PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Stan Pulliam wants to move from Sandy to Salem.
Pulliam, the Republican mayor of Sandy, announced his candidacy for governor of Oregon at Meinig Memorial Park in Sandy. The event was livestreamed on Facebook.
“I look around my home town of Sandy and still recognize the Oregon from my childhood. And I still believe in it,” Pulliam said in a statement released before his official announcement. “And as I’ve traveled the state, I’ve seen more places like Sandy. From Coos Bay to Baker City, from Astoria to Pendleton. It’s time to unite our state and return Oregon to its former glory as a symbol of that pioneer spirit and freedom that compelled generations to make their way across the Oregon Trail.”
Pulliam has been considering a run for governor for about 6 months. He established an exploratory committee to run for Governor of Oregon in April.
At that time, he said Gov. Kate Brown — who is term limited — “has ruled with a cold smugness inside a bubble of the ruling elite and special interests that continue to craft backroom deals, ignore scientific evidence of lockdown effectiveness, and prioritize the wish lists of her campaign contributors.”
Then in May he filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of organizations challenging Gov. Kate Brown’s executive authority during the pandemic.
In late July, he launched an effort on behalf of the Sandy City Council to reinstall the statues of three former presidents torn down by protesters in Portland last year.
Pulliam told KOIN 6 News the men deserved to be honored for their contributions despite their controversial past. “These are American treasures, they’re heroes that we should recognize and really teach our future generations about both the positive and negative attributes.”
Last week, Democratic Speaker of the House Tina Kotek announced she was running for governor. Others thought to be considering a run for governor include Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and New York Times columnist (and Oregon native) Nicholas Kristof.