Democrat Tina Kotek will be Oregon’s next governor.
Kotek and Republican Christie Drazan went to bed late Tuesday, or perhaps early Wednesday, in a race too close to call. But morning returns from Multnomah County and the reality that most of the ballots left to be counted come from Oregon’s most populous county, where Kotek is capturing more than 70% of the vote, have given Kotek enough of a lead that The Oregonian has declared her the winner.
Kotek is the longest-serving House Speaker in Oregon history and will be Oregon’s first openly lesbian governor. She has promised a more proactive, but still compassionate, approach to homelessness and crime in Oregon, than her predecessor, Gov. Kate Brown.
The race in Oregon garnered national attention in the run-up to Election Day: It was one of the most competitive governor’s races in the nation, with three former state lawmakers vying for the spot.
A combination of factors made this year’s contest for Oregon’s executive seat especially notable. Johnson, the former state senator, appeared early on to be siphoning votes from the Democratic candidate Kotek, which made Democrats feel more vulnerable and Republicans hopeful they could put a Republican in Mahonia Hall for the first time since 1987.
Throughout the race, Republicans had an easy line of attack. They simply pointed to the widespread homelessness in Oregon, and particularly in Portland, and growing concerns over crime and gun violence. They also tied Kotek to Gov. Kate Brown, who polls have shown is one of the least popular governors in the nation.
All three candidates were well funded, and even before the final push, this was the most expensive governor’s race in state history; both Drazan and Johnson received millions of dollars in financial support from Nike co-founder Phil Knight. Kotek also had deep-pocketed support and brought in a record amount from the state’s largest public union.
Kotek: A housing champion
No lawmaker in recent history has done more to address the housing crisis than Kotek. As governor, she promised to do more.
While serving as Speaker of the House, Kotek pushed through statewide rent control and a measure to allow some cities to build duplexes and triplexes to increase housing stock, despite zoning restrictions. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, she also pushed to turn motels into emergency shelter beds to increase the supply of beds for people experiencing homelessness.
Kotek said it was time to get “serious about building a lot more housing,” and promised that would take place under her tenure.
“On day one, I will do what Kate Brown wouldn’t,” Kotek said in an ad released on Oct. 14. “I will get people the help they need to move off the streets.”
Drazan: Says Oregon needs a change
Drazan was first elected to the Oregon House in 2018 and quickly rose to lead her caucus after less than one year on the job. She carved out a reputation as a politician not afraid to deploy hardball tactics and her tenure was marked by walkouts, bill reading and partisanship.
Drazan led her party on a walkout to Reno, Nevada, in 2020 to block a Democratic bill aimed at combating climate change by regulating carbon emissions.. She also managed to use delay tactics, such as forcing bills to be read out loud, to slow the Democrats’ agenda and land her party an equal number of seats on a legislative redistricting committee.
Drazan’s backers said it was an important show of force, and under her leadership, by 2021, Republicans won an additional seat in the House, the party’s first gain in a decade.
On the campaign trail, Drazan promised to allow for increased logging in Oregon, reduce business regulations and declare a state of emergency on homelessness. Such a declaration, she said, could allow her to challenge a federal court ruling limiting when homeless camps could be forcibly removed.
Drazan was less vocal about her anti-abortion stance and downplayed any possible role she could have rolling back protections on the ability to access an abortion in Oregon. Democrats had been hoping outrage over the U.S. Supreme Court’s abortion decisions this summer would drive turnout, and Kotek and her supporters spent the campaign trying to portray Drazan as a political extremist.
Johnson: Neither party is working
Shortly after Johnson announced her candidacy for governor, she had the financial backing of some of the state’s wealthiest individuals.
Johnson promised to unite the two parties and tried to offer an alternative to Democratic control in Oregon without turning the state red. The veteran lawmaker quit the Democratic party to run as an unaffiliated candidate. But despite the large sums of money, her campaign failed to gain much traction.
Speaking to supporters Tuesday night, Johnson conceded she wouldn’t be Oregon’s next governor.
“While the outcome fell short of what we wanted, I believe this campaign was a success. We made an impact,” Johnson said at her election watch party. “We sent a message that the majority of Oregonians across party lines, and no party at all, want big change in our state.”
Johnson, who is a timber heiress and served as the state’s lead budget writer for several years, continually lagged in the polls behind Drazan and Kotek.
Near the end of the race, Johnson was often asked whether she could act as a spoiler candidate, helping elect Drazan to office.
Johnson, who grew up in Oregon and supports abortion access, said she doesn’t believe the state would ever elect a governor who opposes it.
“This is a solidly pro-choice state, and it’s gonna remain so,” Johnson said in an earlier interview with OPB.
Despite the dismal polling, she said she wouldn’t drop out of the race.
“Sitting around watching Oregon in a death spiral, I have one last fight in me, and this is it,” Johnson said. “And I’m not going to surrender a place I love without one hell of a fight.”