OCC - Oregon state Rep. Maxine Dexter joins race to replace Blumenauer in Congress
Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Portland, listens during a committee meeting in December 2022. (Connor Radnovich/Oregon Capital Chronicle)
by Julia Shumway, Oregon Capital Chronicle
December 5, 2023
State Rep. Maxine Dexter, a physician who led recent legislative efforts around housing and opioids, will join a growing field of Democrats vying to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer.
Dexter, who turned 51 on Tuesday, told the Capital Chronicle she has planned to run for Congress since she was 20, taking pre-med classes and studying editorial journalism and political science as a first-generation college student at the University of Washington. She knew at the time that someday she would craft health policy.
Now, she’s asking voters in the Portland-based 3rd Congressional District to give her that chance. The district’s demographics mean the winner of the May Democratic primary is all but guaranteed to win a seat in Congress and avoid tough reelection bids – Blumenauer has been in office for 27 years.
It takes longer to pass laws and have influence in Congress than in the Legislature, where Dexter has served since 2020. But she said she’s prepared to build up seniority and influence by focusing on work and taking on a supportive role that would allow her to build trust in D.C.
“I have found that I’ve been able to get to do the things that I wanted to do in the House here in Oregon, and I believe that that attitude of just wanting to get the right policies passed and helping people do that will help me gain influence over time,” she said in an interview with the Capital Chronicle. “The fact of the matter is I listen, I lead and I’m effective, and people will give me opportunities over time, and I’ll wait it out until I get there.”
Dexter served this year as chair of the House Housing and Homelessness Committee, leading efforts to pass a $200 million spending package for housing and homelessness. She pointed to her work on housing, and particularly her strong working relationship with the committee’s vice chair, House Minority Leader Jeff Helfrich, R-Hood River, as evidence of her ability to work effectively with people with different views.
She also championed a new opioid harm reduction law that made naloxone – a life-saving medication that stops overdoses – more available in public schools and other public buildings.
Dexter plans to continue serving in the Legislature at least through the 2024 short session, which begins Feb. 5 and runs 35 days. She’ll focus on passing a bill expanding school-based health centers and providing more money for housing and infrastructure or other needs for cities to approve housing developments.
She’ll work part-time at Portland-based Kaiser Permanente, where she is a pulmonary and critical care medicine specialist, through the primary, making up hours in the latter half of 2024. If elected, she’ll resign.
Dexter will face at least two other Democrats in the May primary: Susheela Jayapal, who resigned from the Multnomah County Commission to run for Congress, and Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales.
Both Jayapal and Morales have the backing of major national figures. Jayapal’s sister, Pramila, is a congresswoman from Washington, and Morales has the endorsement of Stacey Abrams, a progressive organizer who built a national profile during two failed runs for governor of Georgia. Dexter enters the race with endorsements from Oregon House Speaker Dan Rayfield, D-Corvallis, and the national political action committee 314 Action, which supports scientists running for office.
“There is nothing Representative Dexter can’t get done when she puts her mind to it,” Rayfield said in a statement. “I’ve seen firsthand how she listens, leads and gets big things done when others have failed. Rep. Dexter is exactly who we need fighting for our state and our values in our nation’s capital.”
Dexter said her experience as a mother to two teenagers, a legislator and a physician sets her apart from others in the primary field.
“In each of these roles, I hear from people every day about urgent challenges that our community is facing and the things that are impacting our families,” she said. “I’ve proven that I will fight to make sure that good change happens.”
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