Knopp Clobbers Telfer; Deschutes 911 Fails

A rare intra-party challenge to an incumbent Central Oregon state lawmaker was very successful, Wednesday’s close-to-final primary election tally showed, as former Republican state lawmaker Tim Knopp handily defeated incumbent Chris Telfer by more than 2-to-1 in an expensive, closely watched primary contest.

With just about all the ballots counted Wednesday morning — more than 33,000 countywide, for a 36 percent turnout of registered voters ? Knopp had 8,678 votes, or just over 68.4 percent, to 3,994 for Telfer, or 31,5 percent. The nearly 5,000-vote margin of victory means Knopp will face Geri Hauser, the lone Democratic candidate, in the fall.

Knopp, a former House majority leader, raked in more than triple Telfer?s campaign war chest, and spent heavily on ads portraying the incumbent as a former Democrat who was too willing to work with Democrats and who could not get along with her GOP colleagues ? some of whom endorsed her opponent.

Interviewed live by Joe Burns on NewsChannel 21 at Ten amid cheering supporters at Sun Mountain Fun Center, Knopp said he was excited about the results.

“I think it’s going to mean that Central Oregonians have voted for jobs, and that they want the Legislature to focus on jobs and job creation — and they want action,” Knopp said.

Knopp said he knows it’s just “halftime” in the election calendar and he and “we’re going to work just as hard in the second half,” the fall election. “We’re not going to take this for granted.”

“My goal is to help unite Central Oregon,” Knopp added, “regardless of party registration, because unemployment doesn’t know party registration.”

“And what we want to do is unite Republicans and Democrats and Libertarians, independents and non-affiliated voters with a jobs message that we take to Salem,” he said. “And we don’t take no for an answer, and we just keep working until we get it done and we get people back to work.”

Asked by Burns how much his “massive” campaign war chest helped, Knopp said, “Well, it always helps to have money. I’ve run races without money before, and I’ve been able to win. It helps you to get your message out there. But really, it’s indicative of the kind of support you’re able to achieve, both locally and at the state level.”

Earlier in the night, Telfer was not yet conceding the race, despite the heft margin against her from the early count.

“I’m still optimistic,” she told NewsChannel 21 after the first votes were counted. “Like I say, it’s very early — only 7,000 ballots counted so far — so I’m prepared to hang in there all night long and see what the count is.”

Telfer also lamented the lack of interest in the primary election, even with the hot race that drew plenty of attention, ad dollars, lawn signs and billboards.

“I am disappointed (with) the low turnout of the people of District 27,” she said, “so a little concerned we just can’t get people interested enough to vote.”

In other Deschutes County races and measures, Bend City Councilor Tom Greene decisively defeated former attorney Philip Henderson in the county commission seat race, taking about 70 percent of the vote and moving on to face Democrat incumbent Alan Unger in November.

“To me, it says that people view my term on the city council as being effective making good decisions, good choices.” Greene said, “We had a real rough time with the budget. Infrastructure is down and we had to make some tough decisions, and it confirms to me and says to me that, ‘Hey, you and the current council are doing a good job.'”

County prosecutor Beth Bagley well outdistanced three other candidates in a race for the circuit court judgeship vacated by retiring judge Michael Sullivan. But to win outright, a candidate would need 50 percent ? and Bagley had about 39 percent as of Wednesday morning.

That means she will face Andrew Balyeat in the fall, as he was second with about 29.5 percent of the ballots. Thomas Spear Jr. was third, with about 17 percent of the vote, and Aaron Brenneman fourth, with almost 14 percent of the vote.

“I’m very humbled and pleased to know that so many people checked my name on their ballot,” Bagley said Tuesday night, “There are still votes to be counted, but it really reaffirms that I am a great choice for circuit judge, and people really believed in my experience and my background and what I could bring to that position.”

In Deschutes County’s only money measure (with no statewide measures on a low-key ballot), voters rejected a proposed 911 service district to ensure long-term stable funding, with about 52 percent no votes to 48 percent in favor — even though the tax rate would have held the same as the previous total, and officials said they’d levy less than the full amount to start.

The margin of defeat was 1,358 votes out of nearly 30,000 cast.

Sheriff Larry Blanton told news partner KBND earlier Tuesday that if the measure was defeated, leaders of 911 agencies likely were to regroup and discuss putting a revised measure on the November ballot, before levy funding runs out next June.

Another Oregon Senate seat was up for the 28th District in Klamath Falls, which covers a large portion of Central and south-central Oregon, where incumbent Doug Whitsett easily defeated fellow Republican Karl Scronce.

In the 2nd District congressional race, Rep. Greg Walden, unopposed in the GOP primary, faces the winner of the Joyce Segers-John Sweeney contest on the Democratic side; Segers, who ran but lost two years ago, easily defeated Sweeney, who does not live in the district.

There were two contested races in Crook County, oneis for county commissioner Position 2 between Republicans Jodie Fleck and Ken Fahlgren, with incumbent Fahlgren easily defeating challenger Jodie Fleck by more than 1,000 votes.

But the closest race of the night was for county judge in Crook County, where incumbent Mike McCabe, a Republican, was battling in a very tight three-way race with inter-party challengers Bradley Bartlett and Craig Brookhart. But he survived, final unofficial ballot numbers showed Wednesday morning. McCabe had 1,010 votes — just 41 more than Brookhart’s 969; Bartlett was third with 957 votes.

The other money measure was in Jefferson County, where voters narrowly approved a $26.7 million bond measure to upgrade all school buildings and add a new auditorium at Madras High. The tally Wednesday morning was 1,405 yes votes to 1,199 opposed.

However, a big chunk of the bond measure — a planned new K-8 school in Warm Springs — appears to be sidelined, at least for now, after low turnout killed a tribal referendum Monday on providing half of that funding, despite support from a majority of those who did vote.