Saturday, a Bronze Star veteran and non-profit director formally announced his bid for State Representative.
Marty Wilde is running for House District 11 as a Democrat. He’s Executive Director of the Lane County Medical Society and a father of two.
Wilde says among his top priorities if elected is helping better fund state education.
“I got ahead and I was able to climb out of poverty because I had great teachers," Wilde tells KLCC. "They were unionized, they were strong, they were relatively well-paid for what they did.
"And they cared about their students. And the public supported them. I think the public still supports them, but we’ve underfunded them to the tune of at least a billion dollars each year.”
Wilde officially kicked off his campaign at Roaring Rapids Pizza in Eugene Saturday. He was joined by other notable politicians including Eugene Mayor Lucy Vinis and State Senator James Manning, a fellow veteran.
Another Democrat, Kimberly Koops-Wrabek, has also filed to run for District 11.
The seat is currently held by Representative Phil Barnhart. He’s announced he’ll retire at the end of his term.
Copyright 2018, KLCC.