PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Incumbent Jo Ann Hardesty has conceded the Portland city commissioner race to challenger Rene Gonzalez, who is currently leading the election with more than 54% of the vote.
Hardesty announced her concession in a statement sent to KOIN 6 News by her campaign manager Joseph Santos-Lyons on Wednesday.
“Earlier today, I offered my congratulations to Mr. Rene Gonzalez,” the statement reads. “I wished him well in his new role.”
Gonzalez’s campaign also confirmed the commissioner’s concession on Twitter. In the tweet, Gonzalez thanked Hardesty for her service and said that he plans to release more information about his transition to office soon.
“Hardesty just called to congratulate and wish me luck in my new role,” the Tweet reads. “I want to thank her for her service to the city … will have more news on celebration and transition soon.”
Preliminary results show that 114,408 votes have been counted for Gonzalez. Hardesty currently trails Gonzalez by more than 19,000 votes.
“I am proud of the values we represented and the accomplishments we brought to life in Portland,” Hardesty stated in her concession announcement. “My hope going forward is that our city will be a place where people of all backgrounds can thrive, where no one is scapegoated because they are poor. This place we call home is suffering. This is disproportionate and remains rooted in inequitable and exclusion. We have made real progress, and now my colleagues on the council and across our community must shoulder the responsibility to create systems of care. My mission remains to help make it so.”
Hardesty’s team told KOIN 6 that she will not announce this week if she plans to run for reelection in 2024, when elected commissioners and additional candidates are expected to vie for the 12 new city council seats created by Portland’s pending charter reform referendum: Measure 26-228. The measure has received more than 56% of the vote in the unofficial ballot results and is expected to pass.