The Unraveling of Jefferson Smith's Campaign

Jefferson Smith
By MARK ZUSMAN

Tim Hibbitts, one of Oregon's premier pollsters, was in our office last week sharing his thoughts about the election. Last Friday, we ran a clip in which he discussed gay marriage in Oregon and his thoughts about the decision not to push forward with an initiative in 2012. 

Today, we run a clip of the interview in which he walks through the mayoral campaign of Rep. Jefferson Smith (D-East Portland). Many Portlanders may not know that Smith was the mayoral frontrunner at one point this summer, even though he emerged from the May primary in second place.

Hibbitts calls the final result—Charlie Hales defeated Smith by more than 30 percentage points—unprecedented.

WWeek 2015

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