Dennis Richardson, a longtime state lawmaker, believes incumbent John Kitzhaber is vulnerable

By Jayson Jacoby

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Dennis Richardson walks into the interview with his back straight, seemingly unaffected by the weight of 32 years of Oregon political history on his shoulders.

Richardson, a Republican state representative from Central Point, hopes to accomplish what no other member of the GOP has done in Oregon since the late Vic Atiyeh in 1982.

Richardson wants to be Oregon’s next governor.

To earn that office in the state Capitol in Salem, Richardson, 64, has to contend not only with a generation of Democratic dominance but also with the man who is responsible for more of the party’s victories than any other candidate.

Richardson is trying to deny John Kitzhaber an unprecedented fourth term as Oregon’s chief executive.

S. John Collins / Baker City Herald Travis Miller of Brogan won the 20th-annual Baker City Bull Riding event Saturday night. This photo is from an earlier ride that led him to the championship round.

By Jayson Jacoby

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Another busy weekend in Baker City.

Another relatively tranquil weekend for Baker City Police.

Which is precisely the result Police Chief Wyn Lohner hoped for both during this weekend’s Miners Jubilee, and last weekend’s Hells Canyon Motorcycle Rally.

“I’m very pleased to report the same thing two weekends in a row,” Lohner said this morning. “It shows what can happen when the community works together.”

Although officers from the city department as well as the Baker County Sheriff’s Office and Oregon State Police stopped dozens of vehicles during Jubilee, the city made only one drunken driving arrest, Lohner said.

And Lohner said that person hadn’t been drinking at one of the weekend’s big events, the beer garden at the Fairgrounds.

Lohner said organizers of the beer garden agreed to a list of protocols for this year’s event designed to “bring down the level of intoxication.”

The new guidelines seemed to be effective.

See more in Monday's issue of the Baker City Herald.