Deschutes County Commissioner will run for Congress in Oregon’s 5th District
Deschutes County Commissioner Patti Adair is running for Congress in Oregon’s 5th District, according to Central Oregon Daily. Rumors of the run had swirled around Bend and Central Oregon for weeks before Adair announced her bid in a press release on Tuesday.
In this image from video, Deschutes County Commissioner Patti Adair speak at a budget committee meeting on May 14, 2025.
Deschutes County Board of Commissioners / Deschutes County Board of Commissioners
Adair, a Republican, is vying for the seat held by first-term Rep. Janelle Bynum, a Democrat from Happy Valley.
“I am running for Congress because I understand firsthand the challenges that families and communities in the 5th Congressional District are facing,” said Adair in a press release.
Adair is hoping to make the jump after serving on the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners for two terms. She was elected in 2018 and then again in 2022.
Her announcement comes at a dynamic moment in the county commissioner race, where the field is rapidly filling ahead of the May 2026 primary.
Oregon City, pictured here, is located at the edge of suburban and rural Clackamas County. More than 40% of voters in Oregon’s 5th Congressional District live in Clackamas County.
Bryce Dole/OPB
Thirteen candidates have announced their intention to run, with three people challenging Adair’s seat. John Heylin, who led the 2024 effort to expand the county board of commissioners from three to five seats, dropped out of the race, he told OPB in an interview, citing family and financial reasons.
Adair’s bid for Congress also comes before Deschutes County voters decide whether to create representative districts for commissioners. A map of potential county commission-represented districts will be presented to the board next month.
This story will be updated.
