Gerald “Jerry” Cummings was elected Chair of the Oregon Republican Party in March 2025. A pastor at Haven Church in St. Helens, Oregon, he has long been active in the Oregon Republican Party before his election as Chair. However, he resigned soon after his election when it was revealed he groomed a teenager until she was old enough to get married and kept her under his control by threatening to rape teenagers and through domestic violence and marital rape.
The Oregon Journalism Project reviewed court records of his divorce and custody cases as well as lawsuits from creditors, all suggesting he is not someone to get the party on sound financial footing or to reach out to the broader community in Oregon.
According to the divorce records, his ex-wife was sixteen when they met. He was twenty-six and took her to hotels and had sex with her. Sixteen was the age of consent in Oregon in 2000. Throughout their marriage he told her about his fantasies of raping young women and promised not to act on them so long as she did as he asked. His wife claimed he handcuffed her and beat her with hangers and with a whip. He coerced her compliance by naming the teens he would assault. His ex-wife got a restraining order and custody of the children, but he was never arrested nor charged with the crimes.
He denies everything though he admits he was a terrible husband.
- Oregon Journalism Project: The Oregon GOP’s New Chairman Brings Some Baggage to His Role
- Oregon Journalism Project: Oregon GOP Chairman Resigns After Oregon Journalism Project Report About His Past
- Oregon Capital Chronicle: Oregon GOP chair resigns after ‘deeply troubling’ revelations
April 11, 2025