More than $2 million has poured into a Rogue Valley state Senate race that could change how Democrats pass taxes in Oregon.
Republican Brad Hicks and Democrat Denise Krause have drawn substantial financial backing as they compete to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Jeff Golden. Independent Clay Bearnson is also running, with a fraction of their campaign resources.
Senate District 3 covers southern Jackson County, including Ashland and most of Medford. But its potential significance extends statewide: Democrats hold just enough Senate seats for the three-fifths supermajority required to pass taxes without Republican support. If they lose this seat without picking up another, they would need Republican votes to pass those bills.
Hicks, the former president of The Chamber of Medford and Jackson County, said he believes that a Democrat-controlled state government has hurt Oregon’s economy.
“We've given one team the reins for decades, and we're in dire shape,” said Hicks. “Let's try something else.”
Krause beat out four other Democrats in the primary. She said her experience would shape her work in Salem.
“I'm not a career politician,” said Krause. “I didn't really set out to do this. I'm a single mom with a 25-year career in healthcare and getting results.”
Krause may be familiar to some voters. She ran for Jackson County commissioner and spearheaded the Jackson County for All ballot measures, which sought to expand the county commission and make it nonpartisan. Voters rejected those measures in 2024.
Bearnson owns The Gypsy Blues Bar in Medford. He told Ashland.news he wants to focus on campaign finance reform, affordability and health care access. He has raised less than $5,000 this year, far less than either major-party candidate.
Different approaches to education
Southern Oregon University is a major economic driver in the district. With SOU and other state universities facing major financial troubles, Krause said Oregon needs to increase university funding. But she’s also thinking about creative solutions.
“I'd really like to look at the possibility of introducing a medical training program for physicians here at SOU to go along in conjunction with the nursing program that's already here,” she said.
Hicks, an SOU graduate, said the state has abandoned its role in supporting higher education.
“If you just continue to make college less and less affordable, because the state's not doing its part, at some point students give in,” he said.
Hicks said universities should take a closer look at their spending. He also wants Oregon to reconsider how it divides education funding between K-12 schools and higher education.
Hicks supports stricter high school graduation requirements, something Republican gubernatorial candidate Christine Drazan has also emphasized.
Oregon suspended its essential skills assessment requirement through the 2027-2028 school year while officials review them. The requirements called for students to demonstrate proficiency in reading, writing and math to earn a diploma.
Teachers and state leaders argued the requirements did not improve outcomes and hurt marginalized students. Students still must earn the required credits and develop a post-high school plan to graduate.
Krause said Oregon could learn from recent changes in Mississippi, where she worked. That state often ranked very low in education but recent changes have dramatically improved outcomes in early reading and math.
“They've made some differences within education,” Krause said. “I really would like to focus on that as well.”
Working across party lines
Both candidates said the current partisan divide is a roadblock to addressing these issues.
Krause said she would work with anyone who wants to help.
“We need to put that all aside and focus on the issues because we are in such a time of crisis in so many areas,” she said. “We really don't have time to deal with that.”
Hicks said the connections he built as chamber president would help him work with Democrats.
“I'll still be a freshman in the minority, which doesn't mean I'm going to pass a bunch of bills and all those sorts of things,” he said. “But it does give me the ability to talk to friends in the other caucus and try to get things done.”
Hicks said he’s reached across the aisle before, working with Democratic lawmakers Peter Buckley and Alan Bates to get funding for what became the Higher Education Center. The building, shared between SOU and Rogue Community College, opened in downtown Medford in 2008.
Big money in a local race
Hicks has received more than $1.4 million dollars in campaign contributions as of October 1, more than any other state legislature candidate in Oregon this year.
The Bring Balance to Salem Political Action Committee has contributed more than half that money, $738,790. It’s bankrolled by Nike co-founder Phil Knight and timber companies.
Hicks said that money won’t influence how he votes.
“We're going to agree on things,” Hicks said. “Where we agree, if somebody wants to pretend like that means somebody bought my vote, what it really means is it was an issue we probably already agreed on, and that's why they're supporting me.”
Krause has raised a lot less, around $776,000 as of October 1. That’s still the third-most of any State Senate candidate. Most of it comes from unions and a campaign committee for Senate Democrats. About 10% comes from donations less than $1,000.
University of Oregon Political Science Professor Chandler James said money is important, but not everything. The district’s partisan makeup and the candidates themselves also matter.
“Some people are just really good candidates, they’re really good politicians," said James. “And so they might have less money but they could make up for that with skill, being persuasive, being compelling.”
Democrats outregister Republicans in the district, with 32,115 Democrats and 25,453 Republicans. But most voters, 36,787 are not affiliated with any party.
Jackson County Commissioner Randy Sparacino lost to Jeff Golden in the 2022 state Senate race, despite raising more than three times as much money. The fundraising gap is much smaller this year.
Krause has raised $561,000 more for this year’s race than Golden raised in 2022. Golden, who is retiring from the Senate, declined money from lobbyists and political action committees. He ran as an incumbent, an advantage Krause lacks.
For Democrats, keeping the seat could help retain a slim supermajority in both houses.
For Republicans, winning the seat could give them more influence, even as Democrats will likely retain control of the Legislature.
Ballots must be postmarked by Election Day, November 3, or returned to a drop box by 8 p.m. Jackson County has a list of drop box locations on its website.
