For two decades, Salem Democrat Peter Courtney has fended off challengers for his District 11 Senate seat.

Greg Warnock thinks he can end that streak.

Warnock, a Republican who has never held elected office, is largely funded by Californian John Koza, founder of the national popular vote movement.

Koza made a $30,000 contribution in March to Warnock's campaign, which has raised $57,423. And Warnock received a $15,750 in-kind donation from Ainsley Shea Communications, a Minnesota firm that lobbies for the national popular vote across the country.

The national popular vote would scrap the Electoral College, giving the presidency to the candidate with the most votes. So far, the proposal has passed in 12 states with a total of 172 electoral votes, including Washington and California.

The agreement, proposed in the form of an interstate compact, would take effect among participating states only after they represent a majority of votes in the Electoral College.

Courtney, as Senate President, has blocked the bill in Oregon four times.



Warnock said he didn’t initially support scrapping the Electoral College, but changed his mind after holding a town hall on the topic in June.

"The interstate compact would make all Oregon votes matter more in the presidential elections," he said. "For example, rural voters whose votes don't matter now, because of the winner-take-all policy - in a blue state - can combine their votes with other conservative votes in other states for a possible majority through the compact."

Courtney said his position hasn’t changed.

“That decision should be made by the voters of the state of Oregon, if they’re willing to put it on the ballot,” he said.

More:Supermajority possible in Salem-area Senate race, Winters vs Patterson

Warnock campaigns on process, not issues

Warnock is a Salem native who has worked as a pastor and founded and managed two veterans’ advocacy charities.

He recently started a green-energy company, after a string of financial troubles in both his business and personal life.

Warnock’s financial troubles began 1996 with a $13,314 student loan default. Court records show that judgment remained unsatisfied as late as 2015.

Over the following two decades, Warnock and his wife, Shelly, defended themselves against an additional 32 civil lawsuits involving unpaid debts.

At least 15 of those have resulted in money judgments, according to court records. Warnock or his wife have had their wages garnished to pay judgments in at least six of those cases.

In March 2011, Warnock was sued for failing to make payments on a home he had purchased on contract in West Salem. In August 2011, the court imposed a $347,132 judgment in favor of the property owner.

Warnock made headlines later that year, when then-Oregon Attorney General John Kroger filed a lawsuit accusing him of improperly using $690,000 from his veterans’ charities to make unreported political contributions.

In an interview last week, Warnock said Kroger went after his organization as retaliation for exposing what he called the state’s systematic abuse of disabled veterans who paid child support but did not receive credit for payments.

The state won a default judgment in July 2014, ordering Warnock to pay $746,000 in restitution and permanently shutting down the charities – Oregon War Veterans Association and Military Family Support Foundation.

In July 2015, Warnock was sued for again failing to make payments on a home he had purchased on contract, this time in Independence. The complaint said he owed $255,994. The case was settled confidentially in February 2016.

Also in 2015, Day Law Group of Portland sued Warnock for unpaid legal bills for representing the charities in the Oregon Department of Justice case.

In June 2016, the law firm won its case. But Warnock refused to comply with post-judgment discovery, a legal process to determine his assets.

In March 2018, the firm asked a judge to declare Warnock in criminal contempt of court and jail him for up to six months.

“Warnock has multiple judgments against him, which combined total almost $1 million. Monetary sanctions and judgments have no impact or effect on Warnock, so confinement is necessary,” the law firm wrote in its petition.

The parties reached a confidential settlement May 4, less than two weeks before the primary election.

Warnock said his financial problems stemmed from his career choice.

“I was in ministry right out of college, for about 12 years,” he said. “Most of the churches didn’t have funds to pay us the way we needed them to. We struggled for years and years doing the best we could in jobs and work that were to help other people.”

Then, he said, the Department of Justice judgment caused him to lose everything.

“We ended this experience by being homeless, literally,” he said. “We couldn’t get jobs. It’s been a tragedy for us personally.”

Warnock said he expects his financial problems to be resolved within a year.

“I’m a candidate where life is messy,” he said. “That just motivates me more to help people who’ve been in similar situations.”

Although he has never held elected office, Warnock said he’s not new to the political process.

Warnock previously ran for the Legislature in 2002, when he lost the primary election to Republican Vicki Berger in House District 20, which includes West Salem and Monmouth.

Following that loss, he worked on a number of bills as a veteran's advocate, he said.

Warnock said he isn’t campaigning on specific issues. Rather, he wants to bring a different process to the Legislature.

“I’m not the kind of guy who will stand up and say I’ve got a solution to this, I’ve got a solution to that. I’m bringing my skill set as a program manager to discussions,” Warnock said.

“My platform includes listening, learning and leading,” he said. “It’s the way I do life, as a dad, as a teacher, as a business person, as an advocate. I think the Legislature needs quite a bit more of that.”

Warnock said he believes Courtney’s longevity is working against him.

“He’s trying to apply 20th-century solutions to 21st-century problems,” Warnock said.

Courtney is longest-serving legislator

Courtney, a lawyer and professor, served six years on the Salem City Council before being elected to the House in 1980, where he served eight years as Democratic Leader.

He was elected to the Senate in 1998 and has served as Senate President since 2003.

By the end of his current term, Courtney will be Oregon’s longest-serving legislator.

Courtney cites as his biggest accomplishments funding seismic grants for schools and building the new state mental hospital in Salem.

But he’s sponsored more than 200 pieces of legislation, and “each one is the most important one to the people it impacts,” he said.

Unlike Warnock, Courtney has very specific goals for the 2019 Legislative session, both as a leader and person.

No. 1 on his list for the Legislature as a whole is passing a cap-and-invest or other carbon reduction bill.

“We cannot go home without doing that,” he said.

Other top priorities:

Working to increase the stock of affordable and emergency housing across the state.

Planning for the growing threat of algae contaminating drinking water across the state, like what happened in Salem earlier this year.

Increasing the state’s firefighting abilities, and changing policies to help prevent mega fires.

Designating a dedicated revenue source to fund early childhood through high school education.

Improving services for foster care youth with specialized needs, such as mental health issues or involvement with the criminal justice system.

“Oregon and her people need us to do this work, and we’ve got to get it done,” he said.

Courtney also plans to introduce bills that he acknowledges are controversial.

Lowering the legal limit for driving under the influence from a blood alcohol content of 0.08 to 0.05, to decrease crashes caused by drunk driving. “It’s a significant thing that would help dramatically,” Courtney said.

Allowing community colleges to offer some bachelor’s degrees, something that is done in a limited capacity in 19 other states. “It would accommodate lifestyles of people who don’t have unlimited resources. It also would allow them to have some hope,” Courtney said.

Changing some of the words to the 16-line state song “Oregon, My Oregon.” The first line, “Land of the Empire Builders,” and the 13th line, “Blest by the blood of martyrs,” both refer to white people coming here and building on the backs of people who already were here, Courtney said.

Courtney’s campaign fund heavily outweighs Warnock’s.

He began 2018 with a balance of $381,404. So far this year, he’s raised $275,923, for a total of $657,327.

His biggest contributions are from unions, including $30,000 from United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555; and $22,500 from Local 48 Electricians PAC.

But Courtney noted he has received contributions from across the political spectrum, including from those who have been unhappy with some of his votes.

“I think it’s pretty much accepted that Peter is going to vote the way he’s going to vote regardless of who’s contributed,” Courtney said.

Senate District 11 includes portions of Salem, Keizer and Woodburn.

Contact the reporter at tloew@statesmanjournal.com, 503-399-6779 or follow at Twitter.com/Tracy_Loew

Senate District 11

Peter Courtney

Party: Democrat

Age: 75

Occupation: Oregon State Senator, Oregon State Senate President

Work experience: Private practice attorney; hearings officer; Employment Relations Board; Legal Aid attorney; assistant to the president, Western Oregon University

Political experience: State Senator, Senate President; State Representative; Salem City Council; Salem Mass Transit Board

Education: Bachelor of Arts, Master of Public Administration, University of Rhode Island; Juris Doctor, Boston University School of Law

Family: Married to Margie Brendan Courtney, three sons

Website: http://votepetercourtney.com/leading-way-make-oregon-better-place

Greg Warnock

Party: Republican

Age: 57

Occupation: Founding member, Reinvent Power

Work experience: United Technologies; government relations program manager; executive director, Oregon War Veterans Association; member, Coast Guard Auxiliary

Political experience: None

Education: Bachelor of Arts, George Fox University

Family: Married to Shelly, five children

Website: http://warnock4oregon.com