A Eugene business owner says he plans to primary U.S. Rep. Val Hoyle next spring.
Boris Wiedenfeld-Needham, 55, is a self described progressive. He's also the owner of Bo's Wine Depot, a spokesperson for the protest group 50501, and a former board member for Food for Lane County.
He's running as a Democratic candidate for Oregon's 4th U.S. House District, which includes Eugene, Corvallis and large swaths of rural communities in the southwest corner of the state. Hoyle, also a Democrat, has represented the district since 2023.
Wiedenfeld-Needham said voters need a new choice who will excite the Democratic base, while standing up to the rich and to Republicans. He said he won’t be afraid to push for higher taxes on top earners, or call Israel’s actions in Gaza a genocide.
“We need more charismatic people who are really willing to stand out there and call a spade a spade," he said. "And I don't see that from the establishment of the Democratic Party.”
Wiedenfield-Needham said he was frustrated with Hoyle when she voted last month to table an impeachment attempt against President Donald Trump.
In a statement at the time, Hoyle said impeachment is "one of the most serious actions Congress can take," and shouldn't be used a "symbolic gesture" when it had no path to succeed. Wiedenfield-Needham disagrees.
"The optics were bad," he said. "And in terms of serious, what can be more serious than the constitutional crisis that we're in right now?"
Ultimately, he argued Hoyle could leave her seat vulnerable to slipping from Democrats' grasp.
Hoyle won re-election with a comfortable margin last year, earning around 30,000 more votes than her Republican challenger, Monique DeSpain. But Wiedenfeld-Needham contends that a future opponent could be more formidable.
"I am really afraid, and so are many of my friends in the community," said Wiedenfeld-Needham. "What happens if the Republicans decide to run a real populist against her, somebody who can really excite not just their base, but the fringes? What happens then?"
In a statement to KLCC Friday, Hoyle's campaign said the representative welcomes the participation of people in political process and supports "a vibrant democracy.”
Fundraising
With about 10 months to go before the May primary, Wiedenfeld-Needham is significantly behind in fundraising.
Wiedenfeld-Needham hasn't yet reported any contributions to the Federal Election Commission. He said he plans to start raising money in September.
Meanwhile, FEC filings show that Hoyle has raised more than $400,000 for her campaign so far this year.
Widenfeld-Needham said to compensate for the gap, he plans to leverage networking opportunities and non-legacy media to help voters get to know him.
He said he's been inspired by the success of underdog campaigns from New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani.
"It's going to be a challenge. Nobody's going to argue with that," he said. "But I also think that you can do with a lot less."
The Pacific Green Party
Wiedenfeld-Needham isn’t the only challenger to announce a campaign against Hoyle in 2026. Justin Filip told KLCC he’s once again running as a Pacific Green Party candidate.
Filip came in a distant third behind Hoyle and DeSpain in 2024. As a minor party candidate, he would not appear on the May primary ballot. Filip hasn't yet reported any fundraising for this coming election cycle, according to the FEC.
