Kotek won big in Oregon. But was it really a vote for her?

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek is not a popular governor. A ranking by Cook Political Report in 2025 found Kotek to be one of the least popular governors in the country, ranked No. 48 out of 50. When Republican primary voters decided her reelection bid would be a rematch against Sen. Christine Drazan, who ran against her four years earlier, pollsters suspected the race would be close — a near tie, according to some polls. Then came Tuesday, and Kotek eased into a second term without much issue, besting her two-time rival by a wider margin than last election. In every county across Oregon, Kotek won a larger share of the vote on Tuesday compared to her first run for governor and flipped two counties in her favor that were carried by Drazan last election. Four years ago, Drazan won Deschutes County, besting Kotek there by 3 percentage points. But this year Kotek beat Drazan in that county by nearly 5 points, according to early election results.

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