Two Goose Hollow residents announced formal complaints Aug. 20, with the Portland City Auditor and the Oregon Secretary of State's Elections Division alleging District 4 Councilor Mitch Green used city staff and resources to produce a campaign-style Instagram video on his official government account.
T.J. Anderson and Deian Salazar signed the complaints, which target a high-production Instagram Reel posted on or about Aug. 11 to Green's official City Council account.
The complaint letter is dated Aug. 17, though the filing was announced publicly Thursday. The video closes with a "join me" call to action and displays a stylized logo that is not the official City of Portland seal, according to the NW Examiner, which first reported the filing.
The complaints allege Green used Instagram's collaborative-post feature to co-author the Reel with Portland DSA, which has more than 20,000 followers, and Portland for All, a 501(c)(4) affiliated with a state-registered political action committee with more than 6,500 followers. That feature shares a single set of likes, comments and view counts across all collaborating profiles.
After commenters questioned whether the video amounted to campaign advertising, the collaboration credits linking the Reel to Portland DSA and Portland for All were removed, and the video disappeared from both organizations' profiles, the complaint states. The complainants characterize the removal as an attempt to conceal the collaboration after it drew public scrutiny.
Alleged violations
The complaints cite three specific legal provisions:
- HRAR 4.06 (Political Activity): Prohibits elected officials from directing city employees to prepare or deliver information advocating a candidate's election.
- HRAR 4.09 (Use of City Resources): Restricts use of public funds, equipment, staff time and city-branded social media accounts to city business.
- ORS 260.432: Prohibits public employees from engaging in political activity during working hours and bars any person, including elected officials, from requiring a public employee to do so. Under state law, a request by a supervisor to a subordinate is treated as a command.
The complainants say no public disclosure has identified the cost of producing the video, which city staff worked on it, the hours spent or the basis for posting it to a government account.
The only other councilors featured in the Reel are Angelita Morillo and Tiffany Koyama Lane, both DSA-affiliated members running for reelection in District 3. Green, Morillo and Koyama Lane make up half of the council's six-member progressive bloc, known as "Peacock," which frequently deadlocks 6-6 with the body's moderate members.
Disclosure and what's next
Anderson is also running for council. A footnote in the complaint discloses this, and Salazar stated he is not affiliated with Anderson's campaign, noting his role is as a colleague in disability rights advocacy.
Green had not issued a public statement responding to the complaint as of Thursday evening. Neither office has confirmed receipt of the filing or announced an investigation timeline.
The complaints ask the auditor to investigate the Reel's production, financing and dissemination, preserve all records including Instagram edit history and metadata, and refer any state election law findings to the Secretary of State.
