SALEM, Ore. (AP) - You've got to give Republican Mike Erickson credit on a few accounts.

One is his willingness to put more than $3 million of his own money on the line to run for Congress this year and in 2006.

The other is Erickson's steadfastness in refusing to drop out of the 5th District race despite the desire of some in his own party to see him leave because they view him as damaged goods.

"Mike has never once considered dropping out. He is 100 percent committed to this race," Erickson's campaign spokesman, Jeff Harvey, said this past week.

That resolute stance dismays some Republicans. Only months ago, they were salivating at the possibility of the GOP picking up a House seat after six-term Democratic Rep. Darlene Hooley's surprise announcement she wouldn't seek re-election.

Erickson won the GOP nomination in the May primary after a TV blitz that Erickson paid for mostly with his own money. But he won just barely after rival Kevin Mannix went public with allegations that Erickson - an opponent of abortion rights - paid for a woman's abortion in 2001 after telling her he did not want the baby.

Erickson has repeatedly denied paying for the abortion. These days the wealthy Lake Oswego businessman seems determined to stay in the race and see it through to November, despite the political damage done to him by the allegation.

"We got past the smear campaign in the May primary, and Republicans voted Mike as their nominee," said Harvey, the campaign spokesman.

Shortly after Erickson won the May election, some Republicans wanted the State GOP Central Committee to consider a resolution urging Erickson to leave the race. But party leaders ultimately decided not to pursue it.

Now, some GOP activists are galled at the possibility that the Democratic contender - state Sen. Kurt Schrader of Canby - is going to waltz to victory in what was supposed to be a highly competitive race for an open congressional seat.

"This race is a lost cause," said Dan Lavey, a veteran GOP political consultant in Portland. "We're putting up a guy with no political experience and very little credibility. What should have been a competitive race will now be a cakewalk for the Democrats."

Spokesmen for the state and national Republican parties say they aren't giving up on Erickson and think he still can run a viable fall campaign.

The National Republican Congressional Committee kicked in $5,000 to Erickson's campaign in the most recent fundraising period. That's somewhat of a token amount, but a spokesman for the Washington, D.C.-based committee says more money might be going to Erickson.

"We remain pleased with his candidacy, and we stand behind him 100 percent," NRCC spokesman Ken Spain said.

At the state party level, GOP spokeswoman Brianne Hyder said the abortion allegation could make the fall campaign more difficult for Erickson.

"It's unfortunate that the GOP primary election strayed from the issues," she said. "I would say that the negative campaigning that went on in the primary election will not help Mike Erickson in the general election."

Erickson's most recent federal election campaign filing showed that he lent himself nearly $1.6 million to defeat Mannix in the May primary but since then he hasn't received much - about $42,000 - in outside contributions. Erickson also spent $1.6 million of his own money in his 2006 loss to Hooley.

Hyder was not aware of any effort to try to replace Erickson, and she notes that there's nothing the party could do to force him off the ticket at any rate.

Even if Erickson did decide to drop out - something his campaign insists isn't even remotely possible - it would be awfully late for someone else to launch a congressional campaign at this stage against Schrader, who's expected to get lots of financial help from Democratic groups.

Given the anti-Republican tenor of the times both in Oregon and across the country, it would take a near-perfect GOP candidate to have a chance to win in the 5th District, where Democrats now hold the voter registration edge.

Erickson is a long way from being that candidate, says Lavey, who also is an adviser to Republican Sen. Gordon Smith. Smith, who's facing a tough re-election this year, is the only Republican to hold statewide office in Oregon and the lone GOP senator on the West Coast.

"Republicans have missed an opportunity in the 5th District by nominating an ethically- and credibility-challenged candidate in Mike Erickson," Lavey said. "This whole thing is an embarrassment for the Republican Party."

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Brad Cain has been writing about Oregon politics from his Statehouse office in Salem for 25 years. 

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)