Andy Olson (born November 6, 1952) is a
Republican politician from the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
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 ...
. He served 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 ...
for District 15, representing parts of
Linn and
Benton counties, including the city of
Albany. Olson served as co-speaker pro tempore in the
76th Oregon Legislative Assembly with
Democrat Tina Kotek due to a power-sharing arrangement in the evenly divided Oregon House.
Early life and career
Olson was born in
Norfolk, Nebraska
Norfolk ( or ) is a city in Madison County, Nebraska, United States, 113 miles northwest of Omaha and 76 miles southwest of Sioux City, Iowa, at the intersection of U.S. Routes 81 and 275. The population was 24,955 at the 2020 census, mak ...
. He earned an
Associate of Arts
An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree ...
in Law Enforcement from
Chemeketa Community College and a
BA in Human Resources Management from
George Fox University.
[
] In 1978, Olson became an
Oregon State Police Officer and was stationed all over the state, eventually serving as Lieutenant and Station Commander in Albany,
McMinnville, and
Beaverton. He retired from the state police in 2007.
[ Olson continues to teach public safety with a focus on leadership and character at Linn–Benton Community College.][
]
Political career
In 2004, incumbent Republican Betsy Close announced that she would not seek re-election in district 15, while simultaneously endorsing Olson as her successor. Olson defeated Democrat Wes Price to win election in November and has since been re-elected six times.[
In February 2018, Olson announced that he would not seek another term in office and that he would retire as of the end of the current term in January 2019. Including his 30 years with the Oregon State Police, Olson devoted almost 44 years to public service.]
Personal life
Olson and his wife Pam have three children and live in Albany.[
]
Electoral history
References
External links
Legislative website
Project VoteSmart biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Olson, Andy
Republican Party members of the Oregon House of Representatives
21st-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly
Politicians from Norfolk, Nebraska
Politicians from Albany, Oregon
Living people
American state police officers
1952 births
George Fox University alumni
Oregon police officers