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Portland is facing an historic election involving a new voting system and an unusually high number of candidates. Journalists at The Oregonian/OregonLive and Oregon Public Broadcasting share a goal of ensuring that Portland voters have the information they need to make informed choices, and we also know candidates’ time is valuable and limited.
That’s why the two news organizations teamed up this cycle to solicit Portland mayoral candidates’ perspectives on the big issues in this election. Here’s what they had to say.
For each of the following questions, we asked candidates to limit their answers to 150 words.
About the candidate
Name: Carmen Rubio
Neighborhood: Rose City Park
Are you a renter or homeowner: Homeowner
Education: University of Oregon, BA (Go Ducks!)
Occupation: Portland City Commissioner
Age: 50
Pronouns: she/her/ella
Why are you the best candidate to serve as mayor at this time? Please point to specific accomplishments as part of your answer.
Portlanders need a mayor who will take responsibility for the way forward and use their social capital to bring the city together, not further divide, to change the status quo. A mayor who is going to fight for this city, who is capable of working across diverse perspectives, and be thoughtful and decisive when making tough decisions. This is precisely my leadership style. I will bring vision, strong accountability and meaningful outcomes to our city.
I am proud of what I’ve delivered in one term: from initiating a record level of investments to reduce gun violence and making changes to build more shelters in my first year to, most recently, passing the city’s first-ever Housing Production Strategy. No other candidate for mayor has a record that comes even close to the positive changes I have accomplished in office and during my time as an executive of a large community-focused organization.
What are one or two issues that you’d like to draw attention to or champion as mayor that are overlooked or receiving less attention than they deserve?
There is a lot of focus on public safety — for good reason. And many people agree that we need to right-size our police force for the needs of the big city we are today. But no one else is talking about what that actually looks like. For me, this means recruiting and training a police force that reflects the Portland of today and evolving how we approach public safety. We need a force grounded in community policing, which some call “Democratic Policing” and “21st Century Policing.”
The evidence is unequivocal: community safety is rooted in meaningful connection and trusted relationships. People are safer when they know the officers who are present in their neighborhood, and when they can count on those officers knowing them. Community policing is deeply compatible with Portland’s strong neighborhood system and trusted community organization and businesses that animate our city.
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What specific examples do you have that demonstrate your competence to oversee a city with an $8.2 billion budget?
When I started at Latino Network in 2009, the organization had a big vision and very small budget and staff. It couldn’t yet meet the high community demand — so I set ambitious goals to change that. Over the next 11 years, I was the strategic and steady hand: I left the organization operating in 3 counties, with 140+ staff, and on track to close the fiscal year with $18 million in operating revenue. We finally became the organization we needed to be to serve Oregon’s Latinx community: we launched programs in youth development, rent assistance, family stability, youth violence prevention and civic leadership in response to what our families needed to be successful. Stated another way, our budget reflected the needs of the community it served — just like the city of Portland’s budget should. I have executive experience overseeing large budgets, managing unpredictable revenue, and leading a large, multigenerational workforce.
Carmen Rubio, Portland mayoral candidate, in an undated provided photo.
Courtesy of the candidate
What are your biggest concerns, if any, about the new form of government? What role do you think the mayor should play in it?
I don’t have any deep structural concerns about the new government, other than the omission of a mayoral veto, which on certain occasions provides balance. Regardless, I can’t underscore enough how important the first mayor will be. As an executive leader, I intend to manage with integrity, good judgment, decisiveness and transparency. This means leading with curiosity, thoughtfulness and a learning mindset. With our new form of government, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to redefine our city government blueprint. And we have to get it right!
Portland needs someone who hits the ground running, with the character, temperament and skill to manage high stakes relationships to get the outcomes we need, who’s already proven themselves to be dependable, who is considered but decisive, and has a track record of getting results. This is what I bring to the table and have the accomplishments and reputation to back it up.
How would you work to promote and boost Portland nationally as mayor and reinvigorate people’s sense of civic pride?
We need to remember who we are. We know the status quo is unacceptable, but our fundamentals are strong, and I believe in this city’s capacity for transformation. It’s time to stop pointing fingers and elect a mayor ready to take responsibility for the way forward and be a champion for Portland. For the past three years, I’ve been focused on what we CAN do: developing a stronger shelter system, catalyzing housing, new support for small businesses and more. Solutions are within reach. Investing in small businesses and catalytic development projects that sustain our city, reinvigorating our downtown core, investments in the arts and culture, and reintroducing our city to our metro area neighbors – a mayor who stands up for Portland. These are the things that will bring our city back stronger and more globally renowned. I’m ready to bring Portlanders together to reset the tone and focus on solutions.
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Mayor Ted Wheeler has already warned that next year’s budget will be a difficult one as costs rise and forecasts call for lower revenue. What would guide your decisions in developing a budget, what specific ideas would you explore to minimize service reductions and are there specific areas where you would look to make cuts?
My guidance would start with ensuring our most basic and fundamental city services remain as intact as possible, such as safety services, clean water, trash, etc. Residents need to be able to count on these basic and other services. Next, would be to look at ramping down external contracts and focus on retaining revenue in order to keep any employee jobs as intact as possible. In recent conversations with the City Budget Office, we have also been talking about what’s called “external materials and services.” All bureaus and programs have pots of money to hire external support for specific research projects related to policy development and/or community engagements activities. I think it’s a worthwhile exercise as we change our form of government to do an analysis of those funds – how they are getting spent and if there are opportunities for savings or efficiency.
How can the city of Portland and Multnomah County improve their existing partnership to more effectively address the homelessness, addiction and behavioral health crises?
The answer to this begins with leadership alignment on strategy and funding at the city, the county, Metro and the State for a humane, united, aggressive, and systemic approach. And while it’s not always apparent, the good news is that we have greater alignment today than ever before. And the outcome in the Mayor’s race can either take us forwards – or backwards. Tent bans and congregate shelters without services – as proposed by two of my leading opponents – will not solve homelessness. There are no quick fixes or short cuts here. What will solve homelessness is fully building out a Shelter-to-Housing continuum that works. To be successful, we need shelters that take privacy, possessions and pets into consideration, with on-site services so that people can become stable and ready for housing – no waiting. Along with that comes shared accountability – for every level of government because our respective successes are interdependent.
If elected, you will oversee the police chief. What is your opinion of police bureau priorities and operations and what changes, if any, would you make? Would you push for the city to fund hundreds more police officers than the City Council has already authorized? If yes, where would you find the money?
I am a big believer in community policing and hiring the officers we need to build out a 21st Century Policing organization. My office played a key role in breaking through the impasse on body-worn cameras, so I am strongly focused on a successful citywide deployment. Currently, the bureau has 80 vacancies to fill, plus the estimated 20 that will retire this year. Once the bureau fills these positions, we will have to talk about expansion, capacity and timelines. We also need to know that we have the right mix of officers and first responders in every role. What our city needs, and how we define outcomes, culture and best practices will determine the ideal staff capacity and how we build out our public safety systems.
Related: Listen to 'OPB Politics Now'
Do you favor arresting and jailing people who camp on public property in Portland who have refused repeated offers of shelter, such as the option to sleep in a city-designated tiny home cluster?
First, to be clear, the city’s camping policy isn’t just any shelter bed. The available shelter must meet the needs of the individual. That’s why I believe the revised policy strikes a balance between compassion and accountability. The needs of the individual are centered in the decision-making process.
Have the problems impacting downtown Portland received too much or too little attention among current city leaders? Are there other specific neighborhoods in the city that have not received enough attention?
I support every action we have taken to revive and reimagine our downtown. Our economy and small businesses depend on it. But no neighborhood should be left behind. We need to be responsive to all the city, and with the new Portland Solutions team, I believe we can.
Do you support the decision to use millions from the Portland Clean Energy Fund to backfill budget holes in various city bureaus? Would you seek to continue, expand or halt that practice?
I support funding city climate programs that meet PCEF criteria. The Mayor and the PCEF committee agreed this year for a one-time redirect of interest earned on the funds – I am committed to holding the line moving forward. I made sure the fund itself and Climate Investment Plan were protected.
Do you support a potential change to the region’s homeless services tax that would direct some of the program’s unanticipated revenue to construct more affordable housing? Why or why not?
I do support a change to allow excess funds for affordable housing construction. However, we should only do so after critical services, like mental health, drug treatment and rent assistance, are funded. Otherwise, homelessness numbers increase. But it is my belief we will be able to fund both.
Describe the qualities and experience you will seek in a city administrator. Describe the working relationship you plan to build with the top administrator and their half dozen deputies.
The first administrator must have experience with change management, be a flexible thinker and problem-solver, be trusted by employees who know how the city works, and have strong communications skills with employees, partners and the public. It’s a different job in these first years – it’s important to get it right.