Willamette Week Endorses Wilson for Mayor, Offers Six Suggested Rankings for Each District

The newspaper’s picks offer a diversity of backgrounds and perspectives.

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Jamie Dunphy, a music advocate, is Willamette Week’s first pick in District 1

The Willamette Week has unveiled its 2024 city endorsements. In recognition of Portland’s new voting method, ranked-choice voting, the organization provided their top three picks for mayor and six ranked candidates for each city council district.

Willamette Week’s choice for mayor is trucking executive and Shelter Portland founder Keith Wilson, who they said was the only candidate to offer an acceptable plan to address homelessness. They also suggested voters rank City Commissioner Carmen Rubio second and her colleague Rene Gonzalez third.

In District 1Willamette Week’s top pick is Jamie Dunphy, a live music advocate and former policy director for late City Commissioner Nick Fish. They recommended voters rank Candace Avalos, a sustainability and criminal justice advocate, second, and transportation advocate Steph Routh third. Their fourth choice was Radio Cab supervisor Noah Ernst, followed by neighborhood advocate and Centennial school board member David Linn in fifth. Former County Commissioner Loretta Smith secured the sixth and final ranking.

In District 2Willamette Week’s top pick was labor organizer Elana Pirtle-Guiney, followed by City Commissioner Dan Ryan. Portland Public School Board member Michelle DePass secured the third spot, while small business owner and forensic accountant James Armstrong was ranked fourth. Recovery advocate Mike Marshall took the fifth position, with Mariah Hudson, a communications director for OHSU, rounding out the rankings in sixth.

Olivia Clark is the newpapers first pick in District 4

In District 3Willamette Week’s top choice was former City Commissioner Steve Novick, followed by attorney and criminal justice advocate Phillippe Knab. The third choice was Cristal Azul Otero, a program specialist at the Joint Office of Homeless Services, while former Metro Councilor Rex Burkholder took the fourth spot. The fifth and sixth rankings went to to anti-hunger advocate Angelita Morillo, and recovery advocate Jesse Cornett, respectively. 

In District 4Willamette Week ranked former TriMet public affairs director Olivia Clark as their top choice. Eric Zimmerman, Chief of Staff to County Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards, was their second pick, followed by Portland police officer Eli Arnold in third. City of Portland engineer Sarah Silkie was ranked fourth, with former Ketchikan, Alaska, mayor Bob Weinstein in fifth. Economist and environmentalist Mitch Green took the sixth and final spot.

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