Mayor Knudson, Ems stadium and how Eugene-area voters rejected change in primary election
Voters in Lane County largely rejected any major changes in Tuesday's elections.
In almost every Lane County race with an incumbent, the incumbent won, and the proposal to change Eugene's voting method was also rejected.
In the races without incumbents, successful candidates emphasized experience and relationships with current officials:
Kaarin Knudson won the Eugene mayoral race while being endorsed by retiring Mayor Lucy Vinis.
Lisa Fragala won the Democratic primary for Oregon House District 8 while being endorsed by retiring state Rep. Paul Holvey.
Christopher Parosa, Lane County chief deputy district attorney and endorsee of retiring District Attorney Patty Perlow, won that race.
Tim Morris won the race for Eugene Water & Electric Board commissioner while being endorsed by retiring Commissioner Matt McRae.
Eliza Kashinsky won the Ward 1 race for Eugene City Council. Retiring Ward 1 City Councilor Emily Semple endorsed Ted Coopman, but the council as a whole was evenly split between Kashinsky and Coopman, and Coopman promoted himself as a candidate who would bring change to council, while Kashinsky promoted herself as a candidate with experience working closely with city government.
While either Republican congressional nominee would be a departure from current Rep. Val Hoyle, Monique DeSpain won the nomination while being endorsed by four of the five members of House Republican leadership.
The one exception to this pattern was Republican voters in Oregon House District 12, who approved Darin Harbick over incumbent Charlie Conrad. In his celebration message on Facebook Harbick thanked voters for "vot(ing) their values," most likely alluding to Lane County Republicans' position on Conrad, which called him a "traitor to the Republican Party Platform!" for his support of a bill intended to provide access to abortion and gender-affirming care.
On the several tax-related measures on the ballot, the measures' success seemed inversely proportional to the share of money that would go toward sports.
Voters rejected a bond to pay for part of the Emeralds stadium/multi-use facility but approved a bond for Springfield streets and tax measures for fire service in McKenzie, the Mohawk Valley and Row River. And while it won't raise taxes, Dunes City voters raised the cap for when the city has to go through a process, including a public hearing and newspaper notice, to award a contract.
The three school district tax measures on the ballot also followed this pattern. Voters approved the Eugene 4J operations levy meant to renew the current tax rate but rejected the Junction City School District bond measure, which highlighted its use for "schools and athletic facilities" in the ballot caption. The Fern Ridge School District bond measure, where 30% would go toward athletics, was too close to call based on the first week of returns.
Lane County spokesperson Devon Ashbridge told the Register-Guard it was too early to assess total voter turnout compared to prior years. As of Thursday, voter turnout was 36% compared with 47% at the end of the last presidential primary in May 2020.
Alan Torres covers local government for the Register-Guard. He can be reached over email at atorres@registerguard.com or on X @alanfryetorres.
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Primary election reaction: Eugene-area voters reject changes
