Did Eugene just have its own mini-version of voters believing Trumpian lies? The campaign to unseat Eugene City Councilor Claire Syrett is ahead as of Sept. 6 with nearly 60 percent of the vote. But Syrett tells Eugene Weekly she’s not conceding. The recall campaign was deceptive, she says. A small group of people who don’t live in Ward 7, she adds, tapped into voter anxiety over inflation and the pandemic to motivate this result. Although the election won’t be certified until Oct. 7, Syrett says her attorneys are still arguing in court that the recall election was misused. “I believe the recall disrespected the voters through deceptive means. They told voters that if they replace me it would stop the EmX project, which is false. They used extreme rhetoric,” Syrett says. The recall election so far has less turnout compared to the May 2020 election when Syrett defeated two opponents. The 2020 election had 4,561 votes and the 2022 recall election night total is 3,361. Despite being behind by a large margin, Syrett says she’ll still show up to do City Council work, and if the courts don’t agree with her, she’ll do her part in finding a successor in Ward 7 who can advocate for its constituents as she has. 

• If you’re looking for a winning team to wipe out the memory of Oregon Duck football’s historic loss to Georgia, consider last weekend. The Portland Timbers soccer team beat Atlanta 2-1. Two hours without advertising, just the beautiful game. Then the Seattle Mariners baseball team lasted more than eight hours through a rain delay to beat Cleveland. Most of the fans were gone. Even if baseball bores you, you should pick up the Mariners’ little dance at the end of the win. Inspired by the Savannah Bananas? Great fun. And we could have an Oregon football win this coming weekend, Sept. 10, when the Ducks play Eastern Washington at 5:30 pm.

• Another idea has come up to keep the EWEB building on the river in the public domain rather than going to private ownership — current bids listed on the building include Obie Companies, Three Muses Group and Olympus Academia. How about EWEB selling it to the 4J school district for a dollar to use for a new headquarters? Converting it to that use probably would be too expensive, but it’s an interesting thought. We still like the idea of making it the Hope Pressman Art Museum.

• Sept. 11 is this Sunday and it’s a good day to pause, think about the days the skies were silent and the years of its aftermath across the world. 

• Don’t throw out your expired at-home COVID test kits just yet! If you got an iHealth test or one of several other brands, the FDA has extended the shelf life of some kits. Google the words: otc covid test expiration date, and you can find out if yours is still good. 

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