Our Endorsements: May 2022 Election

The primary election on May 17, 2022 takes place as our city reaches its most crucial inflection point. The unacceptable status of our region is clear and obvious for all Greater Portland residents to see. This election will provide us with an opportunity to vote for a positive alternative – sure, we can continue with the status quo, which has led to a record level of houselessness, violent crime, cost of living increases, and trash with no clear plan for recovery or we can elect practical, collaborative leaders who will get our city refocused on delivering basic services and act with clear, actionable strategies for solving the multitude of crises facing our entire Portland region.

We will fill out our ballots as a record number of Portlanders are living on our streets; as the city is on pace to break last year’s record number of homicides; as small businesses across the city are victimized by burglaries and robberies; as trash is strewn all across our city; and as a spiraling cost of living crisis burdens more and more families. All of this in our city, which now has one of the highest local tax burdens in the nation. Portlanders are justifiably angry, as revealed in our recent DHM Research community survey, with only 12% of voters saying our city is headed in the right direction. 

These crises have upended our lives and wrought widespread damage to Portland’s reputation as one of the most livable and affordable cities in America. The process of unifying our community to rebuild basic services that support an economy that benefits every Portlander will require deep collaboration between the public and private sectors for years, and perhaps even decades to come. 

Simply put: we will not be able to make the change necessary to get Portland back on track without sending a strong message at the ballot box – it is time for change.  It is time to put an end to the radical ideological politics that got us into this position and get refocused on the basics – shelter and housing for all, public safety, cleanliness, affordability, and livability. The Alliance has endorsed leaders who are committed to building collaborative decisions across coalitions, value transparency, and are proven leaders in forming public-private partnerships to solve problems.

The candidates we endorse are not “pro-business” in the traditional sense.  We would describe them as “pro-collaboration” leaders who understand the critical importance of partnering with the private sector to solve what seem like overwhelming crises. And finally, we have confidence that these candidates will take an urgent approach to reducing the number of unsheltered Portlanders on our streets, reducing violent crime plaguing our region, restoring cleanliness and livability in every neighborhood, and helping employers of all sizes rebuild thriving businesses. 
 

OUR ENDORSEMENTS FOR MAY 2022: 

• Portland City Council, Position 2 – Dan Ryan
• Portland City Council Position 3 – Vadim Mozyrsky
• Washington County Chair – Beach Pace
• Multnomah County Sheriff – Derrick Peterson
• Portland City Auditor – Simone Rede
• Clackamas County Commission, Position 2 - Paul Savas, Libra Forde (dual endorsement)
• Clackamas County Commission, Position 5 – Sonya Fischer
• Multnomah County Commission District 2 – Susheela Jayapal
• Washington County Commission District 2 – Pam Treece
• Washington County Commission, District 4 – Jerry Willey 
• Metro Council District 1 – Ashton Simpson
• Metro Council District 2 - Christine Lewis
• Metro Council District 6 – Duncan Hwang

To support the endorsed candidates, the Alliance is hosting a series of happy hour receptions during the month of April for our members to meet and learn from the top candidates.