PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Nike co-founder Phil Knight made another significant contribution to the Oregon governor’s race Tuesday when he donated $500,000 to Republican candidate Christine Drazan.
This is the second donation Knight has made to Drazan. He also gave her $1 million on Thursday, Oct. 6.
The most recent Knight contribution was first reported by OPB.
Before that donation, Knight had invested $3.75 million in unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson. He made his final $2 million payment to her campaign in early September, before deciding to back the Republican.
His decision to change allegiance came after recent polls showed Drazan with a strong lead over Johnson.
A nonpartisan poll conducted by Emerson College showed that 36% of Oregon voters are favoring Drazan. Democrat Tina Kotek was close behind with 34% and Johnson was trailing the others with 19%.
According to an OregonLive poll published Sept. 30, 32% of voters said they’re backing Drazan while 31% will support Kotek. Among those polled, 18% said they’re behind Johnson.
Knight has not contributed at all to Democrat Tina Kotek’s campaign, but she leads the candidates in 2022 campaign contributions.
So far this year, she’s raised a total of $24.8 million. Drazan has raised $19.9 million and Johnson has raised $14.3 million.