David Osborn
Candidate for:
State Representative - HD 52
What drives me to seek an elected position
What drives me is a lifelong commitment to service and a belief that we must take care of each other in these times. I have spent my adult life working in public education, environmental advocacy, nonprofit leadership, community organizing and local governance. Across all of that work, I have seen the same truth: people are working hard, caring for their families and doing their best, but the foundations they rely on are not keeping up.
This moment demands more than small fixes. The Trump administration is attacking our communities, pulling resources out of states, targeting immigrants and vulnerable people and deepening an affordability crisis that was already hurting families. Oregon cannot continue to ask families to do more and more with less and less. We have to push back and make different choices at the state level.
I am running because we can undo the worst impacts of Trump-era policy at the state level. We can ask the billionaires and mega-corporations to pay their fair share. And we can fully fund what people need: housing, healthcare, childcare, education, climate resilience and strong public services. These are the foundations for stable lives, strong communities and a healthy economy.
The first three priorities or issues I want to tackle
My first priority is healthcare. We need to stop the cuts and expand access to care so Oregon can move toward universal, single-payer healthcare. This directly aligns with the Multnomah County Democrats’ platform, which names quality healthcare for every person as both a right and an economic necessity.
Second, I will fight to fully fund public education from preschool through higher education. That means lowering class sizes, supporting educators, making college and career pathways more affordable and expanding access to free, fully funded preschool for every child in Oregon. This matches the platform’s call for tuition-free education from preschool through university and, at a minimum, full funding of the Quality Education Model.
Third, I will take serious climate and wildfire action. That means home hardening, forest and watershed restoration, clean energy and community resilience. This aligns with the platform’s demand for urgent climate action, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, stronger resilience and environmental justice.
These priorities are not separate. They are the foundations our communities need. They are also how we can respond, here in Oregon, with care for one another in a way that counters the cruelty of the Trump administration.
The experiences and insights I will bring to the office
I bring a combination of lived experience, public service and organizing skills that matches this moment.
I am a lifelong Oregonian shaped by rural communities, a parent raising two children in public schools, an educator in Oregon’s public universities and a current school board member in Corbett. I also bring long experience as a climate and environmental leader, nonprofit leader and labor union leader.
What makes me a strong candidate is not just what I believe, but that I know how change happens. I know how to listen, build trust, bring people together, apply pressure when needed, push at the edges of what is considered possible, reframe debates and win tough fights.
That is reflected in the support this campaign has earned. I have received by far the most endorsements in this race, including the American Federation of Teachers, Sierra Club, Oregon League of Conservation Voters, Oregon State Building and Construction Trades Council, PCCFFAP, East County Rising, the Working Families Party, Communications Workers of America and many more (see osbornfororegon.com/endorsements). That broad coalition shows I have the relationships, values-alignment and organizing capacity to win and to govern effectively.
What being a Democrat in Multnomah County means to me
Being a Democrat in Multnomah County means building on a strong legacy of organizing, leadership and cutting-edge policy. This county has helped move Oregon forward on climate, housing, equity, public health, workers’ rights and democratic participation.
It also means being honest that inequities remain, especially in East County, where families are too often facing rising costs, underfunded services, housing instability and uneven access to healthcare, childcare and education.
To me, being a Democrat here means refusing to accept those inequities as inevitable. It means bringing leadership to the state that is willing to fully fund the foundations of our lives: healthcare, housing, education, childcare, climate resilience and strong public services. It means pairing bold values with the progressive revenue reform and political courage needed to make them real.