Former Multnomah County Commissioner Loretta Smith is running in the upcoming election to represent East Portland on Portland City Council.
Courtesy of the Loretta Smith campaign
Loretta Smith isn’t done yet. That’s one of the reasons the former Multnomah County commissioner said she’s joining the race for Portland City Council Thursday.
“I was always trying to make sure that the community’s voice was a part of everything that I did,” Smith, the only former county commissioner currently running for council, told OPB. “That was the mission of what we started out to do. I want to finish that on the City Council.”
Smith, 59, spent eight years on the county board, where she represented North and Northeast Portland and focused on advocating for communities of color, low-income residents and young people living in her district. She’s now running to represent Portland’s newly-established District 1, which encompasses most Portland neighborhoods east of 82nd Avenue.
This is the first election in which Portland councilors will be elected to four geographic districts, as opposed to citywide seats, as part of a voter-approved plan to improve representation in City Hall. District 1 is one of the most racially diverse in Portland. Smith is eager for the chance to center historically underrepresented populations in council decisions.
“I’m running to make sure that folks in my district have greater access and input in our local government,” Smith said. “I have a few priorities. But I think my agenda is going to be decided based on the conversations that I have with the constituency in District 1.”
Those priorities include addressing homelessness, gun violence and transportation issues (such as a lack of sidewalks) in the city’s east side.
Smith’s announcement is the latest campaign in her decadeslong political career. She ran unsuccessfully for Portland City Council in 2018 and 2020 and lost a Democratic primary to represent the state’s newly-formed 6th Congressional District in 2022.
Prior to her stint at the county, Smith spent two decades working for U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, overseeing constituent services and federally-funded projects in Multnomah County. After leaving the county in 2018, she started a government relations firm that lobbies for policies on behalf of youth-focused nonprofits at the state and federal levels.
Reflecting on her resume, Smith believes her experience as a county legislator has uniquely prepared her for a role in City Hall.
“I was able to be effective [at the county] because I could write an ordinance on just about anything that we had jurisdiction over,” she said. “And so this is going to be the same at the city.”
The voter-approved plan to create districts also expands the size of Portland City Council and changes the role of council members starting in 2025. Until now, City Council members have both overseen city bureaus and proposed policy. Under the new format, councilors will be solely responsible for policymaking and representing their geographic district — similar to the role of a county commissioner.
As a county commissioner, Smith founded a program that offers paid summer internships to youth — with a focus on youth from low-income households and communities of color. She also helped launch an investment fund for businesses started by people of color and helped stop cuts to a program that provides in-home care for poorer seniors.
Her time on the board was also defined by internal conflict.
In 2017, several current and former staffers in Smith’s office alleged that their boss had been verbally abusive and misused county resources for her own political gains. A county investigation found that the claims of bullying were likely true, though difficult to prove. And a Secretary of State investigation concluded that some of Smith’s county staff may have felt pressured to volunteer for the political events. Smith was fined $250 for the violation.
Smith is currently the only person running for council with experience as a county commissioner. Under Portland’s new governance structure, voters will elect three council members to represent each district. Smith is the 13th candidate to publicly signal their intent to represent District 1 in 2025.
If elected, Smith said she will advocate for the city to open a council office in District 1, to make it easier for residents to reach her.
The city had considered creating in-district offices for councilors, but after seeing the high cost of outfitting the new offices with security and technology needs, city commissioners decided to leave the decision up to the future council. The city’s asset management division also said they particularly struggled to find a good office location in District 1.
That rankled Smith, who rattled off several potential locations for an office.
“It is another example of how the most vulnerable and low-income families, they are an afterthought to the city,” she said. “They always say, ‘We can’t do that for you.’ And it’s ridiculous. So that’s why I’m running… to be able to give some clarity where there is none.”