Oregon GOP Primary Race to the Right Continues With Entrance of Wooldridge

Divided GOP Base Pushes Candidates Far Outside of Oregon’s Mainstream

The race to the right in Oregon’s gubernatorial primary continued last week with the entrance of Greg Wooldridge. Wooldridge, who describes himself as “more conservative,” is certain to drag the rest of the field including Knute Buehler and Sam Carpenter even further to the right, bloodying the entire Republican field and harming the general election viability of whoever gets the nomination.
Not only does Wooldridge, a former Blue Angels commander, brag about his fundraising ability, but a poll released before he got in the race shows that he starts off his campaign with strong standing among the primary electorate, leading Buehler 31 to 28%. Other Republican polls also show a deeply divided Republican primary electorate as all the candidates jockey for the farthest-right position.
“Wooldridge’s entrance into Oregon’s gubernatorial race creates a headache for Republicans who had hoped to reclaim the state’s governorship,” said DGA Press Secretary Melissa Miller. “Between his self-described fundraising ability and strong standing with the state’s conservative activist base, Wooldridge will force the rest of the Republican field to proudly stand with him on the far-right fringe—well out of synch with Oregon’s general electorate.”

###