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Former state Rep. Akasha Lawrence Spence (D-Portland) will challenge sitting Commissioner Dan Ryan for his seat on the Portland City Council.
A Black woman who runs a real estate development company, Lawrence Spence was appointed to the Oregon House in 2020 after Rep. Jennifer Williamson (D-Portland) resigned. She had planned to seek a seat in the state Senate before redistricting drew her out of a competitive district.
She ruled out moving and says community members drafted her instead to run for City Council.
“I see both an urgent need and an opportunity to make sure that our city’s recovery is just, centering those who have been most impacted by the health and economic crises of the last two years,” Lawrence Spence says. “I have proven firsthand what we can accomplish when our actions are moral, our resolve is strong, and our policies put people first.”
Ryan is a first-term commissioner who has provided Mayor Ted Wheeler with an ally on the moderate wing of the City Council. He has overseen an effort to establish six “safe rest villages” across the city where homeless people can stay—an endeavor that has moved more slowly than promised.
Lawrence Spence touts the endorsements of key Black leaders, representing a political gamut, including former state Sen. Avel Gordly, current state Sen. Kayse Jama, and community leader Rukaiyah Adams.
“Akasha understands that going back to the normal we knew before the pandemic will be a return to the inequality that is driving our housing and public safety crises,” says Adams in a statement. “As city commissioner, she will use her experience as a small business owner to build a Portland where everyone has a fair shot at providing for themselves, their family, and our community as a whole.”