By Laura Swanson, Editor, Tillamook County Pioneer
Change is hard – especially when you are talking about something like changing political parties. It’s one thing for an ordinary citizen to switch parties, but when a sitting representative does it, after making a pivotal vote in the state legislature, it attracts regional/national attention. Tillamook County’s state representative Cyrus Javadi a registered Republican until early September switched his party affiliation to Democrat before the deadline.
A recall campaign had already begun to remove Javadi after he was the deciding vote in the House to pass the Transportation Bill. Then his party switch added fuel to that fire – with many keyboard warriors taking to social media to attack Javadi. “It was brutal,” he reveals. “But I didn’t do this on a whim, I’d been giving it a lot of thought before the session ended. I did not take this decision lightly,” shared Javadi during our interview last week.
Shortly after his announcement, his dental office was vandalized, windows broken and he’s been verbally attacked on the street. Many of his supporters express the view that they’ve been “lied to” and after some of his votes across the aisle during the session, he had been labeled a “RINO” – Republican in Name Only. “The state Republicans insist that you toe the party line and follow the federal platform,” explained Javadi. “I just couldn’t do that on many of the issues. I was elected by the people, not by the party,” he continued, “This isn’t about politics, it’s about the people that elected me to serve and the oath of office that I took to support them.”
In his second term representing District 32 which includes Tillamook and Clatsop counties, Javadi sponsored a bill to adjust how TLT funds could be used, raising the percentage for infrastructure and public safety. He gathered bipartisan support, but watched as the bill was tanked by Republican lobbyists. “That was the final blow for me,” Javadi explained. “It’s like being in a bad relationship, you stick around and ignore the issues, but then there are more issues, so you leave.” For the negative reactions, Javadi said he’s received more positive support from the community and around the state, thanking him for his vote on the ODOT bill and for standing up for his moral principles. During our interview, several community members came up and thanked Representative Javadi for making the move to the Democratic party.
About a year ago, Javadi started a Substack blog, “A Point of Personal Privilege”, that the Pioneer started sharing as the commentary was well-written and researched. As a writer/editor, I’ve been a ghost-writer for many people, so I wondered if he was writing these columns himself, or was it AI? He responded, “I didn’t like the legislative newsletter format and became aware of Substack. I write the articles myself, do the research, hear from people with lived experience. It gives me the opportunity to do a deep-dive on issues and topics that are important to our community and state,” he explained. “I do use AI for clean-up and to check my numbers, but it’s from my writing and point of view.” You can subscribe to “A Point of Personal Privilege” on Substack here – https://cyrusjavadior.substack.com/ or on the Pioneer each week. (NOTE: A “point of personal privilege” is a parliamentary procedure used in meetings and formal debates to address an issue that affects a member’s rights, dignity, or comfort.)
Javadi’s bipartisan collaborations and views on issues such as LGBTQ+ were not making friends with Republicans. “I asked myself ‘what’s best for the people?’ It’s about policy,” he continued. “The Oregon Republicans are too glued to party ideology, and I changed my mind about going along with that.”
As he prepares to campaign for his third term, Javadi will continue to champion healthcare, infrastructure and housing. “With the federal government shutdown and funding uncertainties, our state and local municipalities are going to have to shoulder a much larger burden, when budgets are already overburdened,” said Javadi. “We are going to have to look at ways to fund things like water systems and wastewater facilities.”
While some local Republicans have voiced their extreme displeasure about his decision, Javadi remains optimistic, “I’ll make new friends,” he said. The Tillamook County Democrats have expressed their support. “I’m looking forward to doing community outreach and meeting with people, so I can share my reasons and the truth. It’s not about representing a party, it’s all about how I can best represent them,” said Javadi.
It’s refreshing to see a politician saying “it’s not about politics, it’s about the people” and that they “changed their mind.” In our highly divisive political times, Javadi’s actions and words are an example of how to be a leader that stays true to their morals and isn’t afraid to show genuine empathy and support for ALL people.