Justin Hwang | |
---|---|
Chair of the Oregon Republican Party | |
Assumed office July 6, 2022 | |
Preceded by | Herman Baertschiger Jr. (acting) |
Personal details | |
Born | 1984 (age 39–40) South Korea |
Political party | Republican |
Education | Cornell University (BA) |
Signature | |
Justin Hwang (born 1984) [1] is an American restaurateur and politician from Oregon serving as the chair of the Oregon Republican Party since 2022. He is the first Asian American and Korean American to serve in the position. He previously served briefly as the vice chair from May to July of the same year. Hwang previously made unsuccessful bids for election to the Oregon House of Representatives and Oregon State Senate in 2018 and 2020,respectively.
Hwang immigrated to the United States from South Korea as a child and obtained American citizenship in 2006. [2] He is the founder of Joy Teriyaki,a restaurant chain in the Portland metropolitan area,and operator of the Fairview Food Plaza. [3] Hwang has lived in east Multnomah County since 2003. [4]
Hwang ran in both the 2018 Oregon House of Representatives election and the 2020 Oregon State Senate election,losing both times to state senator and former state representative Chris Gorsek. [5] [6] Hwang accused incumbent Gorsek as using anti-immigrant language in a mailer sent to voters in 2018. [7] In his 2020 state senate campaign,he was running to represent Oregon's 25th Senate district and focused on school funding for Mt. Hood Community College. [4]
Hwang became the chair of the Oregon Republican Party in July 2022 after briefly serving as the vice chair since May 2022. [8] His incumbency was preceded by several resignations from positions within the state party,including state senator Dallas Heard and former state senator and Josephine County commissioner Herman Baertschiger,who resigned from the position in early 2022. [9] As chair,Hwang has been critical of both Oregon governor Kate Brown and U.S. president Joe Biden regarding the 2021–2023 inflation surge. [10]
Following the Standoff at Eagle Pass,Hwang signed a letter in support of Texas Governor Greg Abbott's decision in the conflict. [11]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Chris Gorsek | 11,045 | 51.3 | |
Republican | Justin Hwang | 9,658 | 44.8 | |
Libertarian | Heather Ricks | 826 | 3.8 | |
Write-in | 21 | 0.1 | ||
Total votes | 21,550 | 100% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Chris Gorsek | 30,206 | 51.9 | |
Republican | Justin Hwang | 27,882 | 47.9 | |
Write-in | 76 | 0.1 | ||
Total votes | 58,164 | 100% |
The Oregon Republican Party is the state affiliate of the United States Republican Party in Oregon,headquartered in Salem. The party was established in the Oregon Territory in February 1857 as the "Free State Republican Party of Oregon" and held its first state convention on April 1,1859,after Oregon achieved statehood.
The 2008 United States Senate election in Oregon was held on November 4,2008. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Gordon H. Smith sought reelection to a third term. Smith was the only Republican Senator from the West Coast and the only Republican holding statewide office in Oregon. He was opposed by Democrat Jeff Merkley,the Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives,and David Brownlow of the Constitution Party of Oregon. Merkley won by a narrow margin,with Smith not conceding until two days after the election. Merkley became the first Democrat to win this seat since 1960. And since Smith was the only Republican holding statewide office in Oregon at the time,this was the first time since 1860 that no Republicans won or held statewide office in Oregon. Jeff Merkley's inauguration marked the first time since 1967 that Democrats held both of Oregon's United States Senate seats.
Brian James Boquist is an independent,formerly Republican,politician from Oregon. He currently serves in the Oregon Senate representing District 12. He was in the Oregon House of Representatives,representing District 23 in the mid-Willamette Valley,from 2005 to 2009.
Kim Thatcher is an American politician currently serving as a member of the Oregon State Senate for the 11th district since 2023. She previously represented the 13th district from 2015 to 2023,and served as a member of the Oregon House of Representatives for the 25th district from 2005 to 2015. She is a resident of Keizer.
Cliff Stewart Bentz is an American lawyer,rancher,and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Oregon's 2nd congressional district. A member of the Republican Party,he is the ranking member on the House Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee on Water,Oceans and Wildlife and sits on the House Judiciary Committee. He previously served in the Oregon Senate,representing the 30th district in Eastern Oregon. He also served in the Oregon House of Representatives,representing the 60th district,which encompasses Malheur,Baker,Harney,and Grant counties,and part of Lake County,and includes the cities of Baker City,Burns,and Ontario.
James J. Lyons Jr. is an American politician who served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the 18th Essex district from 2011 to 2019,and as chair of the Massachusetts Republican Party from 2019 to 2023.
The 2014 United States Senate election in Oregon took place on November 4,2014 to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Oregon,concurrently with the election of the Governor of Oregon,as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
Dennis Linthicum is an American politician serving in the Oregon Senate. A member of the Republican Party,he has served in the senate since 2017.
Dallas Heard is an American politician. He served as a Republican member of the Oregon Senate from 2018 to 2023. Heard had previously served as a member of the Oregon House of Representatives from District 2 from 2015 until 2018.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Oregon on November 8,2016. Primary elections were held on May 17,2016.
Mark Allen Callahan is an American information technology consultant and perennial candidate. He was the Republican nominee in the 2016 United States Senate election in Oregon.
Ronna Romney McDaniel is an American political strategist who has served as chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) since 2017. A member of the Republican Party and the Romney family,she was chair of the Michigan Republican Party from 2015 to 2017. Since McDaniel's 2017 election as chair of the RNC,the Republican Party has had a net loss of seven governorships,three seats in the United States Senate,and 19 seats in the House of Representatives,and the presidency. In December 2022,Axios wrote that McDaniel "has thus far failed to preside over a single positive election cycle."
Douglas Joseph Steinhardt is an American attorney and politician from New Jersey who represents the 23rd legislative district in the New Jersey Senate,since being sworn into office on December 19,2022. He previously served as the Chairman of the New Jersey Republican State Committee from 2017 to 2020.
Daniel Bonham is a Republican member of the Oregon State Senate. He represents the 26th district,encompassing rural Clackamas County and parts of Wasco,Hood River,and east Multnomah Counties making up the Columbia River Gorge.
The 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Oregon was held on November 3,2020,to elect the five U.S. representatives from the state of Oregon,one from each of the state's five congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2020 U.S. presidential election,as well as other elections to the House of Representatives,elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections.
The 2022 Oregon gubernatorial election took place on November 8,2022,to elect the governor of Oregon. The incumbent governor,Democrat Kate Brown,took office on February 18,2015,upon the resignation of John Kitzhaber. She was subsequently elected in the gubernatorial special election in 2016,and was re-elected to a full term in 2018. Due to term limits,she was unable to run again in 2022.
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 2024 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania will be held on November 5,2024,to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Pennsylvania. Primary elections will take place on April 23,2024. Incumbent three-term Democratic Senator Bob Casey Jr. announced his intention to run for a fourth term on April 10,2023.
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.
The 2022 United States Senate election in Ohio was held on November 8,2022,to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Ohio. Republican writer and venture capitalist J. D. Vance defeated Democratic U.S. Representative Tim Ryan to succeed retiring incumbent Republican Rob Portman.