Oregon Governor Race 2022: Drazan Win Sets Up Historic 3-Way Contest

OREGON CITY, OR — Oregon City's Christine Drazan stepped down from the Oregon legislature where she was the Republican leader in order to run for governor. On Wednesday, she took a major step in that direction when she clinched the Republican nomination.

With 83 percent of the vote counted, Drazan won 23.5 percent of the vote, giving her a lead over Bob Tiernan, a Lake Oswego businessman and Republican Party player who had 18.4 percent.

"In the end, it was very close with the vote difference being less than 5 percent," Tiernan said in a statement. "Even with the number of ballots still outstanding, I don't think the numbers will make a difference."

Tiernan said that he "wished Christine good luck in her campaign to lead Oregon in a new direction."

With the primary in the past, Drazan now moves on to the general election in November. She will face Tina Kotek, the former speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives, who defeated State Treasurer Tobias Read for the Democratic nomination.

Also in the race is Betsy Johnson, a former state senator who left the Democratic Party to run as an independent.

It's the first time that the three leading candidates running for governor are women.

Johnson still has to officially qualify for the ballot, which means that she'll have to collect 23,743 valid nominating signatures.