State Representative Maxine Dexter (D-Portland) has officially kicked off her re-election campaign for Oregon’s 3rd Congressional District seat, emphasizing urgency and progressive continuity just months after the retirement announcement of U.S. Representative Earl Blumenauer. Her campaign announcement, first reported by KOIN, underscores a deepening rift among Oregon Democrats as multiple contenders vie for one of the state’s most reliably blue congressional districts.

Dexter, who has represented Portland in the state legislature since 2020, faces a crowded Democratic primary field that includes Susheela Jayapal, the former Multnomah County Commissioner and sister to U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, and Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales. Each contender is pitching a slightly different vision for Oregon’s future — Jayapal courting the progressive left, Morales emphasizing pragmatic coalition-building, and Dexter leaning into her record as a legislator and medical professional during Oregon’s pandemic response.

In launching her campaign, Dexter highlighted housing affordability and climate change as top priorities, framing them as urgent, interconnected crises requiring federal leadership. “We have no time to waste,” she said, a slogan echoed throughout her early campaign materials and social media outreach. Her supporters cite her work on healthcare and environmental legislation as key qualifications for the federal post.

Although this race is centered in the Portland metro area, its political reverberations extend across the region, including into southwest Washington’s political awareness sphere. Many residents of Cowlitz County, particularly those who commute into the Portland area or follow Cascadian economic policy closely, will be watching how the district’s future representative shapes cross-border issues — particularly housing, infrastructure, and I-5 corridor coordination.

The Democratic primary, to be held later this year, may ultimately serve as an ideological referendum within Oregon’s dominant political party. With Dexter’s campaign already underway and voter engagement beginning to build, the contest for the 3rd Congressional District promises to be one of the state’s most closely watched races in 2026.

Sources: KOIN: ‘No time to waste’: Dexter launches re-election campaign, faces Democratic challengers