Oregon’s May 19 primary ballot will include a question on whether voters want to repeal a gas tax and fee increase backed by Oregon Democrats as the state grapples with rising gasoline prices nationwide, driven by the war with Iran. The measure arrives just as candidates across the U.S. are leaning into affordability concerns tied to the cost of living. For Democrats, the challenge is to argue that higher transportation revenue will translate into road improvements at a moment when voters are feeling the pinch at the pump.
The dispute traces back to last year’s legislative push by Oregon Democrats to close a transportation budget gap. The Democratic-controlled Legislature raised the state gas tax and a range of fees to pay for road improvements, but Republicans responded with a petition to repeal the increases through a referendum. That referendum will land before voters on the May 19 ballot, weeks after Democrats and Republicans begin framing the measure as part of the broader affordability message that Democrats have emphasized for midterm elections.
Republicans moved quickly to get the referendum on the ballot. They needed 78,000 voter signatures to qualify the measure, and they gathered 250,000, according to the Associated Press account of the effort. Republican strategist Rebecca Tweed described the totals as “a remarkable number.” In interviews and campaign messaging, Republicans have portrayed the tax and fee increases as adding to the already high cost of living.
At a Portland gas station, Jeanine Holly said the timing is especially difficult for drivers. “It is a hell of a time to be raising gas taxes on people,” Holly said as she filled up. The article described consumer discontent across the political spectrum and noted that gas prices have topped $4.50 a gallon nationally, with Oregon averaging about 80 cents more per gallon. Michael Burch said the jump has changed his fill-ups, saying he used to spend $70 for three-quarters of his pickup’s tank and now pays $80 for just over half a tank.
Democrats and their allies have argued that the immediate cause of the higher gas prices is beyond state policy. Democrats spent much of last year pushing a transportation funding bill as concern grew over declining gas tax revenue as more drivers adopt electric, hybrid and fuel-efficient cars. In a special session, Oregon’s Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek signed a narrower version of the plan that raised revenue for road paving, snow plowing and other transportation needs.
Kotek acknowledged that the referendum timing makes the vote harder for Democrats. She told reporters the conversation on the ballot is “a tough sell right now,” saying she believes “everyone is feeling a pinch on their household budgets.” She and other Democrats said the root cause of the spike in gas prices is connected to the Iran war, and she suggested that the federal government consider reducing the federal 18-cent-a-gallon gas tax if it wants to provide relief at the pump for Americans.
Still, some Oregon residents expressed openness to the concept of funding roads even while resisting higher costs. Kurt Borneman, a Portland-area resident, said he would support the gas tax increase and cited the need to improve roads despite paying at least $10 more to fill his tank. “I realize that money’s tight and roads need to be improved,” he said. “I want less government, but I also want nice roads.”
Republican supporters of the referendum have pointed directly to the affordability impact. GOP state Sen. Bruce Starr, who led the referendum campaign, said, “Do Oregonians want to pay more? The answer is no,” and added that “Everything they’re looking at is expensive.” The measure would raise Oregon’s gas tax from 40 cents to 46 cents a gallon, a change Democrats and Republicans framed amid comparisons to other states’ tax levels, including an Associated Press summary referencing U.S. Energy Information Administration figures.
In the background of the ballot fight is a political effort over messaging. Democratic state Rep. Paul Evans said his party lost the battle over how to frame the gas tax increase to the public, arguing that Democrats did not organize in a sustained way to oppose the ballot referendum. Evans said that when the debate is reduced to whether voters want a tax, most people will say no, and he described how the campaign narrative shifted from the value of the spending to the price increase instead. “When anything is reduced to, ‘Do you want a tax or not?’ Most people are going to say no,” Evans said. “The messaging got away from us, and it became focused upon the price instead of the value.”
At least one voter in Portland, Hannah Coe, described being undecided about how to cast a ballot even if roads need repair. Coe said she would be in favor of the measure if it went to the purposes it said it would support, such as fixing roads, but also said she felt it might be “just a grab at trying to get more money from the people who live here.” The May 19 vote will test how those competing frames land with Oregon’s electorate as national politics centers on affordability while the gas price shock from the Iran war persists.