Republican gubernatorial candidate Christine Drazan will hold a meet-and-greet in Philomath next week as part of her campaign to unseat Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek in November.
The event is scheduled for Tuesday, July 7, from 4-6 p.m. at Miller Timber, 24745 Alsea Highway. Members of the public are invited to stop by and speak with the candidate.
Drazan, a state senator from Canby, is making her second run at the governor’s office after narrowly losing to Kotek in a three-way race in 2022. Drazan won this year’s Republican primary in May with 43% of the vote in a field of 14 candidates, defeating state Rep. Ed Diehl and former Trail Blazer Chris Dudley, among others.
The general election, set for Nov. 3, will mark Oregon’s first gubernatorial rematch since 1978.
A lifelong Oregonian, Drazan grew up in Klamath Falls, where she says she watched the decline of the timber industry affect families in her community. She graduated from George Fox University and served on her local school board’s budget committee before entering state politics. She was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives in 2018 and rose to House Republican Leader before moving to the state Senate last fall, filling the seat vacated by Sen. Daniel Bonham, R-The Dalles, after his resignation for a federal appointment.
Drazan’s campaign has centered on affordability, education and public safety, and she has been touring the state to meet with voters ahead of the fall election.
Oregon has not elected a GOP governor since 1982, but Republicans see an opening this cycle amid what the party describes as growing discontent with Kotek’s handling of issues.