The four leading Republicans vying to be Oregon’s next governor will face off in their first debate this week.

The Thursday evening debate, hosted by the GOP, is another sign that the race to challenge Gov. Tina Kotek for the state’s top job is heating up as the May primary gets closer.

Dan Mason, the national committeeperson for the Oregon Republican Party, who is helping organize the debate, said he believes it’s one of the more competitive primaries he’s seen in the past 15 years or so.

Both state Sen. Christine Drazan, of Canby, and former Portland Trail Blazer Chris Dudley have experience running gubernatorial races. Drazan ran against Kotek in 2022 and Dudley lost by a slim margin to former Gov. John Kitzhaber in 2010.

Having two former GOP governor candidates is notable, Mason said.

The other leading contenders include state Rep. Ed Diehl, of Scio, and Marion County Commissioner Danielle Bethell. Diehl was crucial in collecting enough signatures to ask voters to weigh in on a gas tax increase.

Mason said the debate will be moderated and the candidates will be asked questions about homelessness and housing, business and industry, environment and forestry and community and public safety. The debate will be held Thursday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. It will be open to the public and people can stream it by signing up through the Oregon Republican Party’s website.

It could be a rare opportunity to see the top candidates square off. Drazan recently announced she would not be participating in the debate hosted by The Oregonian/OregonLive and KGW. Drazan’s decision spurred Dudley to say he would also not participate.

Dudley’s campaign cast Drazan’s decision not to participate in the debate as “running away” from an opportunity.

“Voters deserve to see the true contrast between a career politician and businessman outsider,” Dudley’s campaign officials wrote in a press release.

Drazan’s campaign noted she will be participating in 15 different forums and debates.

“Christine Drazan is the clear frontrunner in this primary,” campaign manager Jim Dornan said in a press release. “We look forward to these debates and forums so she can show voters exactly why she is the only one who can fire Tina Kotek this November.”

But even without the debates, voters are starting to see how Drazan and Dudley might shape their messaging with the advertisement campaigns heating up. Dudley, fueled in part by a $1 million dollar donation by Phil Knight, released a television ad showing him shooting baskets and grabbing rebounds. Dudley notes Oregon is failing when it comes to education and the business climate. He alludes to the fact that he doesn’t have any political experience like the three other candidates.

“Oregon needs something new to win a game,” he said.

Drazan’s advertisement takes a different approach, showing a range of individuals working, from a barista, to someone in a hard hat, with the message that Oregonians are working hard.

“You should be able to trust that your governor has your back and is working for you,” she said in the advertisement. “This is our home and I won’t stop fighting for the Oregon we all know is possible. Because like you, I don’t quit.”

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/04/13/oregon-governors-gop-contenders/