Early returns in Tuesday’s primary election showed Democratic-backed candidates held commanding leads in two out of four Deschutes County Commission races, with two open seats heading to a run-off in November.

In one of the most-watched races, voters appear to have ousted a four-term Republican commissioner in favor of a political newcomer backed by the county’s Democratic party.

The unofficial results signal a political sea change in Central Oregon’s largest county, where the electorate has shifted blue as the population has grown.

The board of commissioners has been controlled by Republicans since at least 2015. But in recent years, voters have ushered in seismic shifts to the county’s government.

In 2022, they approved making the board of commissioners nonpartisan, and in 2024, it was expanded from three seats to five.

The changes fueled historic competition for local offices this year. A record number of 18 candidates entered to run for the four positions on the May ballot, collectively raising over $1 million for their campaigns.

Collins likely ousts DeBone

One of the highest-profile races involved longtime Position 1 incumbent Tony DeBone and challenger Jamie Collins.

Early returns showed Collins was on track to widely defeat DeBone, with a third candidate, Brooke West, garnering a small percentage of votes.

Collins, a climate scientist and former Coast Guard member, is poised to flip the longtime Republican stronghold.

“I‘m just excited to represent every person here in Deschutes County, whether they voted for me or not,” he said from an election night party. “The things that I have been running on are nonpartisan issues -- affordability, tackling our wildfire crisis, and trying to ensure we have enough electricity coming into our county.”

During his campaign, Collins spoke about his public service in the military, his youth 4-H experience and his background with climate science and disaster response.

Fire preparedness and disaster response are top priorities for the fire-prone county. County fire restrictions and burn bans are in place earlier than usual this year, ahead of what some fear could be a destructive wildfire season.

Russell poised to win open seat

Nonprofit leader Rick Russell held a strong lead over Chet Wamboldt in the Position 4 race. The wide-open seat was created by voters when they expanded the size of the commission two years ago.

Russell, a former pastor and executive director of Mountain View Community Development, worked directly with people experiencing homelessness.

“We’ve set a vision out there of being a more proactive commission of really tackling the problems we face, housing affordability, homelessness, wildfire, and water. And to see this kind of response is just incredible,” Russell said over the cheers at a campaign party for Democratic party-backed candidates.

He said that, in office, he wants to focus on tackling community problems.

“These truly are nonpartisan issues. And I intend to be a nonpartisan leader in the same way I have been as a pastor and as a nonprofit leader.”

November decisions

Two Deschutes County races are headed to November, if early returns hold.

None of the six candidates vying for Position 3 appears to have won a majority vote to avoid a run-off.

Lauren Connally and Amy Sabbadini are headed to a November run-off. The race drew a crowd of contenders because sitting County Commissioner Patti Adair is running for Oregon’s 5th Congressional District.

In Position 5, Morgan Schmidt was leading Rob Imhoff, but not by a majority, meaning their race will likely continue to November.

That’s also when Deschutes County will decide whether or not to create geographical representational districts for the commissioners.

Emily Cureton Cook contributed to this reporting.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/05/19/early-returns-show-a-big-night-for-deschutes-county-democrats/