U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley used a town hall at Sisters High School on March 18, 2025, to warn residents about what he called growing threats to American democracy, pressing the need for protests and vigilant elections while also calling for more support for youth mental health and local emergency responders.
Speaking to roughly 100 people in the high school gym, the Oregon Democrat urged constituents to push back against what he described as authoritarian tactics that rely on exclusion and fear. “We’re going to turn this around and we’re going to restore a democratic republic,” Merkley said, arguing that citizen protest and free elections are the two most powerful bulwarks against an authoritarian turn. He paused to ask the crowd, “Did anybody go to No Kings?” — prompting a loud cheer.
Merkley warned that the Trump administration’s requests for state voting lists and proposals such as the SAVE Act are steps toward disenfranchisement. He said the SAVE Act — which he criticized for creating stricter identification rules — would disproportionately affect people whose current names do not match birth certificates, naming “69 million American women and 4 million men” as examples who could face new barriers to voting. “We’re not going to accept a list from President Trump on who can vote in our state, thank you very much,” he told the audience to applause.
The senator also said concerns about election integrity have deepened over the past year. “Last year, at this time, when voters would ask me at town halls, ‘Are you really concerned about the integrity of our next year’s elections being compromised?’ I’d say ‘no, I’m not,’” he said. “Now I’m really terrified about the Constitution,” he added, framing his alarm as a shift from earlier confidence to acute worry.
On domestic policy, Merkley highlighted rising youth mental health needs and the shortage of school counselors, urging more investment in services for children and teenagers. He also condemned H.R.1 for cuts to health care and nutrition programs, saying he hopes November’s elections will bring lawmakers who will reverse those reductions.
Merkley praised local responders for their work during last summer’s Flat Fire, singling out the Sisters‑Camp Sherman Fire District for what he called exemplary service during the 2025 fire season. The remarks came near the start of a series of planned outreach events: Merkley is scheduled to hold nine town halls across Eastern Oregon on March 31 and April 1, 2026, part of a wider effort to engage rural voters.
He situated the current political moment in broader social trends — citing backlash to President Barack Obama, the upheaval of the pandemic, the decline of middle‑class manufacturing jobs and an affordability crisis — and argued those stresses have helped fuel the rise of Trump‑style conservatism. “When there’s cynicism over dysfunction of the legislature not doing its job, it invites the appeal of an authoritarian figure,” he said, warning that economic and cultural dislocation can open the door to leaders who would narrow democratic rights.
Merkley’s Sisters appearance focused on both local concerns — emergency response and student mental health — and national threats to voting rights and constitutional norms, blending policy proposals with calls for civic action as he prepares for additional town halls across the region.