Oregon county voting on secession to Idaho effort
- Conflicting views on crime, social policies divide urban, rural groups
- Secession plan would shift Oregon's eastern border 200 miles west
- Idaho residents in a dozen counties in favor of proposal
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Editor’s note: There has been an update in this story. Read more here.
(NewsNation) — Conservative residents in eastern Oregon are ready to part ways with their liberal neighbors to the west, looking to secede from the state and join Idaho.
Conflicting views on crime and social policies have created a large divide between the bigger cities and rural areas, sparking efforts to secede. Among the largest pushes across the country, counties in eastern and portions of central Oregon are looking to be annexed by Idaho as a part of the “Greater Idaho” movement.
If successful in seceding, Oregon’s border would shift 200 miles west, according to the measure.
At least a dozen counties in eastern Oregon have approved ballot measures for the secession, telling local leaders they support the proposal. A vote on the plan will be held Tuesday, according to a USA TODAY report.
The ballot measure in Crook County asks: “Should Crook County represent that its citizens support efforts to move the Idaho state border to include Crook County?”
“The Oregon/Idaho line was established 163 years ago and is now outdated. It makes no sense in its current location because it doesn’t match the location of the cultural divide in Oregon,” the movement said on its website.
More than 25% of Americans support some sort of secession by states, a Colby College professor discovered from a 2023 study.
Plus, a recent poll showed those in Idaho are strongly in favor of the proposal. But historically, initiatives like these don’t get much traction.
NewsNation’s Devan Markham contributed to this report.
