Senate candidate Drazan takes aim at Democrat opponent, says Gov. Kotek should ‘spend less time obsessing over Trump’ and more time fixing Oregon after heated debate

Oregon – Oregon state Sen. Christine Drazan is escalating her criticism of Gov. Tina Kotek, saying the Democratic governor should spend less time focusing on President Donald Trump and more time addressing problems inside Oregon.

“Tina Kotek should spend less time obsessing over Trump and more time fixing Oregon,” Drazan said in an Oct. 3 post. “But after four years, it’s pretty clear she has no clue how.”

Drazan made the comments while sharing an excerpt from the first televised debate of the 2026 Oregon governor’s race, where she repeatedly criticized Kotek for pointing to the federal government when discussing problems facing the state.

“I’m a little bit tired of her pushing everything off on the federal administration,” Drazan said during the debate. “She is the sitting governor of our state, and the decline that we’ve experienced as a state has gotten worse and worse under her leadership.”

Drazan also argued that Oregon cannot afford another four years under Kotek and said the governor has failed to demonstrate that she can turn the state around.

The Republican challenger has continued focusing heavily on Oregon’s economy in the days following the debate. In another Oct. 3 post, Drazan described the state’s economy as being “in free fall” and argued that Kotek, as the sitting governor, should already be taking action to address the problems she identified.

During the debate, Drazan said Oregon had lost 25,000 jobs and about 10,000 manufacturing jobs, while also pointing to reports of businesses leaving the state for places she described as more competitive.

She argued that Kotek should have immediately embraced recommendations from the Oregon Prosperity Council, a group focused on improving Oregon’s economic competitiveness.

“As Governor, I will be our state’s chief prosperity officer,” Drazan said. “I will let everybody know, Oregon is open for business.”

The economy was one of several major issues discussed during the Oct. 1 debate at the University of Oregon in Eugene. Kotek and Drazan also clashed over affordability, data centers, housing, education, wildfire policy and the Trump administration.

Drazan argued that Oregon needs more jobs to maintain stable families and provide funding for public services. She said changing the state’s reputation, addressing taxes and reducing regulatory burdens would be necessary to improve the economy.

Kotek offered a different assessment during the debate, defending her economic policies and pointing to measures including the state’s POWER Act, which shifts some costs associated with rising electricity demand onto large energy users such as data centers. Kotek has also called for a moratorium on new data center development and said new facilities should comply with state requirements involving clean energy, union labor and community benefits.

Photo Courtesy – Oregon Governor Tina Kotek via X

The candidates have also clashed over housing and affordability. Drazan criticized Kotek’s housing record and argued that Oregon has experienced historically low levels of housing production. Kotek countered that housing starts had increased and pointed to efforts to streamline permitting and reduce red tape.

Their first debate was notably contentious, with both candidates accusing the other of misrepresenting their records and positions. The Oregon Capital Chronicle reported that several claims made during the debate were misleading or inaccurate, including statements involving voting, data centers, agriculture policy and the events surrounding Trump’s attempted deployment of the National Guard to Portland.

Trump was also a recurring subject during the debate. Kotek repeatedly attempted to connect Drazan to the Trump administration, while Drazan argued that Kotek was using Trump as a distraction from her own record as governor. OPB similarly described the candidates as sticking to familiar themes, with Kotek focusing on Trump and Drazan portraying Kotek as unwilling to run on her own record.

Drazan has continued that message in her latest posts. In an Oct. 6 statement, she again attacked Kotek’s economic record, claiming the governor had pushed Oregon’s business climate toward the bottom of the country.

“Kotek’s economic record is a disaster,” Drazan said. “She drove our business climate into the bottom 8 by treating job creators like they’re the enemy.”

Drazan said that, if elected, she would instead seek to make Oregon a place where businesses and innovation are welcomed.

The 2026 contest is a rematch of the 2022 governor’s race, when Kotek defeated Drazan by roughly three percentage points. The two candidates are expected to continue making the state’s economy, affordability and the role of the federal government major issues as the November election approaches.