Teen Vogue says Democrat Tina Kotek’s “guilt pleasure” is watching ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race,” show, starring the 6’4″ world’s most famous drag queen and television personality whose slogan is “When you become the image of your own imagination, it’s the most powerful thing you could ever do.”

Over at Rolling Stone, they are taking swipes at unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson, who has a Class 3 license to own an automatic weapons she has referred to as a “Cold War relic” she doesn’t use. Maybe a famous Soviet AK-47 or The magazine says its actually a a MAC-10, a 1970s stamped-steel machine-pistol first sold for $120 that can fire up to 1,200 .45 caliber rounds in a minute with an infamous lack of accuracy that International Association of Police Chiefs weapons expert David Steele  “fit only for combat in a phone booth.”

. Teen Vogue says Oregon Democratic governor candidate Tina Kotek’s “guilty pleasure” is watching “RuPaul’s Drag Race!” show.

“Mother Ru brings love and smiles into our home on a regular basis,” Kotek says in an Aug. 19 story bylined by “ TEEN VOGUE STAFF

Republicans last won the Oregon governorship in 1982, last won the state presidential vote with Ronald Reagan in 1984, hold all state executive office, both U.S. Senate seats and supermajorities in both chambers of the Legislature.

But with a little more than three months until the 2022 election, Oregon is making a splash in the partisan political debate unlike anything in decades.

The Republicans candidate for governor has been lauded in the National Review. The unaffiliated candidates slammed in Rolling Stone. National forecasters on the East Coast looked west and determined the race was no longer a sure bet for Democrats – perhaps even a “toss up.”

With an unexpected three open U.S. House seats on the ballot, U.S. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., made room in his campaigning schedule for a meeting/rally in Clackamas County on xx, featuring the three GOP challengers alongside the state’s one Republican incumbent.

The departure of former New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, ruled to have insufficient residency to run by Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, seemed to cool the national trek to Oregon.

But the outcomes of the primaries reignited interest. The fragmented Republican primary for governor with several acolytes of former President Donald Trump ended with a former House minority leader from the Portland suburbs ekeing out a win with just over 22% of the vote.

a Republican moderate from the Portland suburbs – 

But as the 2022 election season approaches the turn from summer to fall, Democrats have held the Oregon governorship since 198Democrats have held the Oregon governorship for 40 years, won the presidential vote in the state since Michael Dukakis, hold both U.S. Senate seats, and supermajorities in the Legislature.

The Center for Politics forecast had a few other surprising moves among the governorships of the 50 states.

Kondik, the managing editor writing the center’s forecast notes that Republicans hold 28 governorships – with 20 up for election this year. Democrats hold 22 seats with 16 up for election.

The same Center for Politics forecast that moved the outcome in Oregon into uncertain territory bolstered Democrats in two other key races.

In Maryland, popular moderate Republican Gov. Larry Hogan could not run for a third time because of term limits. Kondik said the center’s earlier forecast of a “Leans Democrat” rating for the open seat was moved to “Safe Democrat” with Democratic Wes Moore, a non-profit CEO, showing strongly against Maryland State Delegate Dan Cox, the Republican nominee. Democrats consider Maryland a possible national bellwether state as one of six states won by President Joe Biden that have Republican governors.

The new forecast moves the race for governor in New York from “Lean Democratic” to “Safe Democratic.” Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, is seeking her own full term against U.S. Rep. Les Zeldin of Suffolk County, the Republican nominee. As lieutenant governor, Hochul assumed office after Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigned last August amid a swarm of allegations of sexual harassment.

The Center for Politics forecasts Democrats will flip governorships in Maryland and Massachusetts (where moderate Gov. Charlie Baker opted not to seek a third term). A trio of Democratic incumbents are in races still rated as toss-ups: Laura Kelly of Kansas, Tony Evers of Wisconsin, and Steve Sisolak of Nevada. Republicans last held the open seat in Arizona that Kondik said looks for now like a toss-up as Trump-backed GOP nominee Kari Lake faces Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, the Democrat.

With election day still over two months away, there’s time for movement in races. But the long straight-away of the post-Labor Day campaign stretch drives are just around the curve.