The retirement of longtime Eastern Oregon lawmaker Bill Hansell will leave a political gulf in terms of experience and know-how that will not be easy to fill.

Hansell, who served in the Oregon Legislature for 12 years, capped his final legislative session earlier this month.

A well-respected state senator, Hansell was able to avoid controversy with solid, methodical decisions that helped out his constituents and, overall, made the region a better place.

Hansell, of course, also had a long career as a county commissioner and was able to translate his common-sense methods to the assembly in Salem.

His experience and knowledge, though, will be what voters will feel the lack of, in significant and subtle ways, over the next few years.

What Hansell seemed to understand better than many other lawmakers was the need to seek compromise and the importance of keeping the big political picture in sight.

As a longtime Republican lawmaker, he was always in the minority and that meant the need to seek a middle ground to get legislation passed was essential.

Hansell was an expert in that type of politics. Sadly, that age-old art that makes democracies function is beginning to evaporate.

Hansell’s gift for getting to the heart of a flash-point issue and then finding solutions set him apart from many other lawmakers — both at the state and national level — who seek to wave the bloody shirt of political dogma at all costs.

Make no mistake, Hansell remained devoted to the Republican Party. Yet his ability to work within the perimeter of his party and still find ways to seek a middle ground to success will remain one of his lasting hallmarks.

Hansell, then, should feel satisfied as he departs the Oregon political stage. Satisfied he was able to do the best possible for voters in his region, and gratified he rose above the white noise produced by the lunatic fringe of both political parties to do what voters want most of all — produce results.