Deborah Kafoury | |
---|---|
Chair of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners | |
In office January 8, 2015 –December 31, 2022 | |
Preceded by | Marissa Madrigal |
Succeeded by | Jessica Vega Pederson |
Member of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners from the 1st district | |
In office January 1,2009 –October 18,2013 | |
Preceded by | Maria Rojo de Steffey |
Succeeded by | Liesl Wendt |
Member of the Oregon House of Representatives | |
In office January 1999 –January 2005 | |
Preceded by | Margaret Carter |
Succeeded by | Chip Shields |
Personal details | |
Born | Walla Walla,Washington,U.S. | August 19,1967
Political party | Democratic |
Relatives | Stephen Kafoury (father) Gretchen Kafoury (mother) |
Education | Whitman College (BA) |
Deborah Kafoury (born August 19,1967) is a politician in the U.S. state of Oregon.
Born in Walla Walla,Washington,Kafoury received her bachelor's degree from Whitman College. [1] She was the chair of the Multnomah County Commission,where she succeeded Jeff Cogen. [2] She previously held a seat on the commission,which she resigned in October 2013 in order to run for chair in the May 2014 election. [3] [4] She noted her work on renovations to the Sellwood Bridge as something she would continue as chair, [3] and pushed for the passage of Metro's 10-year,$2.4 billion homeless services measure. [5]
Kafoury was a founder of the young-voter mobilization nonprofit X-PAC [6] and served three terms in the Oregon House of Representatives,from 1999 to 2005,including a leadership role in the Democratic Party caucus. [7]
She is the daughter of Stephen Kafoury and the late Gretchen Kafoury. She is also the first cousin of Trevor Kafoury,formerly the VP of commercial real estate brokerage CBRE in Portland,Oregon. [8]
In 2008,Kafoury was elected to the Multnomah County Commission. As a commissioner,she worked on efforts to replace the Sellwood Bridge and the Multnomah County Courthouse. [9] [10]
In October 2013,she resigned to run for chair,as required by the county charter. [11] After receiving endorsements from several local newspapers,she was elected Multnomah County Chair on May 20,2014. [12] She took office June 5,2014,and left it on December 31,2022.
In response to the region's housing crisis,Kafoury established a Joint Office of Homeless Services in partnership with the City of Portland. The Joint Office consolidated a number of initiatives under one roof,allegedly focusing on programs such as short-term rental assistance to vulnerable people,transition out of shelter and into permanent housing,and increased capacity of Portland area shelters. [13] Under Kafoury's tenure the Joint Office of Homeless Services used at least $2 million taxpayer dollars to purchase 22,700 tents and 69,514 tarps for the houseless. [14]
At the December 21,2017,Board of Commissioners meeting,she called fellow commissioner Loretta Smith a "bitch" after abruptly ending the meeting when Smith was asking questions. [15] [16]
In 2018,she and the Oregon Nurses Association attempted to get a $2 statewide increase on tobacco the state ballot. The petitioners failed to get enough votes to qualify the measure for the ballot. [17]
Multnomah County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census,the county's population was 815,428. Multnomah County is part of the Portland–Vancouver–Hillsboro,OR–WA metropolitan statistical area. Though smallest in area,Multnomah County is the state's most populous county. Its county seat,Portland,is the state's largest city.
The Sellwood Bridge is a deck arch bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland,Oregon,in the United States. The current bridge opened in 2016 and replaced a 1925 span that had carried the same name. The original bridge was Portland's first fixed-span bridge and,being the only river crossing for miles in each direction,the busiest two-lane bridge in Oregon. The Sellwood Bridge links the Sellwood and Westmoreland neighborhoods of Portland on the east side with Oregon Route 43/Macadam Avenue on the west side. At its east end it leads to Tacoma Street. The bridge is owned and operated by Multnomah County. The original span of 1925 was a steel truss bridge,while its 2016 replacement is a deck-arch-type bridge.
The government of Portland,Oregon is based on a city commission government system. Elected officials include the mayor,commissioners,and a city auditor. The mayor and commissioners are responsible for legislative policy and oversee the various bureaus that oversee the day-to-day operation of the city. Portland began using a commission form of government in 1913 following a public vote on May 3 of that year. Each elected official serves a four-year term,without term limits. Each city council member is elected at-large.
Dan Saltzman is a politician in the U.S. state of Oregon who served as a commissioner on the City Council of Portland in Portland,Oregon,from 1999 through the end of 2018. As of 2017,he had served longer on the Council than any other person since 1969.
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Edward Tevis Wheeler is an American politician who has served as the mayor of Portland,Oregon since 2017. He was Oregon State Treasurer from 2010 to 2016.
Gretchen Miller Kafoury was an American politician,who served in the Oregon House of Representatives,the Multnomah County Commission,and the Portland City Council. She served in the legislature from 1977–82,the Multnomah County Commission from 1985–91,and the Portland City Council from 1991-98.
Jessica Vega Pederson is a Democratic politician in the U.S. state of Oregon. She served in the Oregon House of Representatives,for two two-year terms,from January 2013 through 2016. From 2017 to 2022,Vega Pederson served as a county commissioner for Multnomah County,the state's most populous county. In 2022,Vega Pederson was elected to serve as county chair,and took office in 2023.
Jeffrey Scott Cogen is an American businessman,lawyer,and former politician in the U.S. state of Oregon. From 2016 to 2019,he was Executive Director of Impact NW,a social service and anti-poverty organization headquartered in Portland,Oregon. He served as chairman of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners from 2010 to 2013.
On Tuesday,May 17,2016,an election was held in Portland,Oregon,to elect the mayor. Ted Wheeler was elected after garnering 54% of the primary vote. Incumbent mayor Charlie Hales did not seek a second term.
Jo Ann A. Hardesty is an American Democratic politician in the U.S. state of Oregon who served as a Portland City commissioner from 2019 to 2022. She previously served in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1995 until 2001.
Jim Francesconi is an American lawyer and politician who served on the Portland,Oregon City Council from 1997 until 2004. In 2004 he raised $1.3 million in his bid for mayor of Portland,more than doubling the previous fund-raising record for the position of $600,000,set by Earl Blumenauer in 1992. Francesconi lost the election to Tom Potter,a former police chief who placed strict limits on contributions to his own campaign,and who ultimately spent less than a tenth of what Francesconi did on the campaign.
District 43 of the Oregon House of Representatives is one of 60 House legislative districts in the state of Oregon. As of 2013,the boundary for the district includes a portion of Multnomah County. The current representative for the district is Democrat Tawna Sanchez of Portland.
On May 19,2020 and November 3,2020,elections were held in Portland,Oregon,to elect the mayor.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Oregon on November 3,2020. Primary elections were held on May 19,2020.
The 2020 Oregon Secretary of State election was held on November 3,2020,to elect the Oregon Secretary of State,the highest office in the state after the governor. Incumbent Republican Bev Clarno had agreed not to run for a full term. Clarno was appointed by Governor Kate Brown to replace Dennis Richardson,who died of cancer during his term.
Loretta Smith is an American politician and businesswoman who served as a Multnomah County commissioner from 2011 to 2018. She ran unsuccessful campaigns for Portland City Council in 2018 and 2020. Smith was a candidate for Oregon's 6th congressional district in the 2022 election,a new seat created after the 2020 United States census.
Michael Schmidt is an American attorney and prosecutor. He has served as the Multnomah County District Attorney since August 2020. Originally set to begin his term on January 1,2021,Governor Kate Brown appointed him to the job early,in August of 2020,to replace Rod Underhill,who retired in July.
The 2024 Portland City Council elections will be held on November 5,2024,to elect the members of Portland's City Council. This will be a unique election as it will be the first election under Portland's new form of government,the first without a primary,the first where every seat will be up for election,and the first under a ranked-choice voting system as opposed to a first-past-the-post voting system with a primary.
Sharon Meieran is an American physician,lawyer,and politician. She has served as a county commissioner for Multnomah County,Oregon since January 3,2017,representing district 1.
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