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Election Results: School Bond Passes, Smith Ahead of Bernard for County Commission Chair

Canby School District voters have passed a proposed 20-year, $75 million bond issue aimed at improving school facilities and addressing deferred maintenance projects, according to the early and unofficial results of the May 19 primary election from Clackamas County.

Despite a promotion effort that was more muted than originally planned, due to the suddenly uncertain economic realities facing many Canby School District voters in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the measure passed comfortably, with almost 60 percent in favor.

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Thank you, voters for passing Bond Measure 3-559. ✅ pic.twitter.com/yREWSlgoYT

In a statement Tuesday night, district Board of Directors member Sara Magenheimer said the results show “voters continue to trust and invest in our students and our schools.”

“We appreciate the trust of the citizens of Canby,” she said. “They continue to invest in our schools, our students, and our facilities. It is an honor that we will repay by improving our facilities so we can best serve all students in safe and secure schools.”

The bond is not expected to raise taxes. Instead, it is designed to continue the current rates that voters passed in 2004 to build Baker Prairie Middle School.

In other results, Tootie Smith is ahead of incumbent Jim Bernard in the race for county commission chair. In the preliminary results Tuesday night, Smith was leading by more than 4,500 votes.

Tootie Smith. Courtesy Tootie Smith for Oregon.

Smith, a self-described “local community activist who loves Oregon,” is a published author, business owner and hazelnut farmer, who has previously served in both the state legislature and Clackamas County commission.

She ran for the United States House of Representatives in 2014, losing to incumbent Democrat Kurt Schrader, but receiving almost 40 percent of the vote. She left the Board of Commissioners two years later, after losing her reelection bid to Ken Humberston.

“It was a hard-fought campaign,” Smith told the Canby Now Podcast shortly after the first results came in Tuesday night. “I’m very grateful. There’s a lot of hard work ahead.”

But Bernard was not ready to admit defeat.

“I think it’s too early to call,” Bernard said. “I had a race before where I was ahead, and then the next morning, I lost. So, we’ll see what it looks like tomorrow.”

The other two incumbent candidates for county commissioner finished the night with large leads over their opponents.

Martha Schrader defeated challengers Bill Osburn and Evan Geier with nearly 70 percent of the vote, while Humberston took just 50 percent over Mark Shull and Breeauna Sagdal, who split the remainder pretty evenly.

In the quest to replace retiring Clackamas County Sheriff Craig Roberts, the victory appears to have gone to Undersheriff Angela Brandenburg, who had just over half the vote in the early results. Former CCSO Sgt. Lynn Schoenfeld finished second, with nearly 30 percent, while current Lt. Brian Jensen was third, at 13.

If Humberston and Brandenburg ultimately finish with more than 50 percent of the vote, they’ll win their races outright. If not, the top two vote-getters in each race will progress to a fall runoff.

In the Democratic primary for House District 39, which includes Canby, parts of Oregon City and the surrounding rural communities, Tessah Daniel is the likely winner of the chance to challenge Republi Christine Drazan, who has held the office since 2019 and is also the House minority leader. Daniel pulled in nearly 60 percent of the vote over newcomer Julia Hill. All three women are Canby residents.

No further results are expected from Clackamas County Tuesday night. The next update is scheduled to be released by noon Wednesday.

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