Homelessness policies, accusations of dishonesty, track records on education spending and support for police separated Democrat Tina Kotek, Republican Christine Drazan and unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson Wednesday during a televised debate sponsored by The Oregonian/OregonLive and KGW.
All three candidates agreed that homelessness is among the biggest issues facing the state and said they would support a so-far bare-bones plan by Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler to ban unsanctioned camping in the city and relocate homeless individuals to large designated camping areas. Wheeler briefed each of the three candidates on his proposal ahead of telling the public about the initiative later this week.
Kotek said Wheeler’s proposal, if enacted, would make it easier for outreach teams to reach homeless individuals and she vowed to hold Wheeler accountable for getting people off the streets. “From what I understand of Mayor Wheeler’s plan, I think he’s headed in the right direction,” she said. “But I’ll be honest, Mayor Wheeler and the city have promised a lot of things. They need to actually make it happen.”
Johnson blamed Kotek for enabling sidewalk camping when she served as House speaker, while Drazan said that Kotek prioritized “almost everything before she prioritized homelessness” and failed to act on the issue. Kotek responded by blaming Drazan for delaying more than $100 million in spending on homelessness and affordable housing by leading Republicans in a walkout at the Capitol during the 2020 session.