The good, the bad and the ugly

After what felt like years, the 2012 election is finally over. Though disappointed by some outcomes, I’m hopeful for the future.

I’m happy that President Obama tenaciously carried the popular and electoral votes, and that the Democrats strengthened their Senate majority. While not surprised, I’m disappointed that Republicans retained the House majority. As we’ve seen in the last two years, a divided Congress doesn’t accomplish much.

I’m excited to see what Obama does now that reelection’s been achieved. He said he’d have more flexibility, and we’ll see him doing better at following through with his goals. That’s nothing but good.

Oregon’s results were even better than expected. The 30-30 split in Oregon’s House is broken, and we can finally start fixing the state’s various problems. Younger faces and freshman representatives joined the state legislature, and it’ll be great to see how they shake things up in Salem.

Less exciting were the ballot measures that passed and failed.

Measures 82 and 83 failed easily, as they should’ve. Seeing Measure 79 pass pained me. It was such an obvious grab for money by the state’s real estate agents, and will mean a significant loss of state revenue. I’m ecstatic that Measure 85 passed; K–12 education needs secure funding so badly, and the corporate kicker was a backward policy. Allocating that money to education should go a long way toward stabilizing the currently volatile situation.

It was flat-out stupid of Oregonians to vote down Measure 80. Yes, it was poorly written, but it would’ve been so much better to pass it now and amend it later rather than quash it. Since Washington legalized marijuana, I foresee a lot of money heading out of Oregon. Measure 80 could’ve contributed significantly to our local economy.

Being a relative newcomer to Portland, I don’t claim to have any great knowledge of city politics, but I’m not enthusiastic about Charlie Hales as mayor. I wasn’t very enthusiastic about Jefferson Smith, either, but he seemed the lesser of two evils.

Portland passed measures to fund the library, arts programs and renovation of schools, all of which were necessary. Albany—my hometown—rarely passes these sorts of measures, and I love living in a city that makes education and literacy priorities.

This is the first major election I’ve voted in. The campaign ads, the hyperbole and the ignorance were tiring, but, all things considered, it went well. If nothing else, the nation’s no worse off than before, and Oregon is much better off. We’re on the way to making serious and much-needed reforms. As for Portland, I’ll reserve judgment a little while longer. Things are still looking up.