Keith Wilson leading in race to be Portland’s next mayor

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Keith Wilson is leading in early election results in the race for the Portland mayor’s office, but the result is preliminary.

Wilson, a trucking company owner, has centered his campaign on a pledge to end unsheltered homelessness on Portland streets by 2026. He’s also focused on issues to boost green energy and address climate change. His company, Titan Freight Systems, converted its entire fleet of trucks to run on electricity last year.

As of 8 p.m. Tuesday, he had a considerable lead over his 18 competitors with 63% support compared to 37% for City Commissioner Carmen Rubio after multiple rounds of votes were counted.

Related: See complete local, state and national election results

Wilson addressed the crowd shortly before results arrived, spending time thanking volunteers and supporters — and his opponents in the race.

“I want you to know at this moment before we get those first results that it’s not about me,” he said to a crowd at Old Town Brewing in Northeast Portland. “It has always been about us. So I just wanted to say thank you.”

Minutes later, as Multnomah County Elections reported Wilson’s lead in the race, the crowded room erupted in applause and cheers. Wilson beamed, standing next to his wife, Katherine, as cameras captured the moment.

The results are far from final, as many late-arriving ballots have yet to be counted.

“The first results are in and we’re in second place, guys,” Rubio told cheering supporters at the Sports Bra pub in Portland. “We still have a chance to represent Portlanders and what they care about.”

Across the Willamette River, fellow City Commissioner Rene Gonzalez struck an optimistic tone despite trailing. He held out hope that more votes could go his way, particularly on Portland’s east side, in the coming days. ”We’ve got to count the votes and let the political process play through,” Gonzalez said at an election night party at Kells Irish Pub in downtown Portland. “And then prepare for what’s next, no matter what.”

When asked how he would respond if he can’t catch Wilson or Rubio, Gonzalez said he wasn’t worried. ”We support whoever is going to be the next mayor and create a city that’s thriving again.”

This delay in results is due both to late ballots and Portland’s new voting system. This election is the first using ranked choice voting in Portland since voters agreed to change how the city is governed two years ago. The system allows voters to rank candidates by preference, and it requires different software to count ballots and takes longer to process. According to the elections office, this is why it’s only publishing one report on election night, whereas races that don’t rely on ranked choice voting will deliver several updates.

Multnomah County won’t post updated results until 6 p.m. Wednesday. For the Portland mayor’s race, a winner needs to earn just over 50% of all votes to win.

The way people are voting isn’t the only change for Portland this election. Voters are also electing a mayor and city council to lead a brand-new form of city government next year. In 2022, voters also approved a new governance model, which changed the roles of mayor and City Council.

Under the new format, City Council will triple in size to 12 members and will represent four new geographic districts. Voters will elect three councilors from each district. Unlike in the past, the mayor will no longer vote on City Council — except to break a tie. The mayor will focus primarily on working alongside a new city administrator to oversee city bureaus and craft the annual budget.

The mayor is expected to work closely with the incoming City Council in order to advance policy ideas and reach agreements on administrative decisions.

Wilson has supported several City Council candidates in this year’s crowded race. It’s not yet clear if any are close to winning a seat on council.

Related: Early results for Portland City Council races feature newcomers and familiar faces leading

Wilson said the early results signal to him that his message of ending unsheltered homelessness really resonated with Portlanders.

”I’m proud of Portland because they not only listen to the message, they researched it and then as time went by, they started to believe it ... they believe that we can be a Portland where we don’t leave people behind,” he said. “We’re over the moon.”

Wilson’s senior adviser Cooper Bryant said it wasn’t “a champagne night” yet for his campaign team, but he’s excited by the early returns. Bryant, wearing a camouflage Harris-Walz hat, said Wilson’s success shows that the city’s ranked choice voting system works, since data shows that people who voted first for Wilson’s opponents ranked Wilson second — giving him a boost in the rankings.

“I think it did its job of representing Portland’s desires,” Bryant said. “It’s a beautiful thing.”

Reporters Troy Brynelson and Kristian Foden-Vencil contributed to this report.