For first time, Deschutes County Democrats slightly outnumber Republicans

But growing ranks of non-affiliated voters outnumber either major party

(Update: Adding video, county clerk's comments)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) - Deschutes County has seen some big shifts in the voting population regarding political parties, with Democrats for the first time outnumbering Republicans as the 2020 election year begins. But both are outnumbered by the ranks of non-affiliated voters.

But the growing, largest single segment of Deschutes County voters is those who are not affiliated with either major party -- or any political party, for that matter.

NewsChannel 21 reviewed the numbers provided by the Deschutes County Clerk’s Office to help understand the changes seen in recent years.

The statistics, which break down the number of registered voters each January since 2015, show not only a rise in voter registration overall, as expected in a fast-growing area, but also a shift in political parties. 

Historically, voters in Oregon’s more urban areas have leaned more toward the Democrats, while those in rural areas that are often struggling economically have tended to vote Republican. 

County Clerk Nancy Blankenship told NewsChannel 21 Tuesday the voter trends have shifted along with the increasing number of people moving to Oregon from elsewhere in the country.

"One of the things that's part of the trend in voting is new people coming into Oregon that are first-time voters," Blankenship said. "They're moving in from everywhere, and so with the the rise in population, of course, that's going to rise voter registration numbers and changing demographics."

She said most of the new residents coming into Oregon are not just from nearby states like Washington and California. Blankenship said new Oregon voters have come from Florida, Kentucky, Connecticut, Texas, and Maine.

In 2015, there were 31,034 registered Democratic voters in Deschutes County, compared to 36,484 Republicans, while another 23,918 voters were not affiliated with any party.

Four years later, the number of Democrat voters in the county was just 1,000 less than registered Republicans. In 2019, there were 40,942 Democrats, compared to 41,959 Republican voters.

As of last month, there were 42,018 Democrats, just three more than the number of registered Republicans in Deschutes County. But both were dwarfed by the 47,517 non-affiliated voters who belong to no political party. 

The large number of non-affiliated voters is a result of the changing population, paired with Oregon's Motor Voter law, which makes voter registration automatic at DMV offices when getting or renewing a license. Unless the new voter makes a choice, they are registered as non-affiliated.

The changes were notable changes in last month's voter registration. According to the clerk’s office, 214 people switched from the Republican to the Democratic Party, while 180 switched from Democrat to Republican.

Another 364 people who were non-affiliated last year registered as Republicans last month, while 654 re-registered as Democrats.

Non-affiliated voters receive ballots that don't include partisan races. Blankenship said the major parties have until Feb. 19 to decide whether to open up their primary election to non-affiliated voters.

"As far as I'm aware, I haven't heard any rumors of either party moving in that direction, but you never know until the deadline," Blankenship said.

The candidate filing deadline for the primary election is March 10. And most importantly: Oregonians have until Tuesday, April 28 to register to vote, if new to the state, or to update their current registration for the May 19 primary.