Republican Christine Drason He admitted to Democrat Tina Kotek on Friday afternoon In Oregon’s race for governor.
As of 3:00 p.m. Friday, Drason trailed Codec by 64,000 votes, 47.1% to 43.4%. Codec’s lead widened significantly Thursday after Multnomah County, Oregon’s largest and bluest county. Tabulation of results is complete From the votes received till Wednesday.
Drason, a former state House speaker, said he spoke with Kotek, a former Democratic speaker, on Friday and wished him and the state well.
“I would like to express my deepest gratitude to everyone who supported me and believed in our campaign,” Drason said in a statement. “I want to assure Oregonians that every vote will count and that their voice was heard in this election. Unfortunately, given what we know about pending ballots, the math for a comeback simply doesn’t add up. Although the Oregon gubernatorial campaign has come to an end, I am extremely grateful to all Oregonians who have joined our movement to move our state in a new direction.
The Oregonian/Oregon Live received Drason’s offer two days later was invited Governor’s Race for Codec Wednesday
Drason pointed out in his statement that the election was unusual because there were three experienced and well-funded candidates, and a majority of Oregonians did not vote for a winner. Unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson had 8.6% of the vote as of Friday afternoon. The mechanics of the race are “a call for calmness and content to move forward,” Trason said.
“The majority of Oregonians have voted for someone other than the person who will serve as our governor for the next four years,” Drason said in a video released Friday. “That will be true no matter who wins the race. This is a time for us to come together and realize that our differences don’t have to divide us.
In 2002, Oregon elected a new governor with less than 50% of the vote, with Democrat Ted Kulongoski defeating Republican Kevin Mannix and Libertarian Tom Cox with 49% of the vote.
In 2010, Oregon voters elected Democrat John Kitzhaber to a third term in a race against Republican Chris Dudley with just 49.3% of the vote and a small number of party candidates.
Drason hoped to become Oregon’s first Republican-elected governor in 36 years, and in the fall, several polls suggested he had a real impact. But support for Johnson and Democrats’ strong ground game waned, and he ultimately lost.
Check out Drazan’s message to voters:
— Jamie Goldberg; [email protected]; 503-221-8228; @jameebgoldberg
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