last year introduced a bill to allow a vote on Texit.
Crook County became the 13th to pass the Greater Idaho Measure after a vote on Tuesday
Within the state itself, Austin’s wealthy enclave of Lost Creek, an overwhelming majority of 91 percent of residents voted to break away from the city in the May 4 election.
Meanwhile, several counties in Illinois have previously voted to move to another state and parts of Colorado have expressed interest in joining Wyoming.
Last year, Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Green tweeted that the U.S. needed a “separation” between blue and red states.