Ann Lininger will replace Chris Garrett in the state House of Representatives.
The combined Clackamas and Multnomah counties boards met in Lake Oswego to appoint one of three candidates chosen by the state Democratic Party before the February session begins. Garrett left the Legislature when Gov. John Kitzhaber appointed him to the Oregon Court of Appeals.
Because Garrett is a Democrat, his replacement must also be a Democrat.
Three of the 10 commissioners
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Ann Lininger will replace Chris Garrett in the state House of Representatives.
The combined Clackamas and Multnomah counties boards met in Lake Oswego to appoint one of three candidates chosen by the state Democratic Party before the February session begins. Garrett left the Legislature when Gov. John Kitzhaber appointed him to the Oregon Court of Appeals.
Because Garrett is a Democrat, his replacement must also be a Democrat.
Three of the 10 commissioners preferred Sonya Fischer, an attorney and people with disabilities advocate. However, Clackamas County Commissioner John Ludlow, who presided over the meeting, suggested that they all vote for Lininger when it was apparent she had enough votes to win the seat. The vote was then unanimous for Lininger.
Ludlow was one of the commissioners who wanted Fischer, along with Clackamas County Commissioners Martha Schrader and Tootie Smith.
Lininger served was appointed to a Clackamas County commissioner seat in 2008, and served until 2012 when she chose not to run for re-election.
She now works part-time for Oregon Iron Works as the company’s general counsel and vice president for compliance and strategic initiatives.
During the question-and-answer portion of the meeting, Ludlow pointedly asked how Lininger would stay objective if the Legislature votes on the Columbia River Crossing, because the company is suing the Interstate 5 bridge project.
“We’ve chosen in this state to have citizen Legislature, which means just about everybody has a job,” Lininger said. “Whether that job is a vet or farmer or bed-and-breakfast owner, there are times legislation affects somebody’s work.”
Lininger was the only candidate who didn’t say she would definitely vote against the Columbia River Crossing. She said the I-5 bridge needs replaced because of its low capacity and disrepair. However, she supports expanding Interstate 205, which is projected to take the brunt of traffic spillover as people avoid tolls on the CRC.
“As I said along with Chair (Lynn) Peterson and the other commissioners in 2010, we need to take a system-wide approach to looking at the CRC and that includes congestion,” Lininger said.
The Multnomah County commissioners all favored Lininger, mentioning her focus on creating living-wage jobs and funding education. “As we think about the economy and the role it’s going to play in the February session, I’m leaning toward Ann with her focus on creating jobs,” said Commissioner Liesl Wendt.
After agreeing to vote for Lininger, Clackamas County Commissioners Tootie Smith encouraged Fischer and Ross to consider running against Lininger in the upcoming election for her seat.
“We’ll be well represented by Ann. She’ll be very passionate and very strong,” Smith said. “But that’s not to say we necessarily need to exclude people.”
Her colleague Commissioner Jim Bernard, though, quickly asked them to instead throw their support behind Lininger, along with the rest of state Democratic Party.
Lininger has already started fundraising for the election, and confirmed after the meeting her desire to run.
“I’m excited to bring my experience as a county commissioner, as a business person, as an advocate for vulnerable people and as a parent of two kids in our public schools to help the state move forward,” Lininger said after the meeting. “I’m really so excited.”
— Molly Harbarger