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She had to delay her announcement for a few days after a bout with COVID-19, but Jamie McLeod-Skinner made it official today—she’ll compete for the Democratic nomination in what promises to be a highly competitive primary in Oregon’s 5th Congressional District.
“Oregonians want to be able to put a roof over our heads, food on our tables, opportunities for our kids, and health care for our families, and I’ve dedicated my career to this type of service,” McLeod-Skinner said. “I believe in accountability to Oregonians, not corporate PACs. And I’ll work with anyone to make government work for people.”
In 2022, McLeod-Skinner knocked off U.S. Rep. Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) in the primary, handing the seven-term incumbent a decisive 10-point loss. But in the general election, McLeod-Skinner, a lawyer and engineer from Terrebone, came up short, losing to Republican Lori Chavez-DeRemer, a former Happy Valley mayor, by 2 percentage points.
It was McLeod-Skinner’s third run for a major office: She had previously lost to then-U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) in the 2nd Congressional District in 2018; and she came in third behind Shemia Fagan and Mark Hass in the 2020 Democratic primary for secretary of state.
Those three races have helped McLeod-Skinner build name recognition and a network of supporters, but those assets did not dissuade two current officeholders, Metro Council President Lynn Peterson and state Rep. Janelle Bynum (D-Happy Valley), from entering the Democratic primary even before McLeod-Skinner.
All three can find positives in the district’s voter registration (below), which shows a nearly 25,000 voter registration advantage for Democrats over Republicans (that’s a little less than 5 percentage points). For Peterson, a former Lake Oswego City Council member and Clackamas County chair, the opportunity lies in the large number of Clackamas County voters; the same is true for Bynum, whose district includes parts of the county and who twice defeated Chavez-DeRemer in legislative races.
McLeod-Skinner, who lives in Deschutes County, got a boost when the 5th District shifted east in redistricting to include her base. Another Democrat who previously said he’d seek the nomination, Kevin Easton from Bend, says he will get out the race since McLeod-Skinner is getting in.
“The math, money and momentum are all on her side to achieve a Democratic victory,” Easton says. “We share common values and she will give Central Oregonians a seat at the table and I will be proud to stand next to her as our first openly LGBTQ+ member of Congress from Oregon.”