Kotek is going down with Governor Brown’s sinking ship

Photo credit: Craig Mitchelldyer, AP

Tina Kotek and Kate Brown spent their entire careers as house speaker and governor, respectively, working hand in glove to accomplish their shared progressive priorities. Unfortunately for Kotek, her long history of partnership with the consistently unpopular governor hasn’t been miraculously erased nor forgotten.

OPB: Democrat Tina Kotek increasingly targets a former ally in tight governor’s race: Gov. Kate Brown

Kotek has tried and failed to distance herself from her praise for the governor (“Gov. Brown’s progressive agenda… should be replicated across the country“) in her recent attempts to bury her endorsement and walk back on her support of Brown’s priority billsthat made crime worse.

“Oregonians know Tina Kotek is just as much to blame for the failing state of the state as is her ally Governor Kate Brown,” said RGA Spokeswoman Kaitlin Price. “Look no further than her second-place standing in latest polls to see that Kotek won’t be able to pull the wool over the eyes of the majority of voters looking for change.”

OPB: Democrat Tina Kotek increasingly targets a former ally in tight governor’s race: Gov. Kate Brown

“The new spot represents perhaps Kotek’s strongest public denouncement of the current governor, with whom she worked closely as House speaker. It comes as Kotek works to lock up swing votes in the tightest governor’s race in more than a decade.
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“The intensifying criticisms might be striking to those who saw Kotek and Brown cooperate at the highest levels of state government for much of the last seven years. While allies say Kotek had long-standing frustrations with the governor’s leadership style, there’s no question the pair collaborated on plenty of weighty legislation.

“But Kotek has struggled to shake the image, promoted by Drazan and nonaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson, that she would merely be a sequel to the current governor. That could be a problem, since Brown has the lowest approval ratings of any governor in the nation, according to polling by Morning Consult.

“Recent polls from DHM Research and progressive firm Data for Progress suggest more than 60% of Oregon voters have a negative impression of Brown.”