Competitive races in Redmond for school and parks boards
Published 7:15 am Tuesday, April 4, 2023
- FILE — A Deschutes County ballot drop box sits in a public parking lot across from Centennial Park in 2023 in Redmond.
There will be numerous competitive races in Redmond this May as seats on the parks and recreation, school and fire boards are up for election.
The deadline to file in Deschutes County was March 16. The following is a list of candidates who have filed and their names will appear on the ballot. Residents may still vote for write-in candidates.
School district
The Redmond School District will have four of its five seats up for election in May.
There is a competitive race for Position 3 between Wendell Otto and Amanda Page.
Page is a flight paramedic and has previous experience on the education committee of the Klamath Tribes, of which she is an enrolled member. Otto is a former Portland schools employee, including as a counselor and physical education teacher. He is a mental performance consultant as well.
A four-year term representing Position 4 is up for grabs between incumbent Keri Lopez and challenger Brad Porterfield.
Lopez is an operations manager for Rogue Builders construction company. In her current position on the board, she has served on the policy, curriculum and facilities committees, and on the OSBA rural school board advisory and appeals subcommittees. Porterfield is executive director of the Redmond-based Latino Community Association. He also serves on the Redmond Parks Committee and Central Oregon Health Council.
Position 5 will be a competitive race between incumbent Liz Goodrich and challenger John Campbell.
In addition to her school board seat, Goodrich is programs director for the Deschutes County Library and a member of the downtown urban renewal advisory and parking committees. Campbell is a self-employed farmer from Terrebonne.
In Position 1, current officeholder Eric Lea has filed to keep his seat for a two-year term. Lea was appointed to the seat in January. He is running unopposed.
Parks and Rec District
Two positions are also up for election for the Redmond Area Park and Recreation District, both of which have four-year terms.
Three men are facing off for Position 4. Incumbent Zach Harmon has two challengers: David Rouse and BJ Soper.
Incumbent Harmon is a local accountant. Rouse is a retired public works director who spent most of his career with the city of Gresham. Soper has been an organizer in numerous right-wing paramilitary groups, including People’s Rights and the Pacific Patriot Network.
Two people are facing off for Position 5, Louie Arzaga and Lena Berry. Arzaga is a business system engineer with Choice Plus and co-founder of Loop International. Berry is community organizer with Redmond Collective Action.
Fire and Rescue
Two people have filed for two open seats on the Redmond Fire & Rescue board.
John Blanton is running for Position 3 and Earl Fisher has filed for Position 4. Both men are running unopposed.
Election details
The election is May 16.
Voters have until April 26 to register and ballots are sent out that same day. Drop boxes open April 28 in Deschutes County. The deadline to leave your ballot in a drop box is 8 p.m. on Election Day. All mailed ballots must be postmarked by Election Day.