There's a movement to absorb parts of Oregon into Idaho — and Idaho lawmakers are listening

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published 13 April 2021

Could Idaho absorb eastern and rural Oregon? The short answer is almost certainly not, although Idaho's state lawmakers, at least, are listening.

On Monday, representatives from a group called Move Oregon's Border for a Greater Idaho pitched their plan to expand Idaho's border so that the state would include much of Oregon, save for the northwestern region, to members of the Idaho House and Senate, The Associated Press reports.

Basically, the idea is that Oregon's politics and culture are too deeply divided to co-exist. The division lies between liberal-leaning Portland and its surrounding area, and the rest of the state, which is more conservative. The proposal would leave college towns like Eugene and Corvallis, which lie south of Portland, remaining in Oregon. Idaho is a deep red state, so some folks outside of Portland's orbit would rather link up with their neighbors.

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.

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