City Council Candidate Mingus Mapps Wins Endorsement of Former Mayor Sam Adams

Adams finished third in the race in which City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly is running for reelection.

Mingus Mapps. (Christopher Onstott)

In the May primary for Portland City Council Position 4, the third-place finisher was perhaps the highest-profile candidate.

Sam Adams served as mayor for one term ending in 2012. His effort to resurrect his Portland career against incumbent City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly fell flat. He finished behind Eudaly and academic Mingus Mapps, who advanced to a November runoff election.

Last week, Adams weighed in on the upcoming contest: He endorsed Mapps.

His endorsement is significant in that it might help unify votes against Eudaly, which were split in the primary between Mapps and Adams.

A third of voters cast a ballot for Eudaly in the spring primary; 29% voted for Mapps, a former college professor and onetime city employee; and 28% voted for Adams.

"Mingus listens, is inclusive of ideas," wrote Adams in his announcement. "He exercises patience, restraint and pragmatism that will serve him well in times of discourse. Mingus has the public policy acumen needed to complement the current city commissioner lineup to implement charter reform and make our government more effective."

Much of the criticism of Eudaly has been of her style and her effort to shut down the influence of neighborhood associations at City Hall. That backlash has helped power Mapps' campaign, and Adams' obliquely referenced it.

"I trust Mingus will open the doors of City Hall even wider," he continued. "He will embrace a culture with a diversity of ideas, where more people are at the table to get the work done."

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