The year 2020 in Oregon involved several major events.
Politics and government
Incumbents Governor: Kate Brown (D) Secretary of State: Bev Clarno (R)
Elections
2020 United States presidential election in Oregon 2020 Oregon House of Representatives election
Events
Ongoing 2020 Oregon wildfires COVID-19 pandemic in Oregon George Floyd protests in Oregon
February February 25 – Several Republican members of the Oregon State Senate walk out to break quorum during a vote on an environmental bill. February 28 – COVID-19 pandemic: The state confirms its first case of COVID-19. February 29– Bricks Cascade 2020, a Lego fan convention, is held in Portland.
March
March 8 – COVID-19 pandemic: Governor Kate Brown declares a state of emergency. March 11 COVID-19 pandemic: The University of Oregon and Portland State University announce that all classes will be online-only for the rest of the semester. COVID-19 pandemic: The Oregon Health Authority announces the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Deschutes County, and the first local case in Umatilla County. March 14 – COVID-19 pandemic: A man dies from COVID-19 at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Portland, becoming the first person in the state known to have died from the virus. March 23 – COVID-19 pandemic: Governor Kate Brown issues a stay-at-home order.
April April 13 – COVID-19 pandemic: Oregon joins Washington and California in creating the Western States Pact, an agreement to ease back each state's COVID-19 restrictions. April 29 COVID-19 pandemic: The state reports its 100th death from COVID-19. A man is struck and killed by an Amtrak train in Salem.
May
May 5 – COVID-19 pandemic: Cycle Oregon cancels all events for the year. May 7 – COVID-19 pandemic: Governor Kate Brown announces a ban on large gatherings, expected to last until at least September. The Oregon State Fair is canceled almost immediately. May 13 – Organizers announce that the 2020 Hood to Coast is cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions. May 19 – Oregon marks the end of primary voting for the Democratic and Republican parties. May 20 – A kitten with two faces is born at a farm in Albany. May 28 – Protesters gather at the Multnomah County Justice Center, marking the first George Floyd protest in Oregon.
June
June 1 George Floyd protests: Thousands of people march across Portland's Burnside Bridge. George Floyd protests: Portland mayor Ted Wheeler announces a curfew. June 2 – George Floyd protests: On the 6th consecutive day of protests in Portland, additional demonstrations are held in various other cities in Oregon, including Albany, Bend, Brookings, Eugene, Forest Grove, Grant's Pass, McMinnville, and Tualatin. June 5 – George Floyd protests: U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez issues a temporary restraining order that restricts the Portland Police Bureau's use of tear gas so that it should only be used during riots, although the order defines a "riot" as involving as few as five people. June 8 George Floyd protests: Protesters shut down I-84 in Portland. Amid daily protests in Portland, Portland Police Chief Jami Resch steps down, and is succeeded by Chuck Lovell. June 13 – A tornado touches down in Damascus, Oregon. June 14 – George Floyd protests: Protesters topple a statue of Thomas Jefferson at Jefferson High School in Portland. June 18 George Floyd protests: On the eve of Juneteenth, protesters topple a statue of George Washington in Northeast Portland. Local resident Nick Lloyd paints the Black Lives Matter street mural on North Edison Street in Portland. June 26 – George Floyd protests: Protesters and the city agree to expand the restraining order on tear gas so that it also applies to rubber bullets and pepper spray.
July
July 11 – George Floyd protests: Federal agents shoot a protester in the head with a projectile, causing skull fractures and facial injuries requiring facial reconstruction surgery. July 18–19 – Portland's Black Lives Matter street mural is vandalized. July 26 – Unidentified law enforcement hits journalist Trip Jennings directly in the eye with a pepper ball. July 26–27 – A heat wave brings temperatures above 100 degrees in Portland.
August August 20 Some Wasco County residents are ordered to evacuate because of the White River Fire. The Northern Oregon Regional Correctional Facility (NORCF) announces that they will end their contract with ICE, leaving the state without any facilities to hold people detained by federal immigration officials. August 25 – A patient scales the wall of the Oregon State Hospital and briefly escapes, running for half of a mile before hospital staff catch up with her.
September
September 9 – Two people are killed by wildfires southeast of Salem; these are the first deaths of the year that are confirmed to have been caused by wildfires. September 14 – IQAir.com lists Portland as having the worst air quality in the world, due to ongoing wildfires across the entire West Coast.
November November 3 – Oregon holds elections for president, state representatives, ballot measures, and other issues.
December December 4 – COVID-19 pandemic: The Oregon Health Authority announces the state's 1,000th death from COVID-19.
December 21 – A group of protesters breach the Oregon State Capitol, aided by Representative Mike Nearman, during a closed emergency session. The protesters engage in violent confrontations with police and are forced out of the building.
Deaths
January 2 – Nick Fish (born 1958), politician and lawyer who served on the Portland City Council March 16 – Jim Bartko (born 1965), University of Oregon athletics administrator March 31 – James A. Redden (born 1929), politician and judge April 4 – Arlene Schnitzer (born 1929), arts patron and philanthropist April 6 – Joan Dukes (born 1946 or 1947), politician and member of the Oregon State Senate April 19 – Duane Ackerson (born 1942), writer May 15 – Mitch Greenlick (born 1935), member of the Oregon House of Representatives June 10 – Harry Glickman (born 1924), founder of the Portland Trail Blazers June 13 – Jim Grelle (born 1936), middle-distance runner June 17 – Vic Gilliam (born 1953), politician and actor July 21 – Dean Ing (born 1931), writer and academic August 11 – Russell Kirsch (born 1929), inventor of the first digital scanner August 29 – Clifford Robinson (born 1966), basketball player with the Portland Trail Blazers August 31 – Hans. A. Linde (born 1924), legal scholar and justice of the Oregon Supreme Court September 8 – Glenn Anthony May (born 1945), historian September 21 – Bob Smith (born 1931), politician and rancher October 6 – Jim Weaver (born 1927), businessman and politician December 25 – Barry Lopez (born 1945), author
See also
2020 in the United States 2020 in Washington (state)
References
External links
2020 Oregon Vineyard and Winery Report, from the Oregon Wine Board