Vicki Walker

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Vicki Walker
State Senator, District 7
Incumbent
Assumed office  2002
State Representative
In office 1998 – 2002
Born	May 5, 1956 Monroe, Washington
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Steven Walker
Residence	Eugene, Oregon
Website	www.vickiwalker.com

Vicki Walker (Born on May 5, 1956 in Monroe, Washington) is an American politician and member of the Democratic party. She has been elected to political office in both houses of the Oregon Legislature. Walker graduated from Reedsport High School in Reedsport, Oregon in 1974. She attended the University of Oregon and graduated in 1978 with a bachelor’s degree in political science. After college, Walker was a self-employed court reporter from 1983-1992 and later gained certification as a shorthand reporter. Walker and her husband, Steven, have two adult children, Adam and Sara.

Contents 1 Political career 1.1 Local Politics 1.2 Oregon Legislature 1.3 Possible 2006 Gubernational Run 1.4 Goldschmidt Scandal 2 References

[edit] Political career

[edit] Local Politics

From 1992-1994, Walker served as the chair of the Lane County Democratic Central Committee. In addition, she served as Treasury Secretary and area representative for the Cal Young Neighborhood Association in Eugene. Walker has also volunteered on campaigns and has helped to fundraise for non-profit organizations.

[edit] Oregon Legislature

In November 1998, Walker was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives. While serving as a State Representative, Walker proposed legislation making youth suicide a state priority as well as a bill that provides consumers protection from predatory lending practices. Walker was re-elected as a State Representative in 2000. She was assigned to the Oregon House Judiciary, Criminal Law Subcommittee, Labor and Consumer Affairs, and Smart Growth & Commerce Committees.

Walker then was elected to the Oregon State Senate in November 2002. In the State Senate, she served as Vice-Chair of the Business and Labor Committee as well as a member of the Judiciary, Health Policy and General Government Committees. Among the legislation Walker sponsored, included strengthening workers compensation and making E-mail spam a crime. More recently during the 2005 legislative session, Walker served as the Chair of the Education and Workforce Committee.

In addition to her service in the legislature, Walker also serves on The Council of State Governments (CSG) and as an associate member of the Western Governors’ Association Clean and Diversified Energy Council. (CDEAC). For the 2005-2006 biennium, she was chosen to serve as the Vice Chair of the Energy and Public Lands Committee.

In 2006, Walker was re-elected to the Senate, defeating former Eugene mayor Jim Torrey (R).

[edit] Possible 2006 Gubernational Run

Main article: Oregon gubernatorial election, 2006

Walker has also been critical of Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski on many issues, including increasing the minimum tax and expanding gambling. On September 6, 2005, Walker announced she would challenge fellow Democrat Kulongoski. In a statement she said, "I'm tired of the status quo, I'm not one of the good ol' boys. The good ol' boys have had a stranglehold over this state for a long time."^[1]

While Walker has support in the Willamette Valley, she remains a virtual unknown in many other parts of the state. Fellow Democrat Pete Sorenson, who also ran for Governor as a Democrat in 2006, predicted that Walker would have a hard time raising money and would ultimately run for re-election. A poll done by Mike Riley showed Walker and several other Democratic challengers in single digits.^[2]

Yet another factor that loomed over Walker's gubernatorial candidacy, was the possibility that former two-term Governor John Kitzhaber might enter the race. A December 1, 2005 article in the Eugene Register-Guard, asserted that Kitzhaber was considering challenging his predecessor, Kulongoski. Walker said "I wouldn't run against John Kitzhaber. That's the deciding factor."^[3]

On January 13, 2006, Kitzhaber said that he would not enter the race, leaving the door open for a possible run by Walker.^[4]

However, Walker announced on February 1, 2006 that she would not seek the office, but would instead listen to voters in her State Senate District and run for re-election.^[5]

[edit] Goldschmidt Scandal

Walker is partially responsible for forcing former Governor Neil Goldschmidt to admit publicly that he had a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl in 1975 which lasted three years. Goldschmidt was Mayor of Portland at the time the relationship took place. Walker received the information from Portland Tribune Columnist Phil Stanford about the scandal, though it reportedly was not enough proof to go public. Having been a long time critic of Goldschmit, Walker tried to prevent his appointment to the Oregon State Board of Higher Education in January 2004, but she was unsuccessful in doing so. ^[6]

A few months later, Walker passed the documents she had received from Stanford to a Willamette Week newspaper reporter. On May 6, 2004, Goldschmidt confessed publicly to the relationship after being told that an article in Willamettee Week was going to be printed about the scandal. The story appeared in the paper less than a week later, and revealed that close friends and colleagues had kept quiet about the relationship for over 20 years. Goldschmidt subsequently resigned from the Oregon State Bar and the Board of Higher Education. ^[7]

[edit] References