2020 in Oregon

← 2019 2018 2017 2020 in Oregon → 2021 2022 2023
Decades:	2000s 2010s 2020s
See also:	History of Oregon Historical outline of Oregon List of years in Oregon 2020 in the United States

The year 2020 in Oregon involved several major events.

Politics and government

See also: 80th Oregon Legislative Assembly

Incumbents

• Governor: Kate Brown (D)
• Secretary of State: Bev Clarno (R)

Elections

Main article: 2020 Oregon elections

• 2020 United States presidential election in Oregon
• 2020 Oregon House of Representatives election

Events

The smoke from the 2020 wildfires turned the sky red or orange in much of the state. (Oregon State Capitol, September 2020)

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.^[1]
• February 28 – COVID-19 pandemic: The state confirms its first case of COVID-19.^[2]

March

• March 8 – COVID-19 pandemic: Governor Kate Brown declares a state of emergency.^[3]
• 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.^[4]
  • 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.^[4]
• 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.^[5]
• March 23 – COVID-19 pandemic: Governor Kate Brown issues a stay-at-home order.^[6]

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.^[7]
• April 29
  • COVID-19 pandemic: The state reports its 100th death from COVID-19.^[8]
  • A man is struck and killed by an Amtrak train in Salem.^[9]

May

• May 5 – COVID-19 pandemic: Cycle Oregon cancels all events for the year.^[10]
• May 7 – COVID-19 pandemic: Governor Kate Brown announces a ban on large gatherings, expected to last until at least September.^[11] The Oregon State Fair is canceled almost immediately.^[12]
• May 13 – Organizers announce that the 2020 Hood to Coast is cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions.^[13]
• May 19 – Oregon marks the end of primary voting for the Democratic and Republican parties.^[14]
• May 20 – A kitten with two faces is born at a farm in Albany.^[15]
• May 28 – Protesters gather at the Multnomah County Justice Center, marking the first George Floyd protest in Oregon.^[16]

June

• June 1
  • George Floyd protests: Thousands of people march across Portland's Burnside Bridge.^[17]
  • George Floyd protests: Portland mayor Ted Wheeler announces a curfew.^[18]
• 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.^[16][19]
• 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.^[20]
• June 8
  • George Floyd protests: Protesters shut down I-84 in Portland.^[16]
  • Amid daily protests in Portland, Portland Police Chief Jami Resch steps down, and is succeeded by Chuck Lovell.^[16]
• June 13 – A tornado touches down in Damascus, Oregon.^[21]
• June 14 – George Floyd protests: Protesters topple a statue of Thomas Jefferson at Jefferson High School in Portland.^[22]
• June 18
  • George Floyd protests: On the eve of Juneteenth, protesters topple a statue of George Washington in Northeast Portland.^[23]
  • Local resident Nick Lloyd paints the Black Lives Matter street mural on North Edison Street in Portland.^[24]
• 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.^[25]

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.^[26]
• July 18–19 – Portland's Black Lives Matter street mural is vandalized.^[27]
• July 26 – Unidentified law enforcement hits journalist Trip Jennings directly in the eye with a pepper ball.^[28]
• July 26–27 – A heat wave brings temperatures above 100 degrees in Portland.^[21]

August

• August 20
  • Some Wasco County residents are ordered to evacuate because of the White River Fire.^[29]
  • 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.^[30]
• 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.^[31]

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.^[32]
• September 14 – IQAir.com lists Portland as having the worst air quality in the world, due to ongoing wildfires across the entire West Coast.^[33]

November

• November 3 – Oregon holds elections for president, state representatives, ballot measures, and other issues.^[34]

December

• December 4 – COVID-19 pandemic: The Oregon Health Authority announces the state's 1,000th death from COVID-19.^[35]

• 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.^[36]

Deaths

• January 2 – Nick Fish (born 1958), politician and lawyer who served on the Portland City Council^[37]
• March 16 – Jim Bartko (born 1965), University of Oregon athletics administrator^[38]
• March 31 – James A. Redden (born 1929), politician and judge^[39]
• April 4 – Arlene Schnitzer (born 1929), arts patron and philanthropist^[40]
• May 15 – Mitch Greenlick (born 1935), member of the Oregon House of Representatives^[41]
• June 10 – Harry Glickman (born 1924), founder of the Portland Trail Blazers^[42]
• June 17 – Vic Gilliam (born 1953), politician and actor^[43]
• August 29 – Clifford Robinson (born 1966), basketball player with the Portland Trail Blazers^[44]
• August 31 – Hans. A. Linde (born 1924), legal scholar and justice of the Oregon Supreme Court^[45]
• September 21 – Bob Smith (born 1931), politician and rancher^[46]
• October 6 – Jim Weaver (born 1927), businessman and politician^[47]
• December 25 – Barry Lopez (born 1945), author^[48]

See also

• 2020 in the United States
• 2020 in Washington (state)

References

1. Mena, Kelly (February 25, 2020). "Oregon Republicans walk out again over environmental bill". CNN. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
2. "Oregon's 1st COVID-19 patient out of hospital after 2 months". AP News. May 6, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
3. "Oregon COVID-19 Response". www.oregon.gov. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
4. "2020 timeline: Big stories from Oregon, the U.S. and beyond". Oregon Capital Insider. December 31, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
5. Pitawanich, Christine (April 16, 2020). "Remembering Lynn Bryan, the first confirmed COVID-19 death in Oregon". KGW. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
6. Vanderhart, Dirk (March 23, 2020). "Gov. Kate Brown Issues Order Directing Oregonians To 'Stay Home'". OPB. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
7. "California, Oregon and Washington to work together on plan to lift coronavirus restrictions". Los Angeles Times. April 13, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
8. "Oregon COVID-19 Daily Update" (PDF). oregon.gov. April 29, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
9. "Man killed by Amtrak train in Salem". The Oregonian. May 1, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
10. Hale, Jamie (May 5, 2020). "Cycle Oregon cancels all 2020 events due to ongoing coronavirus pandemic". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
11. Hale, Jamie (May 7, 2020). "Large gatherings banned in Oregon at least through September". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
12. Hale, Jamie (May 8, 2020). "Oregon State Fair canceled for 2020, following ban on large gatherings". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
13. Hale, Jamie (May 13, 2020). "Hood to Coast Relay cancels 2020 race amid coronavirus pandemic". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
14. "Results for the Oregon primary election May 19, 2020". KGW. May 18, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
15. Tariq, Nia (May 24, 2020). "Oregon kitten born with two faces, named 'Biscuits and Gravy'". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
16. Graves, Mark (September 6, 2020). "100 days of Black Lives Matter protests in Portland: Timeline and photos trace the arc of events". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
17. Killen, Dave; Nakamura, Beth. "Protests continue in the streets of Portland for a fifth night in response to the death of George Floyd, a black man who was killed by a Minneapolis police officer on May 25". oregonlive. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
18. "Portland Imposes Curfew After Violence Upends Friday Protests". opb. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
19. Currier, Carsyn (June 2, 2020). "Protest in downtown Grants Pass continues into the evening". KTVL. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
20. "50 days of protest in Portland. A violent police response. This is how we got here". opb. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
21. "Portland 2020 Weather 'Year In Review'". www.brucesussman.com. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
22. "Thomas Jefferson Statue Pulled Down At Portland's Jefferson High". opb. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
23. "George Washington Statue Toppled In Portland". opb. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
24. Hardgrave, Alex (June 27, 2020). "Black Lives Matter mural splashes its message across N. Portland street". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
25. "50 days of protest in Portland. A violent police response. This is how we got here". opb. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
26. "Federal Officers Shoot Portland Protester In Head With 'Less Lethal' Munitions". opb. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
27. "Black Lives Matter mural vandalized in North Portland". KATU. July 21, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
28. Lee, Alicia (July 30, 2020). "A photojournalist who was shot in the eye says it's not just violent rioters being targeted in Portland". CNN. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
29. Ramakrishnan, Jayati (August 28, 2020). "Evacuations ordered for residents near Wasco County's White River fire". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
30. Wilson, Conrad (August 21, 2020). "NORCOR, last jail in Oregon to hold immigration detainees, to end ICE contract". OPB. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
31. Ramakrishnan, Jayati (August 27, 2020). "Patient climbs wall of Oregon State Hospital, runs half a mile before being apprehended". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
32. "Oregon wildfire deaths: Lives lost in historic 2020 fires". The Oregonian. September 10, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
33. Peñaloza, Marisa (September 14, 2020). "'It's A Bit Surreal': Oregon's Air Quality Suffers As Fires Complicate COVID-19 Fight". NPR. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
34. "Oregon Presidential Election Results". www.registerguard.com. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
35. "Oregon reports 2,176 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 30 new deaths". www.oregon.gov. December 4, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
36. "Lawmakers remove state legislator over Oregon Capitol breach". NBC News. June 11, 2021. Retrieved August 24, 2025.
37. "Portland City Commissioner Nick Fish dead from stomach cancer". KATU. January 2, 2020. Archived from the original on January 3, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
38. Canzano, John (March 17, 2020). "Longtime University of Oregon athletic administrator Jim Bartko dies at 54". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
39. Redden, James A. III (April 1, 2020). "James A. Redden, longtime Oregon politician and judge, passes away at 91". Portland Tribune. Archived from the original on April 8, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
40. "Celebrating the Late Arlene Schnitzer". sites.up.edu. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
41. Powell, Meerah (May 16, 2020). "Oregon Rep. Mitch Greenlick Has Died". OPB. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
42. "Blazers founder Harry Glickman dies at 96". KOIN.com. June 11, 2020. Archived from the original on December 19, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
43. "Former Oregon Rep. Vic Gilliam dies". KATU. June 18, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
44. "Blazers, UConn star Clifford Robinson dies at 53". ESPN.com. August 29, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
45. Acker, Lizzy (September 1, 2020). "Former Oregon Supreme Court Justice Hans A. Linde dies at 96". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
46. Ramakrishnan, Jayati (September 22, 2020). "Former Oregon Congressman Bob Smith dies at 89". The Oregonian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
47. Brown, Jordyn. "Jim Weaver, former Oregon congressman known for his environmental work, dies at 93". The Register-Guard. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
48. McFadden, Robert D. (December 27, 2020). "Barry Lopez, Lyrical Writer Who Was Likened to Thoreau, Dies at 75". The New York Times. Retrieved August 23, 2025.

External links

• Media related to 2020 in Oregon at Wikimedia Commons
• Oregon elections, 2020 at Ballotpedia
• 2020 Oregon Vineyard and Winery Report, from the Oregon Wine Board