At the East Portland Community Center, US President Joe Biden addressed a crowd of about 100 people while highlighting the Democratic Party’s most recent victories in health care legislation.

His congratulations and joy were contagious, and he showed no signs of the worry that many Democratic leaders in Oregon are experiencing in light of the upcoming tight fight for governor.

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They hoped that Biden’s visit would encourage voters to support Democrat Tina Kotek, who is now tied with Republican Christine Drazan in the polls while unaffiliated candidate Betsy Johnson attracts support.

Who is Tina Kotek?

American politician Tina Kotek, born on September 30, 1966, held the position of speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives from 2013 to 2022. Currently, she is the Democratic candidate for governor of Oregon in the 2022 election.

Before running for governor, Kotek held the record for the longest tenure as speaker of the house in Oregon history and was the first openly lesbian to hold the position.

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Kotek was a public policy advocate for the Oregon Food Bank before she was elected to government and previously served as the policy director of Children First for Oregon. During the budget crisis of 2002, she co-chaired the Human Services Coalition of Oregon and the Governor’s Medicaid Advisory Committee.

Kotek announced her candidacy for governor in the 2022 election for governor of Oregon on September 1, 2021. In the Democratic primary, Tobias Read, the state treasurer, was her main rival. On May 17, 2022, she won the Democratic primary.

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Since 2005, Kotek and her wife, Aimee Kotek Wilson, have resided in Portland, Oregon’s Kenton area. Kotek was the first lesbian speaker of a state house and one of the first openly LGBT members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly.

The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, which offers financial and strategic support, has endorsed her election campaigns. Kotek attends an Episcopal church and identifies as a lapsed Catholic.