Senator Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01)

Senator Suzanne Bonamici is running in a special election for Oregon's first district!

Suzanne Bonamici currently serves in the Oregon state senate. Throughout her career as a lawyer, she has been a strong advocate for consumer rights and protections. She spent time working in Washington, DC for the Federal Trade Commission, protecting consumers from predatory and discriminatory lending practices. Then, upon returning to Oregon, she represented small businesses in her private practice. Education advocacy first drew her to state-level politics. She began working as a legislative assistant at the state capitol and decided to run for the state house in 2006. She was appointed to the state Senate and elected to her Senate seat in 2008 and 2010. As a state legislator, she has continued fighting for consumer protections and education. In The Oregonian’s primary endorsement of Senator Bonamici they cited her “record of hard and meticulous work and the esteem she has won from fellow senators and Salem observers.”

WAND Distinguishing Points: On Afghanistan Senator Bonamici says, “I support bringing our troops home sooner [than the President proposes] but responsibly. We should maintain diplomatic and humanitarian efforts.” As a member of Congress she will continue to fight for consumer protections and education, as well as job creation and economic recovery.

The Seat: The seat in Oregon’s first district opened up when Congressman David Wu resigned. The first district is in the northwest corner of the state. Senator Bonamici has two serious male opponents in the Democratic primary but polls show her with a significant lead. Early voting for the primary has already begun and concludes on November 8. The general election will be held on January 31, 2012.

Although the probable Republican candidate is trying to paint himself as a moderate, he has spoken out in opposition to arms control treaties. In 2010 he spoke about the need to elect more Republicans to the Senate to defeat the New START Treaty. This seat is a great opportunity to elect an additional woman to Congress and to defeat a candidate who strongly opposes WAND’s priorities.