Oregon County Commissioner Urged to Resign After Flipping Off Colleague

Kathryn Harrington, chair of the Washington County Board of Commissioners in Oregon, is facing calls for her resignation after an incident during a public meeting where she gave a middle finger gesture to a colleague. The episode occurred when Harrington, attempting to speak with another board member, told Commissioner Nafisa Fai to "stop getting in the way of my sight line." Despite Fai adjusting her seat, Harrington made the offensive gesture when their eyes met across the table.

Following the incident, which was captured on video and circulated publicly, three of the four commissioners—Jason Snider, Jerry Willey, and Pam Treece—released a statement on Thursday urging Harrington to step down. Fai did not co-sign the statement but has previously called Harrington's behavior unacceptable.

The three commissioners have proposed barring Harrington from overseeing meetings, revoking her access to non-public county buildings, and removing her as the board's liaison to county staff. They also suggested restricting her in-person meetings with county employees. The board is scheduled to vote on these measures on October 1.

Harrington's term is set to conclude on January 3, and she is not seeking reelection. The commissioners also proposed reducing her compensation to only cover medical and dental insurance payments.

Previously, Harrington issued a public apology, stating she was "stepping back" from her duties as chair but intended to resume her work later. "I formally and personally apologize to Commissioner Nafisa Fai, my other fellow district commissioner board members and the community for my unprofessional response," Harrington wrote in her apology. "My reaction was very plainly not appropriate in any instance. I should not have behaved in such a hurtful manner."

This is not the first time Harrington has faced scrutiny for her conduct. An investigation into her past treatment of county employees found text messages to be "unprofessional and inappropriate," though they did not meet the legal threshold for harassment or discrimination. A separate report alleged that Harrington yelled at an employee in March, leaving the staff member in tears, for which she also issued a public apology.

During her tenure as a Metro councilor from 2007 to 2012, Harrington was accused of "creating a climate of fear, hostility, anxiety, emotional distress."

Fai stated that Harrington's actions were unbecoming of an elected official, emphasizing her own commitment to treating everyone with respect and dignity. "Frankly, behavior like this is the equivalent of flipping off the people we are elected to serve," Fai said.