Oregon group seeks to move rural counties into a new, expanded Idaho

Voters in Jefferson and Union counties just passed measures that will force local officials to consider moving the borders of their counties — and many others — into Idaho. The measure was the work of Move Oregon’s Border, a petition group seeking to move wide swaths of rural Oregon into Idaho, citing similar values and politics. Jefferson County Commissioner Kelly Simmelink acknowledges that moving the Oregon-Idaho border is a long-shot. Mike McCarter, a LaPine resident, is the president and chief petitioner of the Move Oregon’s Border movement. We hear from McCarter about the petition and Simmelink about how he’s thinking about the measure and its possible effects on his county.

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