Governor Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) joined Oregon’s Republican gubernatorial candidate Christine Drazan on the campaign trail this week amid increasing support for Drazan in the close race.
Drazan has taken the lead in several recent polls, with FiveThirtyEight’s polling average giving her a nearly three-point lead over Democratic candidate and former speaker of the Oregon House Tina Kotek.
“Nobody thought that a Republican governor candidate could win in Virginia, sound familiar Oregon? And we stood up last year and it’s your turn to stand up now,” Youngkin told a group of supporters at a Tuesday rally for Drazan.
Youngkin was the first Republican to win statewide office in Virginia since 2009. If Drazan wins, she will be the first Republican governor of Oregon since 1987.
During his race last year, Youngkin gained the support of parents over their frustration regarding education, and Drazan has pointed out how COVID lockdowns harmed students. At a campaign rally on Tuesday night, she also discussed the issue of homelessness, another key concern for voters.
“Immediately on day one, issue a homelessness emergency that will give me as governor the opportunity, and frankly the power, to be able to align all of the various entities out there, state and local governments, to ensure we look at our 14,000 unhoused folks on our streets and we don’t see them as one big number, but see them as individuals and we help progress them from houselessness to supportive services, houses, stability and the dignity of work,” Drazan said, according to Fox 12 Oregon.
The race is getting national attention as Drazan continues to gain ground with voters. President Joe Biden also visited Oregon last weekend, throwing his support behind Kotek and discussing the Inflation Reduction Act.
“You’ve got the Kotek-Biden agenda at work in Oregon, and you can’t do anything but shake your head,” Youngkin said. “They are agents of chaos. Everything they do makes it worse. … It’s your moment to take back your state, take back your schools, to take back your cities, take back your law enforcement, and to make a statement that just like in Virginia, it will be heard around the world.”
The third person in the race is unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson, who used to serve as a Democrat in the state legislature. When asked by KATU if Johnson would have anybody coming along with her on the campaign trail, her communications director responded, in part stating, “Betsy is running to represent Oregonians, not the national parties.”
I appreciate the humor in your analysis! For additional info, visit: FIND OUT MORE. What do you think?