Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek announced today that she will be a candidate for Governor in the 2022 Democratic Primary.
Kotek said she plans to focus on both the immediate challenges facing Oregon and building a future of opportunity and justice for all Oregonians.
“Oregonians are living through a devastating pandemic, the intensifying impacts of climate change, and the economic disruptions that leave too many behind. We must get past the politics of division and focus on making real, meaningful progress for families across our state.
“I am running for Governor because I know that, together, we can reckon with the legacies of injustice and inequality to build a great future for Oregon.”
Kotek has a long, successful track record of working for Oregonians both in and out of office, including:
- Working to reduce hunger as an advocate for the Oregon Food Bank;
- Fighting for children living in poverty, needing health care, or facing abuse as the policy director for Children First for Oregon;
- Representing her neighbors and community in the Oregon House of Representatives for nearly fifteen years; and
- Creating historic, progressive change for all of Oregon as the Speaker of the Oregon House.
Kotek signaled a wide-ranging agenda rooted in issues that will have the greatest positive impact on the lives of Oregonians, including:
- Building a healthier, stronger Oregon in a post-pandemic world;
- Prioritizing safe, affordable housing for everyone;
- Expanding access to quality health care, including better mental health and addiction services;
- Fighting for racial and economic justice;
- Tackling the climate crisis; and
- Expanding opportunities for our young people to learn and succeed.
“Together, we have done great things by working for justice, putting people first, and never forgetting our love of the state we share.”
Kotek’s many accomplishments as Speaker are making a positive difference in the lives of Oregonians and communities in every part of Oregon. They include:
- Responding to immediate crises including pandemic relief, wildfire recovery, preventing evictions of tenants, homeowners and small businesses, making historic investments to increase affordable housing, passing a first-in-the-nation statewide rent stabilization law, and personally advocating for more equitable policing and a fairer criminal justice system.
- Making real progress for working people including raising Oregon’s minimum wage, strengthening retirement security, expanding earned sick leave, passing the strongest equal pay law in the country, making paid family medical leave insurance available for Oregon’s workers, responding to the state’s childcare crisis, and leading the way for a historic investment in education by passing the Student Success Act to boost pre-K-12 education funding by $1 billion each year.
- Ensuring access to quality health care including defending access to affordable health care for Oregonians who rely on Medicaid and expanding access to reproductive health care for all Oregonians.
- Taking on climate change including eliminating the state’s reliance on coal and setting Oregon on the path to 100% clean electricity, passing historic investments in public transit and zero-emission vehicles, and fighting for cleaner diesel engines and the state’s low carbon fuel standard.
“Together, we have done great things by working for justice, putting people first, and never forgetting our love of the state we share,” said Kotek. “I will bring people together for a campaign that will inspire all Oregonians to reach for a better future for everyone.”