David Brock Smith wins GOP primary for U.S. Senate in Oregon

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David Brock Smith won the Republican primary for U.S. Senate in Oregon on Friday, setting up a November general election matchup with Democratic incumbent Jeff Merkley, according to the Associated Press.

Smith, a state senator, beat a crowded Republican field of seven candidates to take the GOP nomination and challenge Merkley, who has held the seat since 2008. The AP said Merkley was viewed as having a generally safe seat in part because Oregon has not elected a Republican U.S. senator since 2002.

In a statement after his win, Smith said, “This campaign is about putting Oregon first. Fighting for affordable living, safer communities, good-paying jobs, responsible government, and protecting the values that make our beloved state strong,” adding that, “This election is bigger than politics. It’s about restoring hope, opportunity, and accountability for every Oregonian.”

The AP reported that Merkley’s campaign did not immediately respond Friday evening to a request for comment on Smith’s victory. Friday’s Senate primary result came as the last significant race to be called following Oregon’s May 19 primary election.

The AP placed the race in a broader sequence of May contests already decided on election night. It said the state’s high-profile governor race also advanced toward a November rematch, while other ballot items and primaries—including a gas tax measure—had already shaped the political landscape.

The AP said voters overwhelmingly rejected a ballot measure that asked whether to raise Oregon’s state gas tax by 6 cents to 46 cents a gallon. It said the increase and a series of related fees had been passed by Oregon’s Democratic-controlled Legislature the previous year to help fix roads and address a gap in the state’s transportation budget, after which Republicans launched a referendum campaign to put the proposal before voters.

In the governor’s race, the AP reported that Republican state Sen. Christine Drazan advanced from 14 candidates to win her primary. She beat opponents including a fellow GOP legislator who helped lead the gas tax referendum campaign and a former NBA player, and her victory set up a rematch against Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek, who won her party’s primary as she seeks reelection.

The AP said Drazan lost to Kotek in 2022 by more than 3 percentage points in a three-way race that included an independent candidate. It also said Kotek has sparred with the Trump administration and pledged to tackle issues including homelessness, mental health and education, while the state has continued to see rising homelessness and student test scores that have not returned to pre-pandemic levels.

The AP added that in Oregon’s lone competitive U.S. House district, Democratic incumbent Rep. Janelle Bynum won her primary. Patti Adair, a county commissioner, won the GOP primary there and will work to win back the seat for Republicans after the GOP flipped it in 2022 for the first time in decades before Bynum reclaimed it for Democrats.