A seismic shift in political power, or something closer to the status quo, is brewing in Washington County, where voters are being asked to choose who will helm the board of commissioners.
Bob Terry already serves on the five-person panel, but he's giving up his District 4 seat to run against three-term Metro Councilor Kathryn Harrington for the at-large county chair position.
The stakes, as reflected in the spending for the nonpartisan position, are unquestionably high. A Harrington victory could upend the board's nearly three-decade-long conservative tilt.
"Washington County is Oregon's economic engine," said Jim Moore, director of the Tom McCall Center for Policy Innovation at Pacific University. "Whoever wins this race will have a lot to say about the future direction the county takes."
Harrington, 58, was the top vote-getter among four candidates in May's primary election. But she failed to win 50 percent of the vote, setting up the Nov. 6 runoff with Terry, 72.
The winner will succeed Andy Duyck, who in April 2017 announced he would not seek re-election after eight years as board chair and 24 years as a commissioner. Duyck, who was elected chair in 2010, has been a key part of a 3-2 coalition that has leaned consistently toward pro-business positions.
The board will have at least two new faces come January: Pam Treece, who upset two-term Commissioner Greg Malinowski in the primary 58.3 percent to 41.3 percent; and former Hillsboro Mayor Jerry Willey, who beat Kimberly Culbertson 55.1 percent to 44.5 percent in May to avoid a runoff. Dick Schouten and Roy Rogers fill out the rest of the board.
Harrington, a former tech executive in the county, said she supports a number of policies that will aid area businesses, which include such employment giants as Nike, Intel and Columbia Sportswear.
Yet she is clear that the political direction of the county will change under her watch.
"Residents know and expect government to do more than just work with the business community," she said. "Specifically, they want to ensure that government is also helping them have a better quality of life."
Terry, a former nursery owner, cited the county's low unemployment and other positive economic metrics as reasons why voters should elect him.
He responded to Harrington's calls for change with a line right out of the playbook of the late Vic Atiyeh during his successful run for governor in 1981.
"Why do you want to fix something that isn't broken?" Terry said.
One particular disagreement between the two – a Metro bond measure that would raise $652 million to build affordable housing – is emblematic of their larger political disagreements.
Harrington supports Measure 26-199, which would provide Washington County with more than $180 million. The money is needed, she said, to help augment housing that's not being addressed in the private market.
"Folks throughout our region have told us that they know there's a housing crisis taking place," Harrington said. "The county can't do this on its own, which is why a regional solution makes sense."
Terry, who opposes the measure, disagrees, saying the county's current strategy of pursuing public-private partnerships is far more likely to pay off.
"Those partnerships mean we don't have to assume the role of property manager," he said. "Private industry does that for us. Why would we want to take on another 300 or so houses and pay for all that maintenance and upkeep? It makes zero sense."
The candidates also part ways on transportation planning. While both agree that congestion throughout the county leaves most major roads and highways at gridlock during rush hour, their approaches for alleviating it is diametrically opposed.
Terry is a big supporter of the county's Intelligent Traffic Signaling effort, which is scheduled to roll out soon. It's intended to enhance traffic flow through countywide traffic-signal coordination.
But he also holds out hope that at least the northern vestige of the long-planned Westside Bypass can be built. He envisions construction of a major thoroughfare that goes north down to Oregon U.S. 30 along the Willamette River before crossing into Washington near Vancouver.
"There are only four ways in and out of Washington County," Terry said. "And until you put new roads in, that won't change."
Harrington, by contrast, urges the adoption of a regional approach to transportation planning, one that includes pedestrians, bicycles, cars, buses and trains. Focusing solely on automobiles, she said, highlights the shortsightedness of Terry's approach.
"We have over $15 billion in capital needs over the next 20 years when it comes to needed transportation investments," she said. "And that's not including any pie-in-the-sky new highway projects like this Northwest arterial Bob and others talk about.
"One thing that distinguishes me from my opponent is that it's not enough to just have plans. We need to go to the public and say, if you want improvements, it'll cost us all more. I have the track record to do that."
The race is considered one of the most competitive in the state, and campaign spending reflects that.
Harrington, bolstered by $100,000 in loans to her own campaign, has raised $289,000, according to Oregon Secretary of State records. Terry's campaign has raised nearly $210,000 with three weeks to go before election day.
If there's an edge to be found, it could belong to Harrington in the form of voter registration. Although the position of board chair is nonpartisan, Democratic registration in the county is nearly 132,000, versus just over 83,000 Republican voters.
However, a voter-registration figure not lost on either campaign is that of non-affiliated voters. They now number nearly 119,000 – more than enough to sway the election's outcome.
Both candidates are mindful of the wild-card role that non-affiliated voters will play.
"When I knock on doors, people ask me what I am," Terry said. "I just tell them that my goal is to keep going the way we are."
Said Harrington, "Yes, electoral demographics have changed a lot in Washington County. But I've served nearly 12 years in a non-partisan office at Metro. We'll see what the voters decide."
There's a number of municipal and regional contests throughout the county, including:
- Tualatin, where two sitting councilors -- Frank Bubenik and Paul Morrison -- are vying to succeed longtime Mayor Lou Ogden. Two council races, one uncontested, are also on the ballot.
- Tigard, where there's a four-way race to replace Mayor John L. Cook. The ballot includes Councilor Marc Woodard; Council President Jason Snider; Linda S. Monahan; and Marland Henderson.
- Hillsboro, where six candidates are vying for three city council seats. Beach Pace and Eric Muehter are battling to replace outgoing Council President Darell Lumaco in Ward 1; Kyle Allen, the incumbent, is trying to fend off challenges from William Joseph Fields and John Shepherd in Ward 2. Olivia Alcaire is unopposed in Ward 3.
- Forest Grove, where three of the six council seats are up for grabs. Council President Tom "TJ" Johnston, Councilor Malynda Wenzl and Councilor Ron Thompson seek re-election amid challenges from Devon Downeysmith, Karen Reynolds and Solomon Clapshaw, a senior at Forest Grove High School. Mayor Peter Truax is running unopposed.
- Wilsonville, where John Budiao, David Davis, Charlotte Lehan and Ben West are battling for two at-large positions. Lehan, who was last elected in 2014, also served on the council from 1991 to 2008, and was mayor for three of those terms. West was one of the plaintiffs behind the 2014 lawsuit that led the Oregon Supreme Court to
- Cornelius, where John Colgan, Andrew E. Dudley and Luis Hernandez are running for two open seats. Incumbent Mayor Jeffrey C. Dalin is running unopposed.
For a full recap of all Washington County races, check out the Voters' Pamphlet.
—Dana Tims
* Linda S. Monahan and Marland Henderson were inadvertently omitted as Tigard mayoral candidates an earlier version of this report.