Jessica Vega Pederson

Jessica Vega Pederson
Chair of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 1, 2023
Preceded byDeborah Kafoury
Member of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners
from the 3rd district
In office
January 1, 2017 – December 31, 2022
Preceded byJudy Shiprack
Succeeded byDiane Rosenbaum
Member of the Oregon House of Representatives
from the 47th district
In office
January 14, 2013 – January 3, 2017
Preceded byJefferson Smith
Succeeded byDiego Hernandez
Personal details
Born1975 (age 48–49)
Crown Point, Indiana, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationLoyola University Chicago (BA)

Jessica Vega Pederson is a Democratic politician in the U.S. state of Oregon. She served in the Oregon House of Representatives, for two two-year terms, from January 2013 through 2016. From 2017 to 2022, Vega Pederson served as a county commissioner for Multnomah County, the state's most populous county. In 2022, Vega Pederson was elected to serve as county chair, and took office in 2023.

Early life and education

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Vega Pederson was born in Crown Point, Indiana, a small town near Chicago, and raised in a Mexican-American family.[1] Vega Pederson graduated from Loyola University Chicago, where she majored in informational systems management and technology.[2]

Career

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Prior to running for political office, Vega Pederson was a project manager for a tech company.[1] Her listing within the Voter's Pamphlet read: "I am not a politician. I'm a mom and a professional. My husband has his own small business. We work hard and we want a better future for our kids."[2] She and her husband have two small children and live in East Portland.[3]

In November 2013, she was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives, for District 47, for a two-year term starting in January 2013.[1] She was re-elected two years later.

In September 2015,[4] Vega Pederson announced that she would not seek re-election to the House,[5] and would instead run for election to the Multnomah County Commission, for a seat that was due to become open as a result of term limits requiring its then-holder Judy Shiprack to leave the seat.[4] She won election to the commission in the May 2016 primary, representing county District 3, for a four-year term to begin in January 2017. She was sworn in on January 3, 2017.[6][7] On May 19, 2020, Jessica Vega Pederson was re-elected to a four-year term on the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners.[8] On November 8, 2022, Vega Pederson was elected Multnomah County Chair, defeating fellow commissioners Lori Stegmann (in the primary) and Sharon Meieran (in the general election), for a four-year term to begin in January 2023.[9]

Pederson made her residency in far East Portland a part of her political appeal, however she moved to a $1.2 million, 5 bedroom house in Southwest Portland in April 2024.[10]

Electoral history

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2022 Multnomah County Commission Chair election[11]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Jessica Vega Pederson 164,914 54.03%
Nonpartisan Sharon Meieran 138,034 45.23%
Other Write-ins 2,263 0.74%
Total votes 305,211 100.00%
2022 Primary for Multnomah County Commission Chair[12]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Jessica Vega Pederson 77,529 41.95%
Nonpartisan Sharon Meieran 33,651 18.21%
Nonpartisan Sharia Mayfield 27,713 14.99%
Nonpartisan Lori Stegmann 23,210 12.56%
Nonpartisan Bruce Broussard 12,895 6.98%
Nonpartisan Joe Demers 9,544 5.16%
Other Write-ins 290 0.16%
Total votes 184,832 100.00%
2020 Primary for Multnomah County Commission District 3[13]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Jessica Vega Pederson 37,244 98.42%
Other Write-ins 596 1.58%
Total votes 37,840 100.00%
2016 Primary for Multnomah County Commission District 3[14]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Jessica Vega Pederson 29,986 97.96%
Other Write-ins 623 2.04%
Total votes 30,609 100.00%
2014 Oregon State Representative, 47th district [15]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jessica Vega Pederson 10,379 95.4
Write-in 505 4.6
Total votes 10,884 100%
2012 Oregon State Representative, 47th district [16]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jessica Vega Pederson 12,662 64.8
Republican Maggie Nelson 6,773 34.7
Write-in 93 0.5
Total votes 19,528 100%

References

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  1. ^ a b c Kozinskiy, Olga (November 14, 2012). "Emerging Women". Willamette Week. Portland, Oregon. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  2. ^ a b "Jessica Vega Pederson emphasizes education in run for District 47 seat". El Hispanic News. May 3, 2012. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  3. ^ "Voter Guide: State Representative -- 47th District". OregonLive.com. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved January 21, 2013.
  4. ^ a b Theriault, Denis C. (September 10, 2015). "East Portland lawmaker running for Multnomah County board". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on November 15, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  5. ^ Hansen, Kristina (May 8, 2016). "Oregon Republicans hope to pick up a few seats in Legislature". Mail Tribune. Medford, Oregon. Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  6. ^ Parks, Casey (January 4, 2017) [online date January 3]. "Multnomah County: Commission is more diverse than ever". The Oregonian. p. A6. Archived from the original on May 1, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  7. ^ Manning, Rob (January 3, 2017). "Multnomah County Swears In All-Female Commission". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on January 5, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  8. ^ "No clear winner in Multnomah County chair race". opb. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  9. ^ Hayden, Nicole (November 10, 2022). "Jessica Vega Pederson wins race for Multnomah County chair". The Oregonian/OregonLive. Archived from the original on December 13, 2022. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  10. ^ "Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson Leaves Outer Southeast Portland for West Hills". Willamette Week. May 23, 2024. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
  11. ^ "Multnomah County Official Precinct Results - Chair, Board of County Commissioners" (PDF). Multnomah County. December 5, 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 26, 2023. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  12. ^ "Official Precinct Results - Multnomah County Chair" (PDF). Multnomah County. June 9, 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 26, 2023. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  13. ^ "Multnomah County Elections - Update 12 - Final Summary" (PDF). Multnomah County. June 5, 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 13, 2023. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  14. ^ "May 17, 2016 Primary Election Final Results" (PDF). Multnomah County. June 17, 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 2, 2023. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  15. ^ "November 4, 2014, General Election, Official Abstract of Votes". Oregon Secretary of State. Archived from the original on April 6, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  16. ^ "Official Results | November 6, 2012". Oregon Secretary of State. Archived from the original on April 6, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
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