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2024 General Election Voter's Guide

AFT-Oregon 2024 Voter's Guide

The 2024 election is here and union members are “all in” this election season supporting candidates who support the values and actions needed to produce real solutions for working families. AFT has endorsed in the presidential and federal congressional election. AFT-Oregon has endorsed in the statewide election and Oregon Legislature. Read more about our endorsement process.

At AFT-Oregon we focus our electoral work on state level candidate endorsements, primarily state representative and state senator positions. The Oregon State Legislature is where important budget decisions are made, such as how much money our schools, community colleges, and universities receive from the state from year to year to fund our students' educations and the jobs of most of our members. Beyond the education budget, the issues affecting members’ lives daily decided by this state body are numerous: healthcare, housing, transportation, climate mitigation and adaptation, and so much more. We make sure our voices are heard in Salem by working with elected officials along with labor and community partners to develop strong education agendas for Oregon Legislative Sessions.

AFT Presidential Endorsement 

(AFTvotes.org)

Harris Walz 2024 #AFTvotes
Kamala Harris, President
Tim Walz, Vice President  

Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are fighting for real solutions for working families including support for public education; an economy that works for all; access to affordable, high-quality healthcare; and fighting for our freedoms. You can read more about how the current Biden-Harris administration has delivered for Oregon working families here

Vice President Harris “fully embraces America’s role in the world as a country that leads with democracy and fundamental freedoms, and our role at home to protect those freedoms—the freedom to make healthcare decisions about our own bodies, to live safe from gun violence, to love whom we want, to breathe clean air and to vote,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. (AFT Is ‘All In for Harris-Walz’)

“Gov. Walz is a proud educator who drew on his experience in the classroom to show Minnesotans what a pro-education, pro-labor administration can look like. He is from a small town, served in the military and has consistently given back to his community. He believes the essence of America is to be kind to your neighbor and to help those around you thrive. And he is a former AFT member,” said Weingarten. (AFT’s Weingarten on Kamala Harris’ Selection of Tim Walz as Her Running Mate)

AFT Endorsed Federal Congressional Candidates

Congressional District 1

Suzanne Bonamici CD1
Suzanne Bonamici
BonamiciForCongress.com

Congressional District 3

Maxine Dexter CD3 MaxineForOregon.com
Maxine Dexter
MaxineForOregon.com

Congressional District 4

Val Hoyle  CD4 ValHoyle.com
Val Hoyle
ValHoyle.com

Congressional District 5

Janelle Bynum  CD5 JanelleBynum.com
Janelle Bynum
JanelleBynum.com

Congressional District 6

Andrea Salinas CD6 AndreaSalinasForOregon.com
Andrea Salinas
AndreaSalinasForOregon.com 
 

AFT-Oregon Endorsed Statewide Candidates

Secretary of State

Tobias Read, Secretary of State, Democrat TobiasRead.com
Tobias Read, Democrat
TobiasRead.com

Attorney General

Dan Rayfield, Attorney General, Democrat DanRayfield.com
Dan Rayfield, Democrat
DanRayfield.com

Treasurer

Mary King, Treasurer, Working Families Party MaryKingWFP.com
Mary King, Working Families Party
MaryKingWFP.com

AFT-Oregon Endorsed Statewide Ballot Measures

  • Yes on Measure 116 - Creates an independent commission that sets the pay for statewide elected officials (voteyeson116.org)

    • AFT Oregon supports The People’s Independent Commission because it will put everyday Oregonians in charge of setting pay for elected officials, and bring more fairness and accountability to our government. Oregon legislators earn $32,839 annually for full-time work and this low pay keeps many people, including our union members, from serving. Qualified legislators have even stepped down because they could not support their families. Voting Yes on 116 will make our democracy more accessible and more representative.

  • Yes on Measure 117 - Ranked Choice Voting Statewide - (yeson117.com)

    • Right now, voters are frustrated with politics. Between increasing polarization and limited choices on our ballots, voting often feels like choosing between the lesser of two evils. And if you do vote for the candidate you actually like best, it can feel like throwing away your vote if they have no chance of winning. AFT-Oregon supports Measure 117 because it gives you more power to vote for who you want and how you want, and it helps to ensure that our elected leaders are supported by a majority of Oregonians.

  • No on Measure 118 - Oregon People’s Rebate (Read: Oregon Center for Public Policy Opposes Measure 118

    • The Oregon People’s Rebate, would increase the state corporate minimum tax to 3% on business sales of more than $25 million in Oregon. The revenue raised from the measure would be distributed equally to all Oregon residents. On its face, this seems like a sensible policy AFT-Oregon would support, however, its enactment would likely trigger several unintended, damaging consequences like reducing the funding available for education, health and human services and public safety. We recommend voting No on measure 118. 

  • Yes on Measure 119 - Enshrining the freedom of cannabis workers to form a union (voteyes119.org)

    • Some cannabis employers are exploiting a legal loophole to deny their workers the right to form a union. AFT-Oregon supports Measure 119 because it would ensure that Oregon cannabis workers have the same freedom to unionize that nearly every other American worker has. When Measure 119 is passed, workers will be able to collectively bargain for workplace conditions, and enforce safety and product standards through their union contract.

AFT-Oregon Endorsed State Legislature Candidates

The following Oregon House and Senate candidates have performed strong in the Oregon Legislature and proactively built relationships with AFT-Oregon and nurtured our advocacy in Salem. Many of them were endorsed by our federation in 2022, 2020, or even earlier. We are enthusiastic to support them in the general election.

To find your legislative districts, click this link.

Oregon House of Representatives

House District 7

John Lively facebook.com/electjohnlively
John Lively
facebook.com/electjohnlively

House District 8

Lisa Fragala HD8
Lisa Fragala 
LisaFragalaForOregon.com

House District 10 

David Gomberg ElectGomberg.com
David Gomberg
ElectGomberg.com

House District 14

Julie Fahey JulieFahey.org
Julie Fahey
JulieFahey.org

House District 16 

Sarah Finger McDonald
Sarah Finger McDonald
Sarah4Oregon.com

House District 20

Paul Evans PaulEvans.org
Paul Evans
PaulEvans.org

House District 21

Virginia Stapleton, HD 21
Virginia Stapleton
ElectVirginiaStapleton.com

House District 25

Ben Bowman BenForOregon.com
Ben Bowman
BenForOregon.com

House District 26

Courtney Neron CourtneyForOregon.com
Courtney Neron
CourtneyForOregon.com

House District 28

Dacia Grayber DaciaForOregon.com
Dacia Grayber
DaciaForOregon.com

House District 29

Susan McLain SusanMcLain.org
Susan McLain
SusanMcLain.org

House District 30 

Nathan Sosa NathanSosa.com
Nathan Sosa
NathanSosa.com

House District 35 

Farrah Chaichi
Farrah Chaichi
ChaichiForOregon.com

House District 36

Hai Pham, DMD HaiForOregon.com
Hai Pham, DMD
HaiForOregon.com

House District 37

Jules Walters VoteJules.com
Jules Walters
VoteJules.com

House District 40

Annessa Hartman AnnessaForOregon.com
Annessa Hartman
AnnessaForOregon.com

House District 41

Mark Gamba MarkGamba.com
Mark Gamba
MarkGamba.com

House District 42

Rob Nosse RobNosse.com
Rob Nosse
RobNosse.com

House District 43

Tawna Sanchez TawnaSanchez.com
Tawna Sanchez
TawnaSanchez.com

House District 44

Travis Nelson NelsonForOregon.com
Travis Nelson
NelsonForOregon.com

House District 45

Dr. Thuy Tran TranForOregon.com
Dr. Thuy Tran
TranForOregon.com

House District 46

Willy Chotzen HD46 ChotzenforOregon.com
Willy Chotzen 
ChotzenforOregon.com

House District 47

Andrea Valderrama DreaForOregon.com
Andrea Valderrama
DreaForOregon.com

House District 48

Hoa Nguyen NguyenForOregon.com
Hoa Nguyen
NguyenForOregon.com

House District 49

Zach Hudson ElectZachHudson.com
Zach Hudson
ElectZachHudson.com

House District 50

Ricki Ruiz RickiRuiz.com
Ricki Ruiz
RickiRuiz.com
 

Oregon Senate

Senate District 12

Andrea Kennedy-Smith SD12 VoteAndreaKennedySmith.com
Andrea Kennedy-Smith 
VoteAndreaKennedySmith.com

Senate District 14

Kate Lieber KateForOregon.com
Kate Lieber
KateForOregon.com

Senate District 18

Wlnsvey Campos CamposForOregon.com
Wlnsvey Campos
CamposForOregon.com

Senate District 22

Lew Frederick facebook.com/SenLewFrederick
Lew Frederick
facebook.com/SenLewFrederick

Senate District 23 

Khanh Pham
Khanh Pham
KhanhPhamForOregon.com

Senate District 25

Chris Gorsek facebook.com/GorsekForOregon
Chris Gorsek
facebook.com/GorsekForOregon

Local Matching Endorsements

AFT-Oregon also approves matching financial and organizational endorsements for our locals' political action at their request. This year we matched endorsements to uplift city and county candidates and bond measures endorsed by your fellow locals PCCFFAP, HCU, UECGCC, and SWOCCFT.

Portland Community College Federation of Faculty and Academic Professionals

Portland Mayor

Portland City Council District 1

Portland City Council District 2

Portland City Council District 3

Portland City Council District 4

Clackamas County Chair

Hillsboro Classified United

Hillsboro Mayor

Hillsboro City Council, Ward 1

Hillsboro City Council, Ward 2 

Hillsboro City Council, Ward 3

United Employees of Columbia Gorge Community College

  • ✅ Yes on Measure 33-111, the CGCC Bond Measure 

Southwest Oregon Community College Federation of Teachers

Endorsement Process 

The Politics, Policy, Legislation, and Solidarity (PPLS) Advisory Council, a group of fellow AFT-Oregon members from across the state, has established processes to vet and endorse new legislative candidates while we also continue to build relationships with known champions of education. Our endorsement questionnaire and interviews informed candidates about the issues our members care about including the adjunct crisis, public university funding and governance, K-12 workplace funding and safety, PERS climate investments, tax justice, and livable wages, and we asked their thoughts and strategies regarding how they would work to address them. We considered if and how candidates worked alongside union members in bargaining, such as signing solidarity letters for our locals bargaining good contracts (like PSUFA and GTFF). We also considered incumbent candidates' histories of supporting core education issues such as SB 273, HB 2708, and HB 4125 in the Oregon legislature. 

To learn more or get involved in your PPLS Council, click this link

To sign up for our activist and first-alert email list, click this link

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