CLAIRE RUSH

Statehouse reporter

Rush is a statehouse reporter based in Portland, Oregon. She is a Report for America corps member.

19 mayoral candidates compete to lead Portland, Oregon, in a race with homelessness at its heart

A lot of political changes are coming to Portland, Oregon. The open mayoral race in the state’s most populous city features 19 candidates and comes after years of growing frustration over homeless encampments and open drug use.

Oregon’s most populous county adds gas utility to $51B climate suit against fossil fuel companies

Oregon’s Multnomah County, home to Portland, has added the state’s largest natural gas utility to its $51.5 billion climate lawsuit against fossil fuel companies.

Oregon strikes an additional 302 people from voter rolls over lack of citizenship proof

Oregon authorities say they’ve removed another 302 people from the state’s voter rolls after determining they didn’t provide proof of citizenship when they were registered to vote.

Senators ask Justice Department to take tougher action against Boeing executives over safety issues

Two U.S. senators have asked the Department of Justice to take tougher action against Boeing executives for safety issues that have impacted its airplanes. In a letter, Sens.

Climate solutions: 2 kinds of ocean energy inch forward off the Oregon coast

Off the coast of Oregon, the wind blows hard and waves are strong, attracting researchers and businesses interested in developing two kinds of clean electricity: wave energy and floating offshore wind.

Oregon removes over 1,200 voters from rolls for failing to provide proof of citizenship

Oregon elections officials say they struck over 1,200 people from the state’s voter rolls after determining they did not provide proof of citizenship when they were registered to vote.

Kroger and Albertsons make a final pitch for their merger before a judge decides whether to block it

Kroger and Albertsons have made their final argument in federal court in support of their proposed merger.

Oregon Republicans ask governor to protect voter rolls after DMV registered noncitizens

Republican lawmakers in Oregon are asking Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek to ensure the integrity of the state’s voter rolls.

Maui’s toxic debris could fill 5 football fields 5 stories deep. Where will it end up?

The debris and ash that remained after a deadly wildfire last year decimated a historic Maui town now sits in a temporary dump site.

Mother of Georgia shooting suspect called school to warn of emergency, aunt says

A relative of the Georgia high school shooting suspect says the teenager’s mother called the school before the killings.

CEOs of Albertsons and Kroger says shoppers would see lower prices after merger

The chief executive officers of Kroger and Albertsons have insisted that merging would allow the two supermarket companies to lower prices and more effectively compete with retail giants like Walmart and Amazon.

Oregon law rolling back drug decriminalization set to take effect and make possession a crime again

Oregon’s experiment with drug decriminalization is coming to an end Sunday. A new law set to take effect then makes so-called personal use possession a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail.

Record-breaking wildfires scorch more than 1.4 million acres in Oregon, authorities say

Wildfires in Oregon have burned more acres of land in 2024 than in any other year since reliable records began in 1992.

Oregon city at heart of Supreme Court homelessness ruling votes to ban camping except in some areas

The small Oregon city at the heart of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on outdoor sleeping bans has voted to prohibit camping but establish certain areas where homeless people can go.

How Lahaina’s more than 150-year-old banyan tree is coming back to life after devastating fire

The deadly wildfire that tore through Lahaina last August scorched the 151-year-old banyan tree along the historic town’s Front Street. The chair of the Maui County Arborist Committee says about half of the tree’s branches have died.

ACLU sues Washington state city over its anti-homeless laws after a landmark Supreme Court ruling

The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington has sued the city of Spokane, alleging its anti-homeless laws violate the state constitution. The group filed suit Thursday on behalf of a homeless person and someone who was formerly homeless.

Award-winning Oregon chef Naomi Pomeroy drowns in river accident

Naomi Pomeroy, an award-winning chef who helped put Portland, Oregon, on the map as a culinary destination, has drowned in an inner tubing accident. She was 49 years old.

Tourists still flock to Death Valley amid searing US heat wave blamed for several deaths

Hundreds of Europeans touring the American West and adventurers from around the U.S. are still being drawn to Death Valley National Park, even though the desolate region known as one of the Earth’s hottest places is being punished by a dangerous heat wave blamed for a motorcyclist’s death over the w

More records expected to shatter as long-running blanket of heat threatens 130 million in U.S.

Roughly 130 million people are under threat from a long-running heat wave that already has broken records with dangerously high temperatures and is expected to shatter more inot next week from the Pacific Northwest to the Mid-Alantic states and the Northeast.

Records tumble as dangerous heat wave scorches the US West and beyond, with the worst yet to come

Records are tumbling across the West as a slow-moving heat wave of potentially historic proportions tightens its grip from the Pacific Northwest to Arizona.

Ex-astronaut who died in Washington plane crash was doing a flyby near a friend’s home, NTSB says

The friend said Anders’ flybys were not unusual, according to the NTSB. She said that he typically did two flybys, and while he sometimes rocked the airplane wings, “he never performed any kind of aerobatic maneuvers.”

Bull that jumped the fence at Oregon rodeo forced to retire from competition, owner says

The bull who jumped out of the arena at an Oregon rodeo, sending the audience into a frenzy, has been forced to retire from competition.

Things to know about FDA warning on paralytic shellfish poisoning in Pacific Northwest

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says consumers should avoid eating shellfish from Oregon and Washington state as they may be contaminated with toxins that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning.

PacifiCorp will pay $178M to Oregon wildfire victims in latest settlement over deadly 2020 blazes

Pacific Power, part of PacifiCorp, says it has agreed to a nearly $180 million settlement with over 400 Oregon plaintiffs. It’s the latest multimillion-dollar payout related to the deadly 2020 wildfires that ravaged the state.

Oregon wineries and vineyards seek $100 million from PacifiCorp for wildfire smoke damage to grapes

Dozens of Oregon wineries and vineyards have sued PacifiCorp over the deadly 2020 wildfires. They allege that the utility’s decision to not turn off power during the Labor Day windstorm contributed to fires whose smoke and soot damaged their grapes and negatively impacted their harvest and sales.

Centrist challenger ousts progressive prosecutor in DA race in Portland, Oregon

Centrist district attorney candidate Nathan Vasquez has ousted the incumbent progressive prosecutor in Oregon’s Multnomah County, home to Portland, after running a campaign in which he vowed to be tough on crime.

French President Macron says he won’t rush through voting reforms that triggered New Caledonia riots

French President Emmanuel Macron has said on a visit to riot-hit New Caledonia that he won’t force through a contested voting reform that has sparked deadly unrest in the French Pacific territory and wants to leave time for local leaders to come up with an alternate agreement for the archipelago’s f

Tough-on-crime challenger leading in race for district attorney in Portland, Oregon

A centrist candidate who has vowed to be tough on crime is leading in the race for top prosecutor in Oregon’s Multnomah County, home to Portland, in a contest that is seen as a referendum on voter concerns over homelessness, public drug use and disorder.

California congressman urges closer consultation with tribes on offshore wind

A California congressman says tribes should be more involved in the decision-making process for the development of the first offshore wind farms along the West Coast. U.S. Rep.

In Oregon’s Democratic primaries, progressive and establishment wings battle for US House seats

Two Democratic primaries for U.S. House seats in Oregon could help reveal whether the party’s voters are leaning more toward progressive or establishment factions.