QuickTake:

Two of the contested races for Lane County commissioner seats offer remarkable contrasts in policy and personality. The primary election in May will tell us much about county voters' priorities.

The political affiliation of Sean VanGordon was incorrectly reported in the original version of this story. The story has been corrected.

Elections tend to be referendums on one of two things: policies or personalities.

A gloomy economy and worries about the cost of living can swing the national pendulum one way. But a divisive and unpopular leader can swing it back just as far.

Local elections may not have such a Trumpian equivalent (although you may want to hold that thought until a bit later in this column). But with just one day left for candidates to file for local office in the May primary elections, it’s safe to call the races set in stone. 

And I’m struck by a remarkable contrast that two of the contested races for Lane County Commissioner offer voters this year.

Jake Pelroy, president of the Lane County Garbage and Recycling Association, and Bob Zybach, a former reforestation contractor, are trying to unseat Heather Buch as the commissioner representing rural communities like Cottage Grove, Creswell, Oakridge, Coburg and numerous unincorporated communities in the south and east portions of the county.

If I could inject Buch’s challengers with truth serum, and ask them for a five-words-or-less answer to why they’re running, here’s what I’d guess they might say.

Pelroy: “CleanLane must be stopped.”

Zybach: “More timber harvesting.”

Opposition to CleanLane, Lane County’s ambitious but expensive and controversial attempt to reduce methane emissions from its landfill, has helped fuel Pelroy’s rise. He leads a garbage and recycling association formed by small regional garbage haulers and recycling businesses opposed to the project.

He and Buch are waging an expensive battle for the seat. Buch, a Democrat, has raised more than $100,000 in contributions for her reelection, state campaign financial records show. Pelroy, a Republican, isn’t far behind, with about $70,000 raised.

That money isn’t flowing because of personality differences. Donors are looking to influence policy on the five-member board, which essentially acts as Lane County’s service providers, executing state mandates related to health care, homelessness, criminal justice, the environment and more.

So Buch vs. Pelroy vs. Zybach is a clear case of policy differences. But turn to another contested race on the Board of Commissioners, for the Springfield seat, and the dynamic couldn’t be more different.

Springfield Mayor Sean VanGordon’s challenge to incumbent David Loveall offers no clear policy contrast. I went looking on their campaign websites for some, but no luck. VanGordon, a non-affiliated voter, touts Springfield’s business wins since he was elected to the City Council in 2010. Loveall, a Republican, touts his own contribution to downtown Springfield, having risked his life savings to buy the Washburne Building and renovating others in the city core.

So they’re both pro-business. Got it.

The differences here aren’t about policies as much as what voters think of them as people. VanGordon is the political tactician, familiar with the ins and outs of city departments. Loveall is the outsider — a Navy veteran and orphanage supporter, but also a collector of human resources complaints, retaliation claims, settlements and censures.

Remember that Trumpian reference earlier? To Loveall’s supporters, he’s a fighter for common people, taking arrows from political insiders bent on persecuting him. To his opponents, he’s a verbal flamethrower, a harasser, unfit.

So what might VanGordon say with a bit of truth serum? Would he borrow from the last sentence of a recent letter to the editor from four Springfield political heavyweights, when they said, “Our community deserves better” than Loveall?

Campaign season is in full swing. Candidate lawn signs are about to bloom. In two months, voters in their districts will decide if Buch and Loveall get four more years or the political boot.

(West Lane County Commissioner Ryan Ceniga is also up for reelection, and Lane Education Service board member Thomas Hiura filed paperwork last week to oppose him.)

If recent history is the judge, the East Lane and Springfield races will be tight: Buch won her 2022 race by 475 votes out of nearly 19,000 cast. Loveall won by just 98 votes of nearly 14,000 cast.

So even though 60% of Lane County residents won’t get a say, May 19 will tell us a lot about policy on one hand, and personality on the other.

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For more than a decade, Elon Glucklich covered business, government and health care for several dailies and online news organizations across Oregon. His reporting and commentary has been recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists and the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association.