The 2020 United States Senate election in Oregon was held on November 3, 2020, to elect a member of the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

to represent the

State of Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate,

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic senator

Jeff Merkley Jeffrey Alan Merkley (born October 24, 1956) is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Oregon since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Merkley served as the 64th speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives ...

won reelection to a third term in office. Although this Senate seat was largely expected to be one of the safest for the Democrats, the race received national attention due to the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

nominee

Jo Rae Perkins Jo Rae Perkins (born May 9, 1956) is an American perennial candidate who was the unsuccessful Republican nominee for both the 2020 U.S. Senate election and 2022 U.S. Senate election in Oregon. Perkins lives in Albany, Oregon, and has received n ...

's promotion of the unfounded

QAnon QAnon ( , ) is an American political conspiracy theory and political movement. It originated in the American far-right political sphere in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals known as "Q". ...

conspiracy theory. Furthermore, Perkins had flipped five counties that Merkley had won in 2014 (though only by pluralities in the cases of Jackson, Polk and Yamhill).

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

, incumbent U.S. Senator ''(also nominated by the Oregon Independent Party and the

Working Families Party The Working Families Party (WFP) is a minor political party in the United States, founded in New York in 1998. There are active chapters in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Nev ...

)''

Withdrawn

*Michael David, activist and ethnographer

Endorsements

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

, former chairwoman of the Linn County Republican Party, and Perennial Candidate

Eliminated in primary

*Paul Romero, refrigeration repair technician and candidate for

Oregon's 2nd congressional district Oregon's 2nd congressional district is the largest of Oregon's six districts, and is the seventh largest district in the nation. It is the second-largest congressional district in the nation that does not cover an entire state. The district ...

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

and

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

*Robert Schwartz, dance teacher *John Verbeek, financial executive and nominee for

Oregon's 1st congressional district Oregon's 1st congressional district is a congressional district located in the U.S state of Oregon. The district stretches from Portland's western suburbs and exurbs, to parts of the Oregon coast. The district includes the principal cities of ...

Withdrawn

*Matthew Kulow

Declined

* Knute Buehler, former state representative for District 54, nominee for

Oregon secretary of state The secretary of state of Oregon, an elected constitutional officer within the executive branch of government of the U.S. state of Oregon, is first in line of succession to the governor. The duties of the office are auditor of public accounts, ch ...

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and

Governor of Oregon The governor of Oregon is the head of government of Oregon and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The title of governor was also applied to the office of Oregon's chief executive during the provisional and U.S. ter ...

(running for

)

Endorsements

Results

Other candidates

Pacific Green Party

Nominee

*Ibrahim Taher,

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

, anti-war activist, current member state coordinating committee in the

Pacific Green Party The Pacific Green Party of Oregon (PGP) is a political party in the U.S. state of Oregon, recognized by the Oregon Secretary of State. It is affiliated with the Green Party of the United States. The party has occasionally elected candidates to p ...

''(also nominated by the

Oregon Progressive Party The Oregon Progressive Party is a political party in the U.S. state of Oregon. Originally called the Oregon Peace Party, it was accepted as the sixth minor statewide political party in Oregon on August 22, 2008. This allowed the party to nomin ...

)''

Endorsements

Libertarian Party

Nominee

* Gary Dye, former refinery operator and engineer

General election

Predictions

Endorsements

Polling

Results

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican * Columbia (largest municipality: St. Helens) * Coos (largest municipality:

Coos Bay Coos Bay is an estuary where the Coos River enters the Pacific Ocean, the estuary is approximately 12 miles long and up to two miles wide. It is the largest estuary completely within Oregon state lines. The Coos Bay watershed covers an area of abou ...

) *

Jackson Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Qu ...

(largest municipality: Medford) *

Polk Polk may refer to: People * James K. Polk, 11th president of the United States * Polk (name), other people with the name Places *Polk (CTA), a train station in Chicago, Illinois * Polk, Illinois, an unincorporated community * Polk, Missouri ...

(largest municipality: West Salem) * Yamhill (largest municipality: McMinnville)

Notes

; General

References

External links

* * * (State affiliate of the U.S.

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV or the League) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan political organization in the United States. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include registering voters, providing voter information, and advocating for vot ...

) * ;Official campaign websites
Jeff Merkley (D) for Senate

Jo Rae Perkins (R) for Senate

Ibrahim Taher (G) for Senate
{{Elections in Oregon footer

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...