On May 22, 2024, now former State Representative Charlie Conrad posted the following statement on Facebook:
I want to thank everyone who turned out to vote. While the results were not what I had hoped, I respect our process and am grateful for those who participated. Thank you especially to the coalition of supporters and volunteers who showed up to knock doors and get our community engaged. For me, this has always been about service, and I will finish out my term, working hard for this wonderful district.
Rep. Conrad had just lost the Republican primary for House District 12 to former Blue River School Board Member Darin Harbick. A month later, Rep. Conrad joined the Independent Party of Oregon and left the House Republican Caucus that had elected him. Later that summer, Governor Tina Kotek appointed the former opposition party legislator to the Oregon Lottery Commission, assuring that he had a political afterlife free of campaigning and fundraising.
The former police officer ran afoul of Oregon’s conservative movement in 2023 when he provided the lone Republican vote in favor of House Bill 2002, which expanded coverage of sex-rejecting procedures and permitted clinical abortions for children as young as 15 without parental notification or consent. Condemnation by Republicans was swift and extensive, and in March 2023, the Oregon Republican Party censured Rep. Conrad:
Whereas, Representative Charlie Conrad voted yes on HB2002b which allows for any type of abortion in secret and without parental knowledge for children of any age, and the Oregon Republican Party was the third largest contributor to his campaign and the ORP standing rules state no financial support shall be given to any candidate that votes in favor of any late-term abortion laws;
Whereas, The Oregon Republican Party spends hundreds of volunteer hours, and money to support its candidates;
Resolved, That the Oregon Republican Party censure Representative Conrad immediately; including revoking member privileges in the ORP, and that no financial support will be allowed for Representative Conrad ever again;
Resolved, That the Oregon Republican Party request the Republican House Caucus censure Representative Conrad immediately; including revoking member privileges of the Caucus, and that no financial support will be allowed for Representative Conrad ever again.
In October 2025, Rep. Conrad updated his political action committee statement of organization with the Oregon Secretary of State to seek the Independent Party of Oregon’s nomination to regain his old seat during the 2026 election. Multiple news outlets reported in January 2026 that Rep. Conrad received the Independent Party’s nomination at the first nominating convention of the year. Rep. Conrad’s campaign website includes short list of endorsements including multiple local mayors, city councilors, and school board members, topped off by the official support of former Congressman Peter DeFazio. Congressman DeFazio consistently endorsed and supported liberal candidates for President while serving in the US House of Representatives from 1987-2023, including Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and Kamala Harris.
In addition to his Lottery Commission service post-legislature, Rep. Conrad also co-founded a the nonprofit group Common Ground – United We Stand with Idaho Republican State Representative Chenele Dixon. The organization’s mission statement is, “We are committed to supporting governing legislators who embody and demonstrate a respectful, rational, and pragmatic public policy process as they work to represent all of their constituents through cooperation, collaboration, and compromise.” His campaign website details more center-right priorities than other conservative members of the legislature, though he emphasizes that he “stood alone” in the House Republican Caucus to, “defend reproductive freedom because I believe personal liberty means something. Oregonians should have the freedom to make the decisions that are right for them without politicians interfering.”
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