Neil Edward Goldschmidt, most powerful person in Oregon, lost his popularity because of his sexual relationship with a 14 year old girl.

 Goldschmidt was born on 16 June 1940. He was elected to the Portland City Council in 1970. He graduated to become the mayor of Portland in 1972. This earned him the accolade of being the youngest mayor in the US. He also earned a lot of praise for the revitalization of Downtown Portland.  He became the U.S. Secretary of Transportation with President Jimmy Carter in 1979.

 Goldschmidt’s career seemed to be looking up and he hoped to be in the top political echelons in the US. He was elected Governor of Oregon in 1986. He faced many challenges in his tenure. He was mainly responsible in pulling out Oregon from eight years of recession. He also carried out reforms in the State Accident Insurance Fund (SAIF). His reforms were well received by the people.

He had the reputation of being one of the most successful governors in the US. However Goldschmidt declined to run for re-election in 1990 although it was believed that he will be easily re-elected. He cited marital difficulties as a reason for not contesting the elections.

 Later he became a very controversial lobbyist. He was appointed to the Oregon Board of Higher Education in 2003. This is where he faced sharp criticism in his Senate hearings. A media scrutiny revealed that he had a lengthy illegal relationship with a 14 year old girl in the seventies. The scandal dented his reputation very severely and his popularity in Oregon reduced considerably.