My Priorities 

I have been a member of AFSCME Local 88 for six years. My union experience has shaped how I think about power, work, and public policy. Workers should have a meaningful voice in the decisions that affect their jobs and lives, and they should be able to organize together for fair wages, good benefits, safe working conditions, and dignity on the job. 

Organized labor has shown me that when working people have real collective power, they can improve not only their own workplaces but their communities. 

1. Make Portland More Affordable

Too many Portlanders are working hard and still struggling with the cost of housing and everyday life.

I will focus on making it easier for people to stay in Portland, not just move here. That includes building more housing at a range of incomes, protecting renters from displacement, expanding pathways to homeownership, and creating more cooperative and shared-equity housing.

I also want the City to look beyond rent alone. Transportation, utilities, fees, childcare, and other basic expenses all affect whether a household can make ends meet.

Portland should be a city where a working family can still afford a future.

2. Stand With Workers and Build Good Jobs

Strong communities depend on workers having power, security, and a voice.

As a union member, I know the importance of collective bargaining and organized labor. I will defend workers’ right to organize and support fair wages, good benefits, safe working conditions, apprenticeship and workforce opportunities, and strong labor standards for publicly funded projects.

City economic policy should not simply ask how many jobs we are creating. It should ask whether those jobs allow people to build stable lives.

When workers do well, Portland does well.

3. Invest in Children, Education, and Opportunity 

I believe deeply in public education and in giving every child a genuine opportunity to succeed.

City Council does not run Portland’s schools, but the City has an important role in creating the conditions children need to thrive: stable housing, safe routes to school, libraries, parks, recreation, arts and cultural opportunities, and strong partnerships with schools and community organizations.

I will prioritize children and families when the City makes decisions about neighborhoods, housing, transportation, public spaces, and community investment.

A city that invests in its children is investing in its future.

4. Demand Accountable Government and Fair Taxes

Portlanders contribute substantial resources to local government. They deserve to know those dollars are being used effectively.

I will push for clear goals, measurable results, coordination across government, and honest evaluation of programs that are not working.

I also believe the tax burden should be fair. Working- and middle-class households and small businesses should not automatically be the first place government turns when it needs more revenue.

When additional revenue is genuinely necessary, I support progressive taxation that asks more from those with the greatest ability to pay, including the wealthiest households and largest corporations.

The question should always be: who pays, what are we paying for, and are Portlanders getting results?

5. Build Safe, Healthy, Resilient Neighborhoods

Everyone deserves to feel safe in their neighborhood and confident that basic public systems work.

I will support practical approaches to public safety, homelessness, transportation, climate resilience, clean air and water, parks, and neighborhood livability.

That includes maintaining a strong emergency response system while investing in prevention, behavioral health, housing stability, and services that address problems before they become crises.

It also means preparing Portland for climate change and natural disasters, protecting our environment, improving transportation choices, and making sure public investments reach neighborhoods throughout the city.

Safety is more than the absence of crime. It is the stability that comes from housing, opportunity, healthy surroundings, functioning infrastructure, and strong communities.

What Connects These Priorities?

Housing, wages, education, taxes, public safety, and climate may look like separate issues, but they all affect the same fundamental question:

Can ordinary people build a stable, fulfilling life in Portland?

That is the standard I will use when making decisions on City Council.