Bernie Sanders Southeast PDX Wiccan ritual.jpg

Leigha LaFleur (center) leads a group of Bernie Sanders supporters in a Wiccan ritual meant to provide positive energy for the candidate ahead of Tuesday's Oregon primary. The half-dozen Portlanders also discussed their support for local ballot measures and candidates.

(Eder Campuzano | The Oregonian/OregonLive)

If there were a definitive list that bore the words "That's so Portland" as its heading, a Wiccan ritual in support of Bernie Sanders might hover somewhere in the middle. (This is, after all, a place that pits mayoral candidates against each other in artisan donut-eating contests and where a bagpipe-playing Darth Vader is somewhat of a celebrity.)

On Friday night, half a dozen Sanders supporters gathered at Woodstock Park in Southeast Portland to foster good vibes for their candidate ahead of Tuesday's primary election.

They thanked the four cardinal directions.

They confessed their wishes for the outcomes of local elections.

And they chanted "Feel the Bern, be the Bern."

Occasionally, a mother scrambled after her wayward 2-year-old and a dog named Sadie would need to take a short walk. But all in all, the small group discussed politics, social issues and got to know each other.

But first, they had to be smudged:

A video posted by Eder Campuzano (@ederc) on May 13, 2016 at 7:11pm PDT

Leigha LaFleur, one of the state's "Birdie Five" delegates and an ardent Sanders supporter, was behind the gathering. But it wasn't her idea. A friend floated the suggestion and LaFleur thought, "Why not?"

She's been a fan of the man since his days as mayor of Burlington, Vermont.

"I just found him to be a person of incredible integrity," she said.

That sentiment was shared by others in the circle as they professed what they wished their ballots would eventually support -- either in this election or in future contests. Rebuilding infrastructure, a $15 minimum wage and universal pre-kindergarten were just a few.

The mid-spring sun rose high as they started and was just about to dip below the horizon when the Wiccan ritual wrapped up.

Although Sanders has a steep hill to climb in his bid to catch up to Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary race -- "There's a lot of momentum behind getting to 80 percent" of the vote, LaFleur told The Washington Post earlier this week -- there was still a lot of support for the candidate among the small group.

After all, they're not just feeling the Bern. They want to be it.

Author's Note: You can catch a better look at the ritual by following The Oregonian/OregonLive on Snapchat: the.oregonian. But you'll need to be quick: The story will disappear at 7 p.m. Saturday evening.

--Eder Campuzano

503.221.4344

@edercampuzano

ecampuzano@oregonian.com