Last month a gunman killed 19 children and two adults at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. Two weeks earlier a gunman killed 10 people in Buffalo, New York.

Gun laws were already going to be an issue in the November election for Oregon governor. Now, perhaps more so.

Three candidates for Oregon governor — Democrat Tina Kotek, independent Betsy Johnson and Republican Christine Drazan — have distinctly different positions.

If you want Congress to do more, you may have to wait. In Congress, the recent debates over gun laws have mostly ended in stalemate. Bills may pass the House. There have not been 60 votes in the Senate to overcome the filibuster.

In Oregon, it’s been different. Gun control advocates will argue the state could do more. But control of the governor’s office and majorities in the Legislature mean Oregon does have more recent laws that some other states do not.

One Oregon law in 2015 required a background check on sales of private firearms. Kotek voted for it. Johnson voted against it. Drazan was not in the Legislature. A second law was passed in 2017. It’s termed “a red flag law,” enabling the police to take away a person’s guns in certain circumstances. Kotek voted for it. Johnson voted against it. Drazan was not in the Legislature. The most recent example was in 2021. It was a gun storage safety bill. Kotek voted for it. Johnson and Drazan voted against it.

Kotek has already mentioned three more gun laws the state could adopt. It could ban “ghost guns.” Those are ones people can assemble at home. Oregon could raise the minimum age to buy an assault-style weapon from 18 to 21. And it could ban more people from owning guns, such as those convicted of hate crimes.

Johnson, who is a gun owner, does not believe the solution is passing more laws for law-abiding citizens. She wants more enforcement of existing laws and more help to law enforcement to accomplish that. Johnson recently tweeted: “First, stronger mental health prevention and intervention. Second, support for locally designed safety measures in schools across the state.”

In the wake of Uvalde, Drazan has not called for new gun laws. She has spoken about increasing school security measures that “…includes investing in school resource officers and ensuring that individuals who should not have access to a classroom do not gain access to a classroom. As governor, my budget will provide dedicated funding to strengthen school safety measures to prevent these kinds of heinous attacks from occurring,” she said in a statement to KGW’s Channel 8. Her campaign website emphasizes her A rating from the NRA for upholding the Second Amendment.

Gun control is not the only issue of the governor’s race. But the three major candidates do bring different approaches. Which one appeals to you?

Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the Baker City Herald. Columns, letters and cartoons on this page express the opinions of the authors and not necessarily that of the Baker City Herald.