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Moses Ross, a longtime political consultant and beloved neighborhood advocate in Multnomah Village, died from an asthma attack last week. He was 58.
For two decades, Ross ran Smart Voter Contact, a phone bank that reaches out to voters for Democratic Party candidates. He spent three years leading the Multnomah Village Neighborhood Association and played a key role as the city of Portland set up its first tiny pod village in the neighborhood.
Ross was relentlessly positive and kind, even while navigating an often difficult relationship between the city and the Southwest Portland neighborhood. He was an organizer and sometime host of PDX Progressive Talk Radio, a public affairs show on KBOO, and over the years served on a smattering of volunteer boards. He was also heavily involved with Multnomah County Democratic Party, serving in the early-aughts in a communications role and then as its treasurer for three years.
Ross ran for Portland City Council last year, finishing 17th among 31 candidates seeking to represent District 4.
Unlike other political candidates who disappear from civic engagement after they lose a race, Ross didn’t skip a beat in continuing his advocacy for the city.
“I can’t even begin to describe the type of person my father was,” his daughter, Emma, wrote in a social media post, “because he was everything good.”