WASHINGTON (AP) — There were no signs that Republican Christina Drazan was improving in recent vote totals that could have overtaken Democrat Tina Kotek in the Oregon gubernatorial election.
That’s why the AP called for Cotec’s race Thursday night over Drazan and independent candidate Betsey Johnson.
Even without considering votes from regions that favored Kotek, there wasn’t enough room for Drazan to close the gap.
Kotek joined Maura Healey in being elected governor of Massachusetts on Tuesday, making history as the nation’s first openly lesbian elected governor.
Oregon has not had a Republican governor since the 1980s, and statewide elections are usually solidly Democratic.But this year’s competition Replacing incumbent Democrat Kate Brown on a tenured term, Republicans were hopeful and Democrats worried.
President Joe Biden’s campaign For Kotek in the final week of the campaign, Emphasizes the importance of race for Democrats.
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Contact Mike Catalini (http://twitter.com/mikecatalini) and Meg Kinnard (http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP).
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See https://apnews.com/hub/explaining-the-elections Learn more about the issues and factors at stake in the 2022 midterm elections. For AP coverage of the 2022 midterm elections, please visit https://apnews.com/hub/2022-midterm-elections..