From left to right, Charles Baer, Jamie Collins, Amy Sabbadini, Tony DeBone, Gary Campbell, Brooke West, Samuel Facey, Ron Boozell, Amanda Page, Morgan Schmidt, Chet Wamboldt, Rick Russell, Lauren Connally, Rob Imhoff and Jennifer Letz. Photos courtesy of the candidates' campaign.
Photo Illustration by Saskia Hatvany / OPB
Deschutes County Commission candidates raised over $1 million in cash and in-kind contributions ahead of the May primary election.
The record-setting fundraising comes as four commission spots appear on the ballot, three of which are wide-open seats. Voters in Central Oregon’s largest county have overhauled local political offices in recent years. They elected to make county seats nonpartisan in 2022 and then approved adding more commissioners in 2024.
An increase in political diversity in Deschutes County is likely making these races more competitive and attracting more money to local politics, according to Chandler James, an assistant political science professor at the University of Oregon.
The commission, though now officially nonpartisan, has long been controlled by a Republican majority, even though voters in the most populated areas like Bend and Redmond have shifted blue in recent years. This election could upend that dynamic. State data shows the biggest spenders are an entrenched conservative incumbent facing a Democratic-backed political newcomer.
A challenger doubles incumbent spending
Tony DeBone is fighting to keep Position 1, a seat he’s held since 2010. The four-term commissioner from La Pine has long been supported by the county’s Republican party and real estate industry groups. This election cycle the Central Oregon Realtors Association gave $20,000 to his campaign.
DeBone, a pro-development candidate, told OPB he supports rezoning county lands designated for farming. He also voted to dismantle a diversity, equity and inclusion committee inside county offices last year.
DeBone is being out-fundraised and out-spent by one of his challengers, Jaime Collins, who’s been endorsed by the county’s Democratic party.
Some of Collins top backers include labor unions from across the state and the Washington D.C.-based Climate Cabinet PAC.
Collins bills himself as a disaster response leader with a career as a climate scientist devoted to protecting the land and water.
In March, he told OPB in response to a March candidate survey he wants to “empower our County staff to develop a new, county-wide wildfire preparedness plan that coordinates fuels reduction, defensible space programs, and a renewed focus on evacuation education under one framework.”
Both candidates are pouring money into advertising in local print outlets like EO Media Group, The Source Weekly and The Nugget Newspaper in addition to consulting companies, printing and internet campaign services.
Collins had spent over $192,700 on his campaign run, according to Secretary of State reports accessed on May 12 — nearly double that of DeBone.
A third candidate for this seat, Brooke West, told OPB she hasn’t raised any money and does not intend to.
Voting booths sit ready for voters to use in the Deschutes county office in Bend, Ore., on Oct. 14, 2024.
Kathryn Styer Martínez / OPB
A costly race for an open seat
Challengers for one of the commission’s newly created seats, Position 5, are also raking in donations from across the political spectrum.
Morgan Schmidt, who is endorsed by county Democrats, is backed by unions and interest groups such as The Laborers’ International Union of North America Local 737, the Central Oregon Building and Construction Trades Council, and the Iron Workers District Council of the Pacific Northwest.
Schmidt has centered homelessness issues in her campaign. She has said she hopes to make “unsanctioned camping” a “thing of the past.”
“We must treat homelessness like the public health crisis it is,” she wrote in response to OPB’s candidate survey.
Her opponent, Rob Imhoff, is endorsed by county Republicans. He’s gotten significant campaign funding from Dan Pahlisch, owner of Pahlish Homes, and from senior care facility owner Cole Mack.
Imhoff is looking to increase housing supply “at every level … while protecting the character and livability of our communities,” he said in response to OPB’s survey.
He wrote one of his goals is to direct a majority of county contracts to local businesses.
Sisters Mayor Jennifer Letz is opting out of campaign fundraising. Another candidate for Position 5, Ron Boozell, has also not raised any money, according to the Oregon Secretary of State’s website.
Money in local politics
Raising the most money doesn’t mean that a candidate will win, but it helps increase the likelihood, said James, who teaches political science at the University of Oregon.
And, he added, in local races like those for the Deschutes County Commission, campaign dollars go farther than in large national elections.
But money in politics can turn voters off, a recent poll from Politico and Public First found, indicating that 72% of Americans agree there’s too much money in politics.
Deschutes County Commission winners could be decided in May, if candidates get a majority of votes for their seat. If not, the top two candidates with the most votes in each race will advance to the November general election.
