Oregon Public Broadcasting

With just over three months to go before the November election, the two leading candidates for Oregon governor still haven't met each other. Democrat John Kitzhaber and Republican Chris Dudley both say they've never so much as shaken each other's hand. Their latest missed chance to meet came Friday at a gathering of Oregon mayors in Cottage Grove.

Michael Clapp / OPB

The Oregon Mayors Association wanted to schedule a joint appearance featuring Dudley and Kitzhaber. Dudley cited a scheduling conflict and said he couldn't appear at the same time as Kitzhaber.  Kitzhaber offered to rearrange his schedule to no avail. I asked both candidates what they'll say to each other when they do finally cross paths. This is John Kitzhaber.

John Kitzhaber:  "I'll say 'Chris, it's good to meet you. We should do this again, maybe five to seven times around the state.'"

That's a shot at Dudley, who the Kitzhaber campaign accuses of dodging debates. Dudley struck a more conciliatory tone when I asked him to imagine meeting Kitzhaber.

Chris Dudley: "Good to meet you and you know, I look forward to sharing our ideas and going from there."

Dudley insisted he's not avoiding joint appearances. He told the mayors that there's no question he'll eventually debate Kitzhaber.