Democrats Favor Janelle Bynum in Bid to Flip Oregon Congressional Seat

In one of the most closely watched congressional races in the country, Democrats in Oregon have chosen State Representative Janelle Bynum to challenge the Republican incumbent, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, according to The Associated Press.

Ms. Chavez-DeRemer, who did not face a challenger in the primary, won the state’s Fifth Congressional District seat two years ago — becoming one of 17 Republicans in districts around the country where President Biden prevailed in the 2020 presidential race.

Democratic voters had a choice between two candidates who had previously competed against Ms. Chavez-DeRemer. Ms. Bynum, a state lawmaker who beat Ms. Chavez-Deremer in two races for the State House, was running with the support of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee as the party looks to win control of the U.S. House.

With votes still left to be counted in the primarily mail-voting state, Ms. Bynum carried 70 percent of the vote as of Tuesday night. Oregon’s Fifth Congressional District stretches from the suburbs of Portland across the Cascade mountains to the city of Bend.

Ms. Bynum’s primary opponent, Jamie McLeod-Skinner, was a progressive who knocked out the longtime Democratic representative Kurt Schrader in the 2022 primary but then lost to Ms. Chavez-Deremer in the general election.