The race to represent rural eastern Lane County in the Oregon House will be contested. A Democrat has won the write-in campaign to appear on the November ballot in House District 12.
Michelle Emmons lost to moderate Republican Charlie Conrad two years ago.
This time around - she had planned to endorse him.
"If Charlie Conrad had won the Republican nomination, I would not be accepting the (Democratic) nomination to run on the ballot,” she said. “I believe that Charlie did show up for our communities, he showed up at city council meetings, he has fought for appropriations."
Darin Harbick, a more conservative McKenzie Bridge business owner who was endorsed by Oregon Right to Life, won instead with 82 percent of votes.
Meanwhile, Emmons won the Democratic nomination with 655 write-in votes. There were no Democrats listed on the ballot, so the nomination was awarded to the qualified candidate with the most write-ins, which in this case, was Emmons.
She said the district needs a representative committed to bipartisanship, who is focused on making the region more resilient against climate disasters and protecting reproductive rights.
"I'm doing this because we need to have a voice of reason,” she said. “Our communities need someone who has a history of working on solving problems by finding common ground and leading solutions with everyone's voices and concerns being part of the process."
Emmons lives in Oakridge and currently works as the deputy director of the Willamette Riverkeeper. She is also the co-founder of the Oakridge Trails Alliance and has volunteered for local recreation groups and state parks committees.
Harbick owns a logging company, Harbick’s Country Inn in Blue River and a recovery center. He previously served on the McKenzie School Board and the Travel Lane County Tourism Board.
Harbick has previously said he decided to run for office because of Conrad’s support for a bill that protected access to gender affirming care and abortion.
Both candidates will appear on the November ballot.
Harbick did not respond to a request for comment.
