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United States Senate election in Oregon, 2026

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2022
U.S. Senate, Oregon
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: March 3, 2026
Primary: May 19, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting in Oregon

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Democratic
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Solid Democratic
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
U.S. Senate, Oregon
U.S. Senate1st2nd3rd4th5th6th
Oregon elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

Voters in Oregon will elect one member to the U.S. Senate in the general election on November 3, 2026. The election will fill the Class II Senate seat held by Jeff Merkley (D), who first took office in 2009. To learn more about other elections on the ballot, click here.

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

Note: At this time, Ballotpedia is combining all declared candidates for this election into one list under a general election heading. As primary election dates are published, this information will be updated to separate general election candidates from primary candidates as appropriate.

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

General election for U.S. Senate Oregon

Incumbent Jeff Merkley, Jacob Ryan, and Timothy Skelton are running in the general election for U.S. Senate Oregon on November 3, 2026.


Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Candidate profiles

There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here. You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:

Voting information

See also: Voting in Oregon

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.

You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:


Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Jeff Merkley Democratic Party $4,862,895 $3,549,546 $5,118,910 As of September 30, 2025
Jacob Ryan Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Joe Johnson Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Timothy Skelton Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.
*** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

General election race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[1]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[2][3][4]

Race ratings: U.S. Senate election in Oregon, 2026
Race trackerRace ratings
12/2/202511/25/202511/18/202511/11/2025
The Cook Political Report with Amy WalterSolid DemocraticSolid DemocraticSolid DemocraticSolid Democratic
Decision Desk HQ and The HillPendingPendingPendingPending
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid DemocraticSolid DemocraticSolid DemocraticSolid Democratic
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe DemocraticSafe DemocraticSafe DemocraticSafe Democratic
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Oregon in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Oregon, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2026
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
Oregon U.S. Senate Ballot-qualified party The lesser of either 1,000 signatures or 2% of the number of votes cast for the candidates of that major political party for presidential electors at the last presidential election. Must include signatures from at least 100 electors registered in each congressional district. $150 Incumbents: 3/3/2026, New candidates: 3/10/2026 Source
Oregon U.S. Senate Unaffiliated 22,445 N/A Incumbents: 3/3/2026, New candidates: 3/10/2026 Source


Election history

The section below details election results for this state's U.S. Senate elections dating back to 2016.

2022

See also: United States Senate election in Oregon, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Oregon

Incumbent Ron Wyden defeated Jo Rae Perkins, Chris Henry, and Dan Pulju in the general election for U.S. Senate Oregon on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Ron Wyden
Ron Wyden (D / Independent Party)
 
55.8
 
1,076,424
Image of Jo Rae Perkins
Jo Rae Perkins (R / Constitution Party) Candidate Connection
 
40.9
 
788,991
Image of Chris Henry
Chris Henry (Progressive Party)
 
1.9
 
36,883
Image of Dan Pulju
Dan Pulju (Pacific Green Party) Candidate Connection
 
1.2
 
23,454
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
2,197

Total votes: 1,927,949
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Oregon

Incumbent Ron Wyden defeated William Barlow and Brent Thompson in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Oregon on May 17, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Ron Wyden
Ron Wyden
 
88.8
 
439,665
Image of William Barlow
William Barlow
 
7.1
 
35,025
Brent Thompson
 
3.5
 
17,197
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.7
 
3,279

Total votes: 495,166
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Oregon

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Oregon on May 17, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jo Rae Perkins
Jo Rae Perkins Candidate Connection
 
33.0
 
115,701
Image of Darin Harbick
Darin Harbick Candidate Connection
 
30.7
 
107,506
Image of Samuel Palmer
Samuel Palmer Candidate Connection
 
12.2
 
42,703
Image of Jason Beebe
Jason Beebe Candidate Connection
 
11.3
 
39,456
Image of Christopher Christensen
Christopher Christensen Candidate Connection
 
8.1
 
28,433
Robert Fleming
 
1.9
 
6,821
Image of Ibrahim Taher
Ibrahim Taher Candidate Connection
 
1.9
 
6,659
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.9
 
3,024

Total votes: 350,303
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2020

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Oregon

Incumbent Jeff Merkley defeated Jo Rae Perkins, Gary Dye, and Ibrahim Taher in the general election for U.S. Senate Oregon on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jeff Merkley
Jeff Merkley (D / Independent / Working Families Party)
 
56.9
 
1,321,047
Image of Jo Rae Perkins
Jo Rae Perkins (R) Candidate Connection
 
39.3
 
912,814
Image of Gary Dye
Gary Dye (L) Candidate Connection
 
1.8
 
42,747
Image of Ibrahim Taher
Ibrahim Taher (Pacific Green Party / Progressive Party) Candidate Connection
 
1.8
 
42,239
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
2,402

Total votes: 2,321,249
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Oregon

Incumbent Jeff Merkley advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Oregon on May 19, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jeff Merkley
Jeff Merkley
 
98.7
 
564,878
 Other/Write-in votes
 
1.3
 
7,386

Total votes: 572,264
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Oregon

Jo Rae Perkins defeated Paul Romero, Robert Schwartz, and John Verbeek in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Oregon on May 19, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jo Rae Perkins
Jo Rae Perkins Candidate Connection
 
49.2
 
178,004
Image of Paul Romero
Paul Romero Candidate Connection
 
30.4
 
109,783
Image of Robert Schwartz
Robert Schwartz
 
11.1
 
40,196
Image of John Verbeek
John Verbeek
 
8.1
 
29,382
 Other/Write-in votes
 
1.2
 
4,250

Total votes: 361,615
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Oregon

Gary Dye advanced from the Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Oregon on July 6, 2020.

Candidate
Image of Gary Dye
Gary Dye (L) Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Pacific Green Party convention

Pacific Green Party convention for U.S. Senate Oregon

Ibrahim Taher advanced from the Pacific Green Party convention for U.S. Senate Oregon on June 6, 2020.

Candidate
Image of Ibrahim Taher
Ibrahim Taher (Pacific Green Party) Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2016

U.S. Senate, Oregon General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngRon Wyden Incumbent 56.6% 1,105,119
     Republican Mark Callahan 33.3% 651,106
     Working Families Shanti Lewallen 3.2% 61,915
     Independent Steven Cody Reynolds 3% 59,516
     Pacific Green Eric Navickas 2.5% 48,823
     Libertarian Jim Lindsay 1.2% 23,941
     N/A Misc. 0.1% 2,058
Total Votes 1,952,478
Source: Oregon Secretary of State




Election analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.

  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
  • Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
  • State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
  • Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.


See also: Presidential voting trends in Oregon and The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Cook PVI by congressional district

Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index for Oregon, 2026
District Incumbent PVI
Oregon's 1st Suzanne Bonamici D+20
Oregon's 2nd Cliff Bentz R+14
Oregon's 3rd Maxine Dexter D+24
Oregon's 4th Val Hoyle D+6
Oregon's 5th Janelle Bynum D+4
Oregon's 6th Andrea Salinas D+6

2024 presidential results by 2026 congressional district lines

2024 presidential results in congressional districts, Oregon
District Kamala Harris Democratic Party Donald Trump Republican Party
Oregon's 1st 67.0% 29.0%
Oregon's 2nd 35.0% 62.0%
Oregon's 3rd 71.0% 25.0%
Oregon's 4th 54.0% 42.0%
Oregon's 5th 53.0% 44.0%
Oregon's 6th 54.0% 43.0%
Source: The Downballot

2016-2024

How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:


Following the 2024 presidential election, 59.6% of Iowans lived in one of the state's 93 Solid Republican counties, which voted for the Republican presidential candidate in every election from 2016 to 2024, and 34.9% lived in one of 5 Solid Democratic counties. Overall, Iowa was Solid Republican, having voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016, Donald Trump (R) in 2020, and Donald Trump (R) in 2024. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in Iowa following the 2024 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.

Historical voting trends

Oregon presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 16 Democratic wins
  • 16 Republican wins
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party R R R D R R R R D D D D R R R R D R R R R R D D D D D D D D D D

This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.

U.S. Senate elections

See also: List of United States Senators from Oregon

The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in Oregon.

U.S. Senate election results in Oregon
Race Winner Runner up
2022 55.8%Democratic Party 40.9%Republican Party
2020 56.9%Democratic Party 39.3%Republican Party
2016 56.1%Democratic Party 33.4%Republican Party
2014 55.7%Democratic Party 36.9%Republican Party
2010 57.2%Democratic Party 39.4%Republican Party
Average 56.3 38.0

Gubernatorial elections

See also: Governor of Oregon

The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in Oregon.

Gubernatorial election results in Oregon
Race Winner Runner up
2022 47.0%Democratic Party 43.5%Republican Party
2018 50.0%Democratic Party 43.6%Republican Party
2016 50.6%Democratic Party 43.4%Republican Party
2014 49.9%Democratic Party 44.1%Republican Party
2010 50.7%Democratic Party 42.7%Republican Party
Average 49.6 43.5
See also: Party control of Oregon state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Oregon's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Oregon
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 2 5 7
Republican 0 1 1
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 6 8

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Oregon's top three state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in Oregon, October 2025
Office Officeholder
Governor Democratic Party Tina Kotek
Secretary of State Democratic Party Tobias Read
Attorney General Democratic Party Dan Rayfield

State legislature

Oregon State Senate

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 18
     Republican Party 12
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 30

Oregon House of Representatives

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 36
     Republican Party 22
     Other 0
     Vacancies 2
Total 60

Trifecta control

Oregon Party Control: 1992-2025
Seventeen years of Democratic trifectas  •  No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
Senate D D D R R R R R R R R S S D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
House R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R D D D D S S D D D D D D D D D D D D D

The table below details demographic data in Oregon and compares it to the broader United States as of 2023.

Demographic Data for Oregon
Oregon United States
Population 4,237,256 331,449,281
Land area (sq mi) 95,996 3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White 76.6% 63.4%
Black/African American 1.9% 12.4%
Asian 4.5% 5.8%
Native American 1.1% 0.9%
Pacific Islander 0.4% 0.4%
Other (single race) 4.7% 6.6%
Multiple 10.8% 10.7%
Hispanic/Latino 14.3% 19%
Education
High school graduation rate 91.7% 89.4%
College graduation rate 36.2% 35%
Income
Median household income $80,426 $78,538
Persons below poverty level 11.9% 12.4%
Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2018-2023).
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

See also

Oregon 2026 primaries 2026 U.S. Congress elections
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External links

Footnotes

  1. Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  2. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  3. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  4. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
Val Hoyle (D)
District 5
District 6
Democratic Party (7)
Republican Party (1)