A general election was held in the U.S. state of
Oregon
Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
on November 8, 2016. Primary elections were held on May 17, 2016.
Federal
President of the United States
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
won the state's seven electoral votes.
United States House of Representatives
All five of Oregon's seats in the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
were up for re-election in 2016. All five incumbents, four Democrats and one Republican, won re-election.
United States Senate
Incumbent
Democratic senior Senator
Ron Wyden
Ronald Lee Wyden ( ; born May 3, 1949) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Oregon, a seat he has held since 1996 United States Senate special el ...
won re-election to a fourth full term in office.
Attorney General
Incumbent attorney general
Ellen Rosenblum
Ellen F. Rosenblum (born January 6, 1951) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 17th Oregon Attorney General from June 2012 to December 2024. She is the first female state attorney general in Oregon's history, and previously wa ...
(D) was re-elected.
Democratic primary
Nominee
*
Ellen Rosenblum
Ellen F. Rosenblum (born January 6, 1951) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 17th Oregon Attorney General from June 2012 to December 2024. She is the first female state attorney general in Oregon's history, and previously wa ...
, incumbent attorney general
Results
Republican primary
Nominee
* Daniel Zene Crowe, lawyer
Results
Independent Party primary
Results
General election
Results
Governor
This election determined who would fill the remaining two years of the term of Democratic governor
John Kitzhaber
John Albert Kitzhaber (born March 5, 1947) is an American former politician and physician who served as the 35th and 37th governor of Oregon from 1995 to 2003 and again from 2011 to 2015. In February 2015, shortly after beginning his fourth term, ...
, who was re-elected in 2014 and resigned in 2015. The incumbent governor was Democrat
Kate Brown
Katherine Brown (born June 21, 1960) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 38th governor of Oregon from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, she served three terms as the state representative from the 13th distr ...
, who succeeded to the governor's office as
Oregon Secretary of State
The secretary of state of Oregon, an elected constitutional officer within the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon, is first in the line of succession to the List of Governors of Oregon, governor. The duties of the offi ...
. Brown won re-election; the next gubernatorial election would be in
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
.
Secretary of State
Incumbent
Democratic Secretary of State
Jeanne Atkins
Jeanne Paquette Atkins (born 1949/1950) is an American politician who was the 25th Secretary of State of Oregon, having been appointed on March 6, 2015, by Governor Kate Brown following Brown's ascension to the state's highest office. Atkins is ...
declined to seek election; she was appointed in March 2015 following
Kate Brown
Katherine Brown (born June 21, 1960) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 38th governor of Oregon from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, she served three terms as the state representative from the 13th distr ...
's ascension to the governorship.
(R) defeated
Brad Avakian
Brad Peter Avakian (born February 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as a Democrat in the Oregon House, the Oregon Senate, and as the state's nonpartisan elected Labor Commissioner.
He was appointed Labor Commissioner by Governor Te ...
(D), to become the first (and as of 2024, only) Republican to win a statewide election in Oregon since
2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
.
Democratic primary
*
Brad Avakian
Brad Peter Avakian (born February 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as a Democrat in the Oregon House, the Oregon Senate, and as the state's nonpartisan elected Labor Commissioner.
He was appointed Labor Commissioner by Governor Te ...
, Oregon Commissioner of Labor and Industries, former state senator and representative
*
Richard Devlin, state senator and former state representative
[
* ]Val Hoyle
Valerie Anne Hoyle (née Toomey; born February 14, 1964) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2023. Until 2023, she served as the commissioner of Oregon's Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) (commonly called ...
, state representative[
]
Results
Republican primary
* Sid Leiken, Lane County Commissioner
* Dennis Richardson, former state representative[
]
Results
[
]
Independent Party primary
* Paul Damian Wells, machinist and perennial candidate
Results
[
]
Other candidates
* Sharon Durbin, candidate for U.S. House District 2 in 2014 (Libertarian)
* Michael P. Marsh, perennial candidate (Constitution)
* Alan Zundel, former political scientist and former professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the ...
(Pacific Green)
General election
Endorsements
Polling
General election
State Treasurer
Incumbent treasurer Ted Wheeler
Edward Tevis Wheeler (born August 31, 1962) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 53rd mayor of Portland, Oregon, from 2017 to 2025. A moderate member of the Democratic Party, Wheeler served as the state treasurer of Ore ...
(D) was term-limited and successfully ran for mayor of Portland. Tobias Read
Tobias Read (born July 1, 1975) is an American politician who is currently serving as the 30th Oregon Secretary of State since 2025. As a member of the Democratic Party he served as the 29th Oregon State Treasurer from 2017 to 2025. Before that, ...
(D) was elected to succeed him.
Legislative
The Democrats had an 18–12 majority in the Oregon State Senate
The Oregon State Senate is the upper house of the State legislature (United States), statewide legislature for the US state of Oregon. Along with the lower chamber Oregon House of Representatives it makes up the Oregon Legislative Assembly. Ther ...
in the previous session. Of 30 Senate seats, 16 were up for election. In the Oregon House of Representatives
The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly, the upper house being the Oregon State Senate. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of ...
, in which Democrats held a 35–25 majority, all 60 seats were up for election.
Ballot measures
There were seven statewide Oregon ballot measures on the November 2016 ballot:Voter's Pamphlets: Oregon General Election, November 8, 2016
Oregon Secretary of State
The secretary of state of Oregon, an elected constitutional officer within the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon, is first in the line of succession to the List of Governors of Oregon, governor. The duties of the offi ...
.
* Measure 94 — Amends Constitution: Eliminates mandatory retirement age for state judges
* Measure 95 — Amends Constitution: Allows investments in equities by public universities to reduce financial risk and increase investments to benefit students
* Measure 96 — Amends Constitution: Dedicates 1.5% of state lottery net proceeds to funding support services for Oregon veterans
* Measure 97 — Increases corporate minimum tax when sales exceed $25 million; funds education, healthcare, senior services
* Measure 98 — Requires state funding for dropout-prevention, career and college readiness programs in Oregon high schools
* Measure 99 — Creates "Outdoor School Education Fund," continuously funded through Lottery, to provide outdoor school programs statewide
* Measure 100 — Prohibits purchase or sale of parts or products from certain wildlife species; exceptions; civil penalties
See also
* Elections in Oregon
An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated s ...
* Portland, Oregon mayoral election, 2016
References
External links
Elections Division
at the Oregon Secretary of State
Oregon
at Ballotpedia
Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...
{{2016 United States elections
Oregon
Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
Oregon elections by year