Wheeler clinches county chair in landslide

Ted Wheeler defeated incumbent Diane Linn in the race for Multnomah County chair by a wide margin Tuesday.

Wheeler received 70 percent of the vote to Linn’s 22 percent Tuesday night. Fred Meyer employee Terrence Smyth received 8 percent of the vote.

“We’ve built a positive movement for change in Multnomah County,” Wheeler said at his election night party at the McMenamins Kennedy School in Northeast Portland. “The hard work begins now, the campaign was the easy part. Now we get down to business.”

Wheeler, a wealthy businessman, has not held elected office before, but has participated on several city and county committees. His campaign goals include increasing transparency in county government, saving county money through use of open-source software, and working with the City of Portland to secure more funding for county school systems.

“We will build a culture of transparency, openness and creativity, and begin the process of rebuilding public trust in county government,” Wheeler said. “I expect you to hold me accountable for my actions as Multnomah County chair.”

Linn had been perceived as a vulnerable candidate after several political blunders during her five years as county chair.

Since becoming chair in 2001, Linn played a major role in the board of commissioners’ decision to begin allowing same-sex couples to receive marriage licenses in March 2003. The move won her support from gay rights groups. But others were critical of the manner in which the decision was made, saying that meetings leading up to the decision were held in private and excluded County Commissioner Lonnie Roberts.

Linn has also endured criticism for her handling of the Wapato jail. The $58 million jail was completed in 2004, but is currently empty because the county has not found a way to fund its operating costs.

“I’m proud of the decisions I’ve made,” Linn said Tuesday evening. “Elected officials need to have the courage to make tough decisions.”

Despite the controversy, Linn said that her proudest moment in office was allowing same-sex couples to receive marriage licenses.

“It was worth it,” Linn said.

Wheeler’s campaign war chest during the campaign was substantially larger than Linn’s. As of May 5, Wheeler reported having raised $447,000; Linn had received $154,000 in contributions, according to The Oregonian. Linn characterized Wheeler’s campaign as “The best campaign money can buy.”

The county chair presides over the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners and serves a four-year term. The five member board funds and oversees programs such as the county sheriff’s office and jails, health and human services, and schools.

Wheeler compared his campaign for county chair to summating Mt. Everest, a feet he accomplished four years ago ��- to the day.

“I had two emotions when I got to the summit – I was incredibly exhausted and I had a sense of accomplishment,” he said. “I thought I’d never have the opportunity to feel that way again, but I was wrong. I feel that way now. This campaign was much harder, we had to start from ground zero with no name recognition.”

Approximately 150 people showed up to Wheeler’s campaign party to celebrate the first-time candidate’s win over Linn and danced to the Instigators Calypso Orchestra. Geoff Thompson, a 45-year-old volunteer for Wheeler’s campaign, said this was the first campaign he has ever been involved in.

“I’ve lived in Multnomah County my entire life,” Thompson said. “We have some great commissioners, but we need leadership. Diane Linn wasn’t listening to our community, Ted Wheeler was.”