Iconoclastic U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.,  will be in Eugene and Portland on Thursday to tout Democratic candidates and urge voters to get their ballots marked and mailed in the most highly contested Oregon election in decades.

Polls and forecasts show Republican Christine Drazan in a virtual dead-heat with Democrat Tina Kotek for the governorship. Betsy Johnson is running as an unaffiliated gubernatorial candidate.

Three open congressional seats have developed into tight races, as have several legislative seats on the general election ballot.

Sanders, 81, has run for president twice as a Democrat. In 2020, he had suspended his campaign by the time of the May primary in Oregon, but still received over 20% of the vote.

Though Sanders lists his party designation as independent, he caucuses with Democrats and supports their majority party status in the U.S. Senate.

Oregon is one of eight states Sanders is visiting to boost Democrats prior to the Nov. 8 election. 

His first stop in Oregon on Thursday is Eugene. He will appear with Kotek and Val Hoyle, the Democratic nominee for the 4th Congressional District, at a 10 a.m. at the University of Oregon’s EMU Amphitheater.

Hoyle is seeking to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Springfield, who is expected to attend the Thursday rally. U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, is slated to appear as well. Wyden is running for a new six-year term in the U.S. Senate, but his race with Republican Jo Rae Perkins is not rated by any polls as close.

Also expected in Eugene is U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, who was last re-elected in 2020, beating Perkins, who was also the GOP primary winner in 2020. 

Sanders will then travel to Portland for a second rally at 2 p.m. at the Roseland Theater. Kotek, Wyden, and Merkley are expected to appear there as well. Joining the campaign tour will be U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Portland, and U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Beaverton. The pair of Portland-area U.S. House members are up for re-election in heavily Democratic-tilting districts.

GOP seen as gaining in Portland-to-Bend race for Congress.

The Center for Politics at the University of Virginia released an updated U.S. House forecast that includes shifting the 5th Congressional District race in Oregon from “toss-up” to “leaning Republican.”

In its report, the Center wrote:

“Democrats drew a gerrymander in Oregon designed to get them 5 of the state’s 6 seats, but it just seems like things are going poorly enough for them in the state that they won’t get there. The 2 other open-seat races, OR-4 and OR-6, are also highly competitive, with OR-6 the better GOP pickup opportunity.

“New York and Oregon have become persistent trouble spots for Democrats. The open-seat Oregon gubernatorial race is a very real Republican pickup opportunity, as are 3 open House seats where Joe Biden won by between 9-13 points.

“OR-5, the least blue of the 3 seats, has become a real headache for Democrats, as it appears that former Happy Valley Mayor Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R) has an edge over 2018 OR-2 nominee Jamie McLeod-Skinner (D), who ousted Rep. Kurt Schrader (D, OR-5) by primarying him from the left earlier this year.

“Democratic outside groups have stopped spending in the district, which is more competitive than the Biden +9 topline would indicate — Republican gubernatorial nominees won it in both 2016 and 2018.”

Dollars for Drazan

Nike founder Phil Knight has donated another $500,000 to Drazan’s gubernatorial bid. That brings the total given to the GOP standard-bearer from the richest person in Oregon to $1.5 million. Knight originally backed Johnson, giving her $3.75 million, with the last major donation in early September. With polls and forecasts showing the race increasingly between Kotek and Drazan, with Johnson fading, Knight moved his allegiance and contributions to Drazan. 

Johnson was campaigning in Madras on Wednesday when she was asked about any plan to drop-out of the race prior to the Nov. 8 election. Johnson had a quip ready for her answer.

“I am in this until the fat lady sings,” Johnson said. “And this fat lady hasn’t even tuned up yet.”