| Elections in Oregon |
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The 2026 Oregon Commissioner of Labor election was held on May 19, 2026, to elect the Oregon Commissioner of Labor and Industries, one of five statewide elected offices. Incumbent commissioner Christina Stephenson won re-election to a second term.[1] The election is officially nonpartisan, though candidates can affiliate with a political party.
Commissioner Stephenson was favored to win reelection, yet she managed to outperform her electoral success in November 2022. Although the office is formally nonpartisan, Stephenson, a Democrat, managed to carry over half of Oregon's counties in her reelection campaign, even outright winning Josephine County, as well as flipping Coos and Deschutes counties, which she narrowly lost four years earlier. Despite losing them, she also fell just one vote short of flipping Wallowa County and just 87 votes short of flipping Baker County. Stephenson has become the first Democrat or Democratic-endorsed candidate in any contested statewide election to carry Josephine County, and to carry a majority of the Beaver State's counties, since 2004. It also marks the strongest performance of any Democrat or Democratic-endorsed candidate in any Eastern Oregon counties in a contested statewide race since then.
Candidates
Declared
- Chris Lynch, former bureau of labor and industries investigator[2]
- Christina Stephenson, incumbent commissioner (2022–present)[3]
Endorsements
Results
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christina Stephenson (incumbent) | 595,583 | 63.22 | |
| Chris Lynch | 341,903 | 36.29 | |
| Write-in | 4,535 | 0.48 | |
| Total votes | 942,021 | 100.00 | |
By county
| County[6] | Christina Stephenson Democratic |
Chris Lynch Nonpartisan |
Write-in Various |
Margin | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Baker | 2,233 | 48.92% | 2,320 | 50.82% | 12 | 0.26% | -87 | -1.91% | 4,565 |
| Benton | 16,234 | 71.99% | 6,222 | 27.59% | 93 | 0.41% | 10,012 | 44.40% | 22,549 |
| Clackamas | 61,217 | 60.71% | 39,268 | 38.95% | 344 | 0.34% | 21,949 | 21.77% | 100,829 |
| Clatsop | 6,336 | 63.96% | 3,534 | 35.68% | 36 | 0.36% | 2,802 | 28.29% | 9,906 |
| Columbia | 7,302 | 53.05% | 6,300 | 45.77% | 162 | 1.18% | 1,002 | 7.28% | 13,764 |
| Coos | 8,760 | 53.72% | 7,460 | 45.75% | 86 | 0.53% | 1,300 | 7.97% | 16,306 |
| Crook | 3,278 | 44.28% | 4,077 | 55.07% | 48 | 0.65% | -799 | -10.79% | 7,403 |
| Curry | 3,598 | 56.87% | 2,689 | 42.50% | 40 | 0.63% | 909 | 14.37% | 6,327 |
| Deschutes | 37,630 | 65.20% | 19,906 | 34.49% | 182 | 0.32% | 17,724 | 30.71% | 57,718 |
| Douglas | 12,338 | 47.53% | 13,400 | 51.62% | 223 | 0.86% | -1,062 | -4.09% | 25,961 |
| Gilliam | 247 | 45.91% | 289 | 53.72% | 2 | 0.37% | -42 | -7.81% | 538 |
| Grant | 801 | 39.95% | 1,186 | 59.15% | 18 | 0.90% | -385 | -19.20% | 2,005 |
| Harney | 776 | 39.45% | 1,177 | 59.84% | 14 | 0.71% | -401 | -20.39% | 1,967 |
| Hood River | 4,678 | 72.49% | 1,740 | 26.96% | 35 | 0.54% | 2,938 | 45.53% | 6,453 |
| Jackson | 28,432 | 59.72% | 18,977 | 39.86% | 196 | 0.41% | 9,455 | 19.86% | 47,605 |
| Jefferson | 2,580 | 48.51% | 2,699 | 50.74% | 40 | 0.75% | -119 | -2.24% | 5,319 |
| Josephine | 10,281 | 54.21% | 8,616 | 45.43% | 67 | 0.35% | 1,665 | 8.78% | 18,964 |
| Klamath | 7,172 | 46.12% | 8,307 | 53.42% | 71 | 0.46% | -1,135 | -7.30% | 15,550 |
| Lake | 815 | 38.46% | 1,277 | 60.26% | 27 | 1.27% | -462 | -21.80% | 2,119 |
| Lane | 62,272 | 66.63% | 30,650 | 32.79% | 542 | 0.58% | 31,622 | 33.83% | 93,464 |
| Lincoln | 9,269 | 66.12% | 4,686 | 33.43% | 64 | 0.46% | 4,583 | 32.69% | 14,019 |
| Linn | 14,745 | 48.61% | 15,364 | 50.65% | 222 | 0.73% | -619 | -2.04% | 30,331 |
| Malheur | 2,002 | 45.54% | 2,377 | 54.07% | 17 | 0.39% | -375 | -8.53% | 4,396 |
| Marion | 36,989 | 55.45% | 29,359 | 44.01% | 358 | 0.54% | 7,630 | 11.44% | 66,706 |
| Morrow | 941 | 45.07% | 1,122 | 53.74% | 25 | 1.20% | -181 | -8.67% | 2,088 |
| Multnomah | 128,675 | 79.45% | 32,819 | 20.26% | 462 | 0.29% | 95,856 | 59.19% | 161,956 |
| Polk | 12,691 | 56.26% | 9,732 | 43.14% | 134 | 0.59% | 2,959 | 13.12% | 22,557 |
| Sherman | 188 | 40.34% | 276 | 59.23% | 2 | 0.43% | -88 | -18.88% | 466 |
| Tillamook | 4,611 | 57.42% | 3,367 | 41.93% | 53 | 0.66% | 1,244 | 15.49% | 8,031 |
| Umatilla | 5,585 | 47.71% | 6,058 | 51.75% | 63 | 0.54% | -473 | -4.04% | 11,706 |
| Union | 3,137 | 46.88% | 3,524 | 52.66% | 31 | 0.46% | -387 | -5.78% | 6,692 |
| Wallowa | 1,396 | 49.77% | 1,397 | 49.80% | 12 | 0.43% | -1 | -0.04% | 2,805 |
| Wasco | 3,411 | 55.60% | 2,701 | 44.03% | 23 | 0.37% | 710 | 11.57% | 6,135 |
| Washington | 78,540 | 67.73% | 36,728 | 31.67% | 692 | 0.60% | 41,812 | 36.06% | 115,960 |
| Wheeler | 155 | 38.18% | 246 | 60.59% | 5 | 1.23% | -91 | -22.41% | 406 |
| Yamhill | 16,268 | 57.17% | 12,053 | 42.36% | 134 | 0.47% | 4,215 | 14.81% | 28,455 |
| Totals | 595,583 | 63.22% | 341,903 | 36.29% | 4,535 | 0.48% | 253,680 | 26.93% | 942,021 |
See also
References
- ↑ Pursinger, Geoff (September 11, 2025). "Who's running for office in Oregon in 2026?". Madras Pioneer. Retrieved January 10, 2026.
- ↑ Lugo, Dianne (April 11, 2026). "Incumbent faces challenger in race for Oregon BOLI commissioner". Statesman Journal. Retrieved April 13, 2026.
- ↑ "Who's running for office in Oregon in 2026?". Oregon Capital Chronicle. February 17, 2026. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
- ↑ "About: Our Candidates". Oregon Working Families Party. Retrieved May 11, 2026.
- ↑ "Editorial endorsement May 2026: Reelect Christina Stephenson as Oregon labor commissioner". The Oregonian. April 26, 2026. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- 1 2 Read, Tobias (May 19, 2026). "May 19, 2026, Primary Election Abstract of Votes". Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
External links
Official campaign websites