In the 2022 midterms, multiple states held competitive elections for statewide officials around the country. One such example was the state of Oregon, where Kate Brown, a term-limited Democratic governor, ranked among the most unpopular in the country. The Gubernatorial contest, while normally somewhat competitive in most election years, was thought to be even more competitive due to the Republican-leaning environment and presence of a moderate Democrat running as a third-party candidate. The gubernatorial election was the only statewide executive election of 2022, as Oregon holds elections for most of its statewide positions in presidential years.
Election Results Table and Maps
| County | Drazan (R) | Kotek (D) | 3rd | Total | RPCT | DPCT |
| Baker | 6,328 | 1,483 | 940 | 8,751 | 72.31% | 16.95% |
| Benton | 14,658 | 27,128 | 3,533 | 45,319 | 32.34% | 59.86% |
| Clackamas | 102,111 | 92,274 | 20,504 | 214,889 | 47.52% | 42.94% |
| Clatsop | 7,375 | 8,051 | 4,775 | 20,201 | 36.51% | 39.85% |
| Columbia | 13,420 | 8,036 | 5,928 | 27,384 | 49.01% | 29.35% |
| Coos | 18,611 | 9,437 | 3,381 | 31,429 | 59.22% | 30.03% |
| Crook | 10,362 | 2,209 | 1,494 | 14,065 | 73.67% | 15.71% |
| Curry | 7,272 | 4,143 | 1,264 | 12,679 | 57.35% | 32.68% |
| Deschutes | 50,513 | 46,879 | 12,286 | 109,678 | 46.06% | 42.74% |
| Douglas | 37,245 | 12,013 | 5,295 | 54,553 | 68.27% | 22.02% |
| Gilliam | 636 | 147 | 216 | 999 | 63.66% | 14.71% |
| Grant | 3,145 | 576 | 449 | 4,170 | 75.42% | 13.81% |
| Harney | 2,973 | 485 | 376 | 3,834 | 77.54% | 12.65% |
| Hood River | 3,633 | 6,040 | 1,132 | 10,805 | 33.62% | 55.90% |
| Jackson | 56,362 | 39,611 | 8,412 | 104,385 | 53.99% | 37.95% |
| Jefferson | 6,251 | 2,376 | 1,350 | 9,977 | 62.65% | 23.81% |
| Josephine | 27,578 | 11,610 | 3,774 | 42,962 | 64.19% | 27.02% |
| Klamath | 21,962 | 5,968 | 2,287 | 30,217 | 72.68% | 19.75% |
| Lake | 3,282 | 430 | 296 | 4,008 | 81.89% | 10.73% |
| Lane | 72,087 | 95,847 | 15,735 | 183,669 | 39.25% | 52.18% |
| Lincoln | 10,366 | 12,947 | 2,957 | 26,270 | 39.46% | 49.28% |
| Linn | 38,505 | 16,959 | 6,031 | 61,495 | 62.61% | 27.58% |
| Malheur | 6,921 | 1,656 | 610 | 9,187 | 75.33% | 18.03% |
| Marion | 70,741 | 51,238 | 12,871 | 134,850 | 52.46% | 38.00% |
| Morrow | 3,016 | 607 | 466 | 4,089 | 73.76% | 14.84% |
| Multnomah | 72,158 | 265,805 | 28,080 | 366,043 | 19.71% | 72.62% |
| Polk | 21,898 | 15,570 | 4,042 | 41,510 | 52.75% | 37.51% |
| Sherman | 795 | 122 | 117 | 1,034 | 76.89% | 11.80% |
| Tillamook | 6,631 | 5,266 | 2,714 | 14,611 | 45.38% | 36.04% |
| Umatilla | 17,672 | 5,403 | 2,057 | 25,132 | 70.32% | 21.50% |
| Union | 8,695 | 2,580 | 1,269 | 12,544 | 69.32% | 20.57% |
| Wallowa | 3,138 | 1,116 | 343 | 4,597 | 68.26% | 24.28% |
| Wasco | 5,978 | 4,077 | 1,352 | 11,407 | 52.41% | 35.74% |
| Washington | 91,068 | 140,946 | 23,868 | 255,882 | 35.59% | 55.08% |
| Wheeler | 576 | 140 | 114 | 830 | 69.40% | 16.87% |
| Yamhill | 26,385 | 17,899 | 5,144 | 49,428 | 53.38% | 36.21% |
| Total | 850,347 | 917,074 | 185,462 | 1,952,883 | 43.54% | 46.96% |
| Margin | D +66,727 | D +3.42% |
In the primary elections, both major party nominees ran against multiple opponents. Tina Kotek, the prior speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives, emerged victorious against fourteen other candidates with 275,301 votes (57.63%). In the Republican primary, Christine Drazan, the prior minority leader of the Oregon House of Representatives, emerged as the winner against 18 other candidates, taking 85,255 votes (22.99%). A prior Democratic State Senator, Betsy Johnson, ran as an independent in the election, while Donice Noelle Smith and R. Leon Noble, the Constitution and Libertarian party candidates, respectively, also ran. The five candidates advanced to the general election in November.
In the general election, Kotek won the Democratic bases of Multnomah County (Portland) and Washington counties while narrowly losing Clackamas County. This resulted in a net margin of 233,688 votes in the Portland metro. Drazan won the rest of the state’s counties decisively, securing a net margin of 166,961 votes. However, this wasn’t enough to overcome the Portland suburbs – a problem that has long plagued Oregon Republicans,
In the end, Kotek’s margins in the Democratic base areas led her to a 66,727-vote win, enabling her to carry the state by 3.42%. Independent candidate Betsy Johnson pulled in 168,431 votes, meaning that Kotek only carried the state 47%- 43.5%.
