Robin Church speaks at the candidate forum at the Catherine Creek Community Center in Union on March 21, 2024. Church is one of nine candidates running for Union County Commissioner in the May primary election.

UNION — Fourteen candidates and at least 100 people attended a candidate forum Thursday, March 21, at the Catherine Creek Community Center in Union.

The cast of candidates included all nine of the contenders for Position 3 on the Union County Board of Commissioners, who fielded a handful of questions, including what their priorities would be if elected.

Robin Church, of La Grande, a retired Union County Clerk, said one of her priorities would be addressing drug addiction in the county. Church also said she would strive to lower the cost of housing in Union County.

“I know that it is out of sight,” she said.

John Coote, the owner of Coote Auction Company, also said he is concerned about the cost of housing, stating that 2020 federal government data indicates the median cost of a home in Union County is $243,000. The Island City resident also wants to focus on the drug problem in Union County.

“Law enforcement needs to be aggressive with regard to the drug situation,” he said.

Kathleen Cathey, of La Grande, who works for Oregon U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden in 11 Eastern Oregon counties, said she is also very concerned about the cost of housing, noting that many people are making payments for houses and apartments of $1,400 to $2,000 a month. Cathey said she has worked with counties throughout the state and believes the knowledge she has gained in the process could help Union County.

“I would be happy to bring this information to the table,” she said.

Brent Clapp, who lives in La Grande and is the owner of Eastern Oregon Alive TV and Brent Clapp Productions, said he would like to see commercial air passenger travel offered at the La Grande/Union County Airport. He said it may become increasingly important because of the growing number of people who are now working remotely in Union County.

“These people still need to come in and out of our area,” he said.

Also, Clapp said he wants to see more drug education in local schools.

Caleb Sampson, of La Grande and a member of the Union County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, said one of his priorities would be to support local businesses.

“One of my passions is local business,” he said.

Mark Simmons, an Elgin resident who was state representative from 1997-2002 and speaker of the Oregon House from 2000-2002, said he would work to help boost the county’s economic climate so that families can thrive.

“Good families make for strong communities and strong communities make for good towns and good towns make for good counties,” he said.

Merle Comfort, a member of the La Grande School Board and InterMountain Education Service District Board, said he would want to continue supporting the board of commissioners in its effort to get an upgraded water and wastewater system installed at the Union County Fairgrounds. A La Grande resident, he said this would be a benefit for the community.

Brian Sather, of Summerville, a professor of physical activity and health at Eastern Oregon University, said he would like to increase the recreational opportunities in the county.

“I have been in every square mile of Union County,” he said.

Jake Seavert, of La Grande, a division manager for Oregon Trail Livestock Supply’s location in Island City, said his areas of focus would include making sure that funding for first responders remains strong. Seavert said additional funding might be needed because of how things are changing.

“This is not the same place it was 10 years ago, crazy things are happening,” he said. “We need to be fully prepared for the next 10 years.”

Candidates weigh in on Greater Idaho movement

The county commissioner candidates were also asked about the Greater Idaho movement at the forum. Supporters of the movement want to see Idaho’s border moved west into Eastern Oregon.

Seavert said he does not believe it is right to pick up and essentially move out when things are not going right in one’s life. He said that if the movement does progress, he doesn’t believe it would get the approval it would need at the federal government level.

Sather does not believe that a switch to Idaho would necessarily benefit Eastern Oregon.

“As a former Idaho resident, I can tell you that the grass is definitely not greener on the other side of the river,” he said.

Comfort said a switch to Idaho isn’t needed in order to address the issues that sparked the movement.

“I believe that we can take care of our own problems here,” he said.

Simmons said the movement reflects how upset many people are with the west side of the state dictating how things are run in Eastern Oregon. He said the movement is a result of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the 1960s that reduced the representation of lightly populated areas in their state Legislatures.

Sampson said he would support the Greater Idaho movement if it was what Union County residents chose.

“Commissioners have to listen to the people,” he said. “If people wanted it, I would support it.”

Clapp said he is frustrated by Eastern Oregon’s lack of representation in the Legislature, but he doesn’t believe having the region become a part of Idaho would be a good thing.

“If you could switch things tomorrow, would you want to have a sales tax and a lower minimum wage?” Clapp asked.

A measure passed by Union County voters about four years ago requires the Union County Board of Commissioners to meet three times a year to discuss the Greater Idaho movement with the public. Cathey on Feb. 14 attended one of the meetings. She found the meeting was not constructive and sparked arguments.

Cathey said people would be better off to work together and address the issues.

Coote said he believes legislators on the west side of the state are not addressing many of Eastern Oregon’s needs because of insufficient lobbying efforts. He said as a county commissioner he would work energetically to make sure the Legislature understood the needs of the residents of Union County.

“Commissioners are the lobbyists for citizens,” he said.

Church said people in Eastern Oregon and other rural areas have the power to get more legislators representing their views elected. All it would take would be an increase in voters turnout.

“It takes people showing up for the greater good,” she said.

Church noted that a stronger voter turnout in the 2022 governor’s race might have resulted in Republican Christine Drazan being elected.

The questions about priorities and Greater Idaho were among about six the candidates for the Union County Board of Commissioners fielded at the forum.

The candidates are seeking to succeed Donna Beverage who is completing her eighth year as commissioner and cannot run for reelection because of term limits Union County voters approved several years ago.

Union County Sheriff Cody Bowen and challenger Shane Rollins also appeared at the forum and answered questions. Voters will cast ballots in that race during the Nov. 5 general election.

Mark Simmons, who is seeking a seat on the Union County Board of Commissioners, was in Washington, D.C., and heard President Donald Trump speak on Jan. 6, 2021, the day the U.S. Capitol was attacked by protesters. Page A2