Lori Stegmann Leads Amanda Schroeder in East Multnomah County Race

The Gresham City Council appears headed for victory in the Multnomah County Commission contest.

Lori Stegmann, a city of Greshman councilor and a Farmer's Insurance agent, likely will be Multnomah County's next commissioner from District 4, according to preliminary returns at 8 pm.

Stegmann, adopted as a child from South Korea, would become only the sixth person of color to be elected to the county commission, after Jessica Vega Pederson, a Latina state legislator, who won office to the commission outright in May.

Stegmann, who drew 54 percent of the vote, faced Amanda Schroeder, a veterans service representative who help a leadership role in her union. Schroeder drew 44 percent of the vote in partial returns. (UPDATE, 10:15 pm: Those percentages remain the same after two new batches of results from the Multnomah County Elections Office.)

Stegmann won the May primary but failed to cross the 50 percent threshold with 46 percent of the vote compared with Schroeder's 39 percent, pushing them both into the runoff.

Major newspapers, including WW and The Oregonian, endorsed Stegmann in the race, writing that her experience in Gresham government gave her the edge.

Union groups largely supported Schroeder, despite the fact that some members of her own union questioned her leadership as a result of a financial audit that revealed record-keeping violations.

District 4, which cover east Multnomah County, is currently represented by Commissioner Diane McKeel, who's leaving as a result of term limits.

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