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A group of U.S. senators is voicing concern over U.S. Postal Service processing changes and what those could mean for voting with mail ballots.
Jose Paniagua Calderon was released on bond after being detained by ICE on Dec. 4. Videos show an agent allegedly running over his legs with a vehicle.
The federal government sued in order to obtain voter information, including full dates of birth and driver's license numbers, from multiple states.
From mattresses and loungers to self-feeding pillows, here's what to know about the now-recalled products.
Senate Bill 5855 would ban law enforcement from wearing face coverings that conceal their identities. Some argue it would endanger officers.
The Trump administration has announced it will end Temporary Protected Status for Somali immigrants, affecting hundreds.
Democrats across the country are proposing state law changes to rein in federal immigration officers and protect the public following the death of Renee Good.
President Donald Trump has threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act and deploy troops to quell persistent protests against ICE in Minneapolis.
The newly-formed Council Alliance of Workers union is calling on city councilors to uphold their commitment to labor rights in their own workplaces. A new union representing Portland City Council aides and operations staff filed an unfair labor practice (ULP) complaint against the city for alleged anti-union conduct from Councilor Loretta Smithâs office. The complaint, filed January 13, alleges Smith retaliated against and fired a former aide due to his role in organizing the Council staff union. The aide, Adam Murray, worked as a policy staffer in Smithâs office for about nine months until he was fired last week. The termination came less than a month after Portland City Council staff announced they were organizing a union, called the Council Alliance of Workers (CAW) with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 7901. The Council Alliance of Workers includes staff members from the majority of City Council offices. The ULP complaint describes Murray as a âkey union supporter.â State labor law, overseen by the Oregon Employee Relations Board, bars public sector employers from interfering with employeesâ rights to organize a union, including by discriminating against or firing people who support a union effort. Smith currently serves as the chair of the Portland City Councilâs Labor and Workforce Development Committee. According to the complaint, Smith and her chief of staff, Elijah Crawford, âengaged in a sustained campaign of hostility, isolation, and altered working conditionsâ against Murray and his pro-union colleague after finding out about the impending union formation. The complaint alleges in the aftermath of the union announcement, Smith and Crawford created new policies without effectively communicating them, creating a culture of fear and confusion. At various points between December 16 and January 9, Murray says Smith gave him the silent treatment in person, ignored his requests for virtual communication, and publicly chastised him in front of other City Hall staff, before he was placed on administrative leave and eventually terminated. This is not the first time Smith has been accused of staff mistreatment. While serving as a Multnomah County commissioner from 2010 to 2018, Smith was accused of bullying and harassment by several of her staffers. A county human resources investigation found the staffersâ allegations credible, though Smith claimed the investigation was politically and racially motivated, and threatened to sue the county over it. Smith is one of two Black women currently serving on Portland City Council. Murray is also a Black man. In an email to the Mercury, Crawford wrote that Smithâs office does not comment on âspecific personnel matters,â adding âas a longtime advocate for working people and a collaborator with labor organizations throughout her career, Councilor Smith has consistently upheld the rights of employees to engage in collective bargaining as protected under the law.â âIn her role as a Councilor, she is committed to ensuring that City government operates effectively, transparently, and in a way that serves Portlanders while honoring the rights and responsibilities of all parties involved,â the statement continued. In a January 13 letter from the Council Alliance of Workers to all Portland City Council members, the union called on councilors to put their âprofessed [pro-union] principles into practiceâ in their own offices. The union is calling on the city to investigate the allegations in the ULP complaint and reinstate Murray to his position, saying they have âample evidence to prove that his termination was made in bad faith.â The letter also asked councilors to reflect on how their actions âmight impact the ability of Council workers to best serve [their] constituentsâ and to pledge neutrality as the union organizing continues. âThe termination of a lead union organizer during the fragile, initial phase of a union drive is an exceptionally severe act,â the complaint says. âIt sends a devastating message of retaliation that can chill the entire organizing effort. This action, taken by the City's highest elected and appointed officials, constitutes âegregiousâ conduct that warrants a penalty to deter such abuses of power.â  In a timeline of events included in the ULP complaint, Murray describes being the target of a âdramatic shift in management posture and workplace dynamicâ that occurred immediately after he informed Smith and Crawford about the union. According to Murray, Smith initially emphasized her pro-labor stance, but also urged her staffers to disclose their workplace grievances, which they were uncomfortable with. Murray describes the subsequent days as tense. At one point, during an unexpected meeting, Murray said Smith told employees to turn off their phones, which indicated to him that âthe meeting was not a safe space and it was likely to include conduct or language that the Councilor did not want to be public information.â Murray said the meeting felt âretaliatory for participating in union organizing,â and indicated he was reprimanded for taking brief notes with pen and paper. The complaint details confusing communication between Smith, Crawford, and the other staff members regarding the days they were expected to work during the winter holiday, when City Hall was closed to the public. Murray said staff members were initially told theyâd have the full two weeks off, but were later told theyâd need to work most days, or request paid time off. The complaint includes emails from Smith accusing Murray of being a âno-showâ on days he was approved to take off. On December 31, Murray said he worked from home throughout the morning, while attempting to communicate with Smith and Crawford to clarify his responsibilities for the day. Neither responded to his texts that morning, but in the afternoon, Smith emailed Crawford and Murray noting Murrayâs supposed absence from work. âAt that point I became extremely concerned, because the email did not acknowledge the context of my repeated requests for information and reporting for duty, nor during any point of that exchange was I asked and given an opportunity to come into the office,â Murray wrote in the complaint, saying he repeatedly called and emailed Crawford and Smith, but received no response from either of them for hours. Murray said he eventually showed up to his office at City Hall with his 2-year-old son, having been previously advised by the councilor to bring his children to work if necessary. Murray said Smith barely acknowledged their presence in the office. That evening, Crawford emailed him saying his âjudgmentâ that day âraises concerns and affects [Crawfordâs] trust in [Murrayâs] ability to represent Councilor Smith with the integrity expected when [Murray] disregards clear instructions.â In the complaint, Murray wrote he was puzzled by Crawfordâs email, which used a much harsher tone than he was used to. Murray said Crawford âseemed angered that [Murrayâs] actions did not align with the narrative they were attempting to constructâ of him. âAll of these events and behaviors created concerns that this entire sequence of events was about creating a pretext to retaliate against me for union organizing, under the guise of performance deficiencies,â Murray wrote. The following week, Murray says he was publicly berated by Smith after speaking with the City Attorneyâs office about a piece of legislation, which he believed she had given him permission to do. Later that day, Murray was called into a meeting with Crawford and Ron Zito, interim director of Portlandâs Bureau of Human Resources. Murray said he requested union representation at the meeting, which he was eventually granted, and the meeting was postponed until later that week. That evening, Murray was placed on paid administrative leave. The next morning, he was locked out of his work devices. Murray said in the complaint that âthe sequence of events suggest my administrative leave decision likely was cementedâ when he requested union representation at the performance meeting with Crawford and Zito. After a final meeting on January 9, Murray was terminated from his position. In an affidavit asking for expedited processing of the ULP charge, CWA Local 7901 President Meg Ward highlighted the city of Portlandâs status as a major public employer, as well as Smithâs role as an elected official and chair of the Labor and Workforce Development Committee. âThis creates a compelling public interest in a swift [Employment Rights Board] determination to correct a profound abuse of power and uphold public confidence in labor laws,â Ward wrote. The union is asking for Murray to be reinstated quickly, with Ward noting his termination has caused him âimmediate financial harm and loss of career opportunity.â The union is also concerned about the "chilling effectâ his termination will have on his union colleagues. In the letter to City Councilors from the Council Alliance of Workers, the union wrote that they believe their requests for reinstatement and support are reasonable, âespecially for a Council body that has touted its labor ties.â âThis is about more than one worker or one Councilor - this is about setting the future of City Council and the City of Portland up for success,â the letter states. âThe Councilors seated at the dais will come and go, but the kind of workplace conditions that Council workers need to do their jobs will remain the same.â
Public awaits zephyr of white smoke from council chambers announcing who holds the gavel in 2026 Update: 9:10 pm January 8 After the second day of a scheduled two-hour vote for a new council president, the City Council still has not made a decision. That's because the election abruptly recessed, then adjourned without a vote Thursday as some city councilors learned that federal agents had shot two people in East Portland. The pause caused a chaotic scene during the already tense council president election. The Council is expected to reconvene the recessed meeting on January 14. The Council will take up the previously scheduled agenda items starting at 9 am, including the vote for council president and vice president. Nominees are: Incumbent Elana Pirtle-Guiney and Councilors Sameer Kanal, Steve Novick, and Loretta Smith (who was surprised by her colleague's nomination). Details were scant as the meeting was upended, and city staff frantically ran through City Hall between district offices and council chambers. A security team lead for council protection detail told the Mercury there had been no threats to staff or City Hall. Multiple sources declined to comment to the Mercury when asked to provide details. Portland Police Chief Bob Day arrived at Portland City Hall at roughly 2:40 pm Thursday afternoon, moments after the City Council meeting abruptly recessed. Protestors against Immigration and Customs Enforcement had planned a 2 pm demonstration at Mayor Keith Wilsonâs office, the same time the council meeting began. As Day entered the briefing room, protestors yelled ârevoke the permitââa single demand the group has focused on since early 2025. Update: 8:45 am January 8 After more than seven hours and multiple rounds of voting, Portland City Council failed to elect a president Wednesday. Councilors remain deadlocked in a tie between current Council President Elana Pirtle-Guiney, and Councilor Sameer Kanal, with no established mechanism for breaking a tie. City Council is scheduled to reconvene at 2 pm Thursday to continue the leadership selection process. Tune into the livestream here. Original story: Portland City Council is set to decide who will hold the council presidentâs gavel for the next year, in an annual vote under the cityâs government structure. Itâs the first item on Wednesday morningâs agenda, which is scheduled for two hours, but if last yearâs election is any indication, youâll want to bring a snack. The meeting begins at 9:30 am. View the agenda and tune in to the livestream here. Hereâs whatâs swirling around City Hall before the ceremonies begin. The council president is a powerful position under the city charter. The president presides over all council meetings, meaning they run the show and determine who gets to speak and for how long. The president also determines which items go to a committee or the full council, and plays a big role in setting the meeting agendas. Though not spelled out in the cityâs charter or the Councilâs new governance guidelines, the position comes with a more administrative role that may prevent a councilor from leaning in as heavily on legislative and committee work. Previously, it was common for the City Council to choose a new president each year, though the role was much different. Under the former Council configuration, the mayor presided over meetings and the president filled in only in the mayor's absence. Elana Pirtle-Guiney, the current council president, is facing an uphill battle in her bid for reelection. Elected in the ninth round in 2025 with seven votes, Pirtle-Guiney played a precedent-setting role as the government found its footing throughout the year. Pirtle-Guiney's Chief of Staff Natalie Sept told the Mercury Wednesday morning that she's proud of her office's work in its first year. "Nobody really understood what this job was," Sept said. "There actually wasn't a whole lot of definition when the charter wrote the description of what this new form of government is." Pirtle-Guiney said the council's second year offered an opportunity for reflection. "We built a government from the ground up, and did so while fending off unwarranted and unprecedented attacks from the federal administration," Pirtle-Guiney said. "It was undoubtedly a year of growing pains and learning curves, but we also came together to unanimously move the City forward for working people, for small business, for parks, and for housing development." Now, city councilors and constituents are encouraging Pirtle-Guiney to step down and let another person hold the role. Council Vice President Tiffany Koyama Lane was elected unanimously in 2025. She said in a statement to the Mercury that the first year prompted serious reflection among councilors about what kind of leadership will best serve the city going forward. âI believe we need a president who can work collaboratively with the vice president and bring the council together, which is a large part of why l am supporting a change in council presidency,â Koyama Lane said. Koyama Laneâs comments signal a dissatisfaction from the progressive caucus with Pirtle-Guineyâs leadership style and tendency to operate unilaterally. She added that under a still new form of government, she believes it is important to model shared leadership and set norms that reflect collective governance. âLeadership roles belong to the body as a whole, not any one individual,â Koyama Lane said. âSharing leadership builds trust, accountability, and keeps power from becoming too concentrated with any one person. Those precedents matter for how effective and stable this council is over time.â Councilor Mitch Green, who broke from his progressive colleagues to cast a ninth-round, seventh vote for Pirtle-Guiney in the first election, said he also supports a change in leadership. âThis council president role really shouldn't be about a political occupier of an office so much as it is about building the strength of the institution as Council as an independent branch of the government,â Green said. In anticipation of colleagues asserting from the dais that six progressive caucus members were unwilling to compromise, Green sees it as a two-sided affair. âIf the less progressive side of City Council refuses to budge and refuses to see this great councilor, with great leadership qualities, and refuse to back him for ideological reasons, that's not a compromise,â Green said. Green said he hopes his colleagues will support District 2 Councilor Sameer Kanal, and multiple councilors who spoke to the Mercury Tuesday appeared poised to support Kanal as well. In a statement to the Mercury, Kanal stopped short of saying he was gunning for the role, but did not rule it out. âThe Council President election tomorrow is about empowering Council as an institution so that it can deliver for Portlanders,â Kanal said Tuesday. âWe need a president who will empower both the Council and individual Councilors, prioritize effective agenda-setting and strategic planning, and ensure efficient information-sharing so that we can get things done that Portlanders want and expect.â Asked what he would offer if elected to the role, Kanal said he was focused on ensuring the council had sufficient time to address issues Portlanders care about. âWe have big issues that Council didn't schedule enough time to tackle last year â issues like downtown, our revenue situation, and affordability â and we need a Council President that will ensure our processes enable our City's progress,â Kanal said. He also promised to sideline or redirect his own priorities in order to better serve the council, and the public, as a whole. If nominated by my colleagues to serve, I would accept the nomination, and if selected, would step back from some of my legislative priorities, and from the progressive caucus, to focus my efforts on good governance for every Councilor, and all Portlanders." Pirtle-Guiney said prior to the Council meeting that she would love to continue her work. "Right now, Portland is facing unprecedented threats, and I believe I can provide the steady leadership we need," she said. "If my colleagues believe this is a time for continuity and consistency, I would be honored to serve another year." Some things are still up in the air. It's unclear what changes new Council leadership might bring, and whether councilors will continue including antiquated nouns like "madam" when addressing the president and vice president. One thing is clear though: Your middle school class president elections likely used a more utilitarian process than the current City Council, which doesn't solicit leadership nominations prior to the full Council vote. This story was updated with additional reporting at 9:35 am.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) and Portland City Elections invites the public to submit creative names for five more snowplows in the cityâs second annual snowplow naming contest. Last [âŚ]
With the holidays over, itâs time to start the clean up. The Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS) has tips on how to recycle common holiday waste, what to do [âŚ]
Multnomah County Library (MCL) has selected Justice Ketanji Brown Jackâs Lovely One: A Memoir for Everybody Reads 2026, the libraryâs signature community reading project that has been operating for 24 [âŚ]
Next Portlandâ˘Metro Reports have moved to Portland Maps Reports. Next Portland covers the highlights of the Early Assistance applications, Land Use Reviews and Building Permits processed each week. This post covers March 28th, 2022 to April 3rd, 2022. Early Assistance has been requested by CIDA, Inc for a project at 8958 SE Clinton St: New multi-family, 3-story apartment building [âŚ]
Next Portlandâ˘Metro Reports have moved to Portland Maps Reports. Next Portland covers the highlights of the Early Assistance applications, Land Use Reviews and Building Permits processed each week. This post covers March 21st, 2022 to March 27th, 2022. Early Assistance was requested by Edge Development for a project at 3816 SE Gladstone St: Construct a new 3Âżstory, 16Âżunit residential [âŚ]
Next Portlandâ˘Metro Reports have moved to Portland Maps Reports. Next Portland covers the highlights of the Early Assistance applications, Land Use Reviews and Building Permits processed each week. This post covers March 7th, 2022 to March 13th, 2022. The RiverPlace Redevelopment â Phase 1 at 150 S Montgomery St was submitted for Design Advice and a Type III Design [âŚ]
Next Portlandâ˘Metro Reports have moved to Portland Maps Reports. Next Portland covers the highlights of the Early Assistance applications, Land Use Reviews and Building Permits processed each week. This post covers February 28th, 2022 to March 6th, 2022. Early Assistance was requested by Convergence Architecture for a project West of 7410 N Chicago Ave: New 3-story walk-up residential with [âŚ]
Next Portlandâ˘Metro Reports have moved to Portland Maps Reports. Next Portland covers the highlights of the Early Assistance applications, Land Use Reviews and Building Permits processed each week. This post covers February 21st, 2022 to February 27th, 2022. A Pre-Application Conference was scheduled to discuss the Trinity Academy at 7654 N Delaware Ave: A Pre-Application Conference to discuss a [âŚ]
Next Portlandâ˘Metro Reports have moved to Portland Maps Reports. Next Portland covers the highlights of the Early Assistance applications, Land Use Reviews and Building Permits processed each week. This post covers February 14th, 2022 to February 20th, 2022. Early Assistance has been requested by Lever Architecture for Albina One north of 253 N Broadway: Construction of a new 100% [âŚ]
Next Portlandâ˘Metro Reports have moved to Portland Maps Reports. Next Portland covers the highlights of the Early Assistance applications, Land Use Reviews and Building Permits processed each week. This post covers February 7th, 2022 to February 13th, 2022. Revisions to the Northbound 30 Collaborative at 2135 NW 29th Ave have been submitted for a Type III Design Review by Leeb Architects: [âŚ]