It's common for unheralded candidates to challenge incumbents such as U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.). For instance, Pavel Goberman, a Washington County fitness instructor and perennial candidate for a variety of offices is seeking to unseat Merkley in May.
What's highly unusual for Oregon is that Merkley is also getting a challenge from a resident of Brooklyn—the one in New York, not the neighborhood in Southeast Portland.
William Bryk, a lawyer, has previously entered primary races in several states in recent years, including Idaho, Indiana, New Hampshire, Alaska and Wyoming, all while living in New York.
Tony Green, a spokesman for Secretary of State Kate Brown, acknowledges it's very unusual for a non-Oregonian to run in an election here but says Bryk made a convincing legal argument.
WWeek 2015