Recall effort against Portland mayor falls short

PORTLAND — A group trying to recall Portland's mayor over a sex scandal failed to gather enough signatures by Monday's deadline, but said it would try again.

Organizers of the Community to Recall Sam Adams said they did not have the 32,000 valid signatures required to put a recall on the ballot. Jasun Wurster started the recall campaign after Adams admitted to lying about his sexual relationship with a former legislative intern who was a teenager at the time.

The admission, made shortly after Adams took office in January, resulted in an investigation by the Oregon Attorney General's Office that concluded there was no credible evidence the openly gay mayor began a sexual relationship with Beau Breedlove in 2005 before the intern turned 18.

Wurster on Monday said a political action committee called Portland Future PAC has been formed with promises from some business leaders for about $150,000 to pay for a new recall campaign.