Democratic Oregon gubernatorial candidate Tina Kotek held off Republican Christine Drazan in a surprisingly close race in a deep blue state.
The race gained national attention in recent months with polling consistently showing Drazan and Kotek neck-and-neck as they battled over gender and sexuality topics being taught in schools, campaign financing, crime and Oregon’s economy.
The Fox News Power Rankings listed the race as a tossup.
The results were heavily influence by independent candidate and former Democrat Betsy Johnson, who grabbed more than 8% of the vote and appeared to take a sizable chunk of support from Kotek.
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FILE: Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tina Kotek speaks to supporters in Portland, Ore., after she won Oregon’s Democratic primary election on May 17, 2022.
(AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer, File)
Former Oregon state lawmaker Christine Drazan, seen in a TV campaign ad, is her state’s 2022 GOP gubernatorial nominee.
(Drazan gubernatorial campaign)
Drazan received support from a number of prominent Republicans across the country, including Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who pulled off a surprising victory in his trending-blue state last year, and took a trip to Oregon to campaign on behalf of Drazan.
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Nike co-founder Phil Knight also waded into the race, donating $1 million to Drazan’s campaign in October after initially supporting Johnson by donating millions to her campaign.
Republican nominee Christine Drazan, left, and Democratic nominee Tina Kotek, middle, listen to unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson speak during the gubernatorial debate hosted by Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association at Mount Hood Oregon Resort in Welches, Ore., Friday, July 29, 2022.
(Jaime Valdez/Pamplin Media Group via AP, Pool)
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The Associated Press called the race.
