Portland's Soros-backed district attorney on the verge of losing re-election

Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt remains behind by large numbers for his re-election bid on Tuesday as crime has become a top issue for voters within the Portland, Oregon, metro area.

With almost 70% of votes counted, Schmidt has 43% of the vote. His challenger, Nathan Vasquez, is ahead at 55%.

Vasquez has worked at the Multnomah County District Attorney's office since 2001. Unlike Schmidt, who boasted about making the justice system more "equitable," Vasquez ran his campaign on law and order.

Mega-donor George Soros gave last-minute money to Schmidt's campaign.

"We must take lawless behavior seriously and enforce our laws. Studies show the best way to deter crime is the certainty of getting caught, the swiftness of the penalty, and the severity of the punishment. Even 'petty' crimes, like theft, vandalism, and littering, public use of illicit drugs and public highs, all contribute to the overall feeling of safety and wellbeing of a community," Vasquez states on his campaign website.

"It’s all of the 'small things' that have added up to create an environment of chaos, and completely broken the social contract we all agree to as citizens of a community. When we don’t enforce, we tell our community we don’t care," he added.

Schmidt was elected to be district attorney in May 2020, right as the BLM and Antifa riots ravaged Portland for months. His office dropped over 80% of the cases that were brought to him during the height of the riots, according to KATU.

While open drug use plagued the downtown area and gun crime spiraled out of control, Schmidt said he was focused on "standing up to gun lobbyists and the NRA" and decreasing open drug use.

Schmidt was backed by the Democratic establishment for his re-election. The Multnomah Democrats praised Schmidt for having "skillfully navigated an extremely challenging period in Portland." OregonLive reported mega-donor George Soros gave last-minute money to Schmidt's campaign. Each candidate raised around $1.1 million for the race.

Schmidt is not the first Soros-backed DA to have fallen behind on the race to stay in office. Voters in San Francisco recalled progressive DA Chesa Boudin in 2022.

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