LA GRANDE — Oregon gubernatorial candidate Tim McCloud, a former Eastern Oregon University student, believes he has a fighting chance to win the Republican Oregon primary.

“Even though I entered the race just 60 days ago, I’m coming out hot and I am coming on fast,” McCloud said during a campaign stop in La Grande on Thursday, April 28.

McCloud, who grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and now lives in Marion County, said one reason for his optimism is that he is campaigning hard to get the Hispanic vote.

“Nobody else running for governor is going after the Hispanic vote,” he said.

The candidate noted that as a part of this effort he has a page about his candidacy in Spanish in the voters pamphlet.

The first Black GOP candidate in the state’s history to run for governor, McCloud also believes he has a fighting chance because he has a uniqueness that helps him stand out. His race and a compelling life story are two reasons for this. McCloud, who today works for an aerospace and defense manufacturer as a business analyst, was homeless while studying at Eastern Oregon University as an online student. McCloud, who attended EOU from 2012-16, said he is four credits shy of graduating.

He said that his firsthand understanding of homelessness helps him make connections better especially in Western Oregon where the problem is much greater.

“People going to work in Portland see large numbers of homeless people along the street every day,” McCloud said.

McCloud did not speak of homelessness in detail on April 28, but he spoke frequently about the need to protect our liberty and how he believes it is threatened by creeping socialism.

“I wanted to take the opportunity to fight for liberty and fight socialism,” he said. “That is what drew me into this race.”

McCloud said he is opposed to new taxes with one exception. He would like people from other states to have to pay a small sales tax. He said it is not fair that people from outside the state come to Oregon to buy items because there is no sales tax here and then leave the state. He does not think it is fair that out-of state customers get to buy things in Oregon at a lower cost and don’t have to deal with the consequences Oregonians get hammered with because their state has no sales tax.

He also said he does not like the way the government influences whether companies fail or succeed by determining who gets large contracts. He wants a free market to determine who succeeds.

“The government doesn’t pick good winners and losers. Consumers do the job of picking winners and losers,” he said.

McCloud is also concerned about the federal land in Oregon. He pointed to Alaska, which is suing the federal government in an effort to regain ownership of the federal land within the state.

“I would like Oregon to do the same thing,” he said.

The gubernatorial candidate also is not a fan of how the federal government manages federal lands for things like wildfire prevention. McCloud said that too often the government manages land poorly, leaving people in the area with unfortunate consequences to deal with.

McCloud is one of 21 Republican candidates for governor in the May 17 primary.