Portland unrest drives interest in 2 congressional primaries
Portland, Ore. – Growing discontent over homelessness and crime in Portland is driving interest in a pair of Oregon congressional primaries, one featuring a vulnerable incumbent endorsed by President Joe Biden and the other involving a candidate bankrolled by cryptocurrency.
Tuesday’s primaries for the 5th and 6th U.S. House districts are playing out in a state that’s become a right-wing target after sometimes-violent protests in Portland following George Floyd’s murder, surging gun crime and an ongoing homelessness crisis in the city.
The problems have given Republicans a megaphone and raised the stakes for Democrats as a crowded field of candidates vies to advance to November in a historically blue state, said John Horvick, political director at the nonpartisan public opinion firm DHM Research.
“Two of the districts touch on Portland, and Portland’s just become a rallying cry. It’s the biggest city, and it matters to the state’s economy, but it’s also a symbol for what is going wrong in the state right now,” Horvick said.
Another key race, for Oregon’s 4th Congressional District, is wide open for the first time in decades as Democratic U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio retires after 35 years. Changes to that district’s boundaries, however, are expected to favor Democrats even more strongly.
In Oregon voting is done entirely by mail, and nonaffiliated and third-party voters together make up the largest group of voters. So far, turnout has been anemic, but that could change because voters have until election day to postmark their ballots.
Amid that backdrop, a newly created 6th Congressional District that includes some Portland suburbs is creating national buzz for the amount of money in play and has attracted 16 candidates, including a Democratic newcomer backed by a cryptocurrency kingpin. The state gained a district in a once-in-a-decade reapportionment after the 2020 U.S. Census.
The nine Democrats competing in the primary have spent more than $18 million combined and drawn more than $13 million in outside money to date, making the race one of the most costly among Democratic primaries nationwide, according to OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan research group that tracks money in politics.
Top among those is Carrick Flynn, whose ads have inundated local TV but who remains unfamiliar to many voters. Cryptocurrency billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried’s political action committee has poured millions into Flynn’s campaign, and the powerful House Majority PAC, which focuses on electing Democrats to the U.S. House, has spent $1 million in ads on his behalf.
Flynn appears to be in a close race with state Rep. Andrea Salinas, a three-term state lawmaker who would become Oregon’s first Hispanic woman in Congress if elected. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts endorsed Salinas this week, saying she would be a “progressive champion” for working families in the district, which is 20% Hispanic.
Seven Republicans are running for the 6th district seat, including Ron Noble, a moderate who currently serves in the Oregon House.
Meanwhile, the D5th district has been significantly redrawn, leaving centrist incumbent Democratic Rep. Kurt Schrader to…
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