Mayor candidates fight for every last vote

PORTLAND, Ore. – Knowing the race is incredibly tight, Portland’s mayoral candidates are spending the last few days of the campaign trying to get every single vote possible.

On Sunday, all three front-runners were out at the Sunday Parkways event trying to shake as many hands as they could.

A recent Survey USA poll conducted for KATU showed Jefferson Smith, Eileen Brady and Charlie Hales in a statistical three-way tie.

The top two finishers on Tuesday will compete in a runoff election in November, unless one candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote. However, given the crowded race and close polling, that is unlikely.

Jefferson Smith acknowledged the race could come down to less than 1,000 votes.

“For us it feels like the more human contact we have, the more our political exercise feels like a democratic exercise,” he said. “We want to do as much human contact as we can have.”

“I just want to remind everyone that every vote counts,” said Charlie Hales. “Sometimes things are decided by a handful of voters and as a citizen you have the right to have your say. But if you don’t get your ballot in, somebody else decides for you.”

Polls have shown there are still a good number of undecided voters for candidates to woo.

“That’s in the front of my mind,” said candidate Eileen Brady. “It is a very low turnout to date, so not only are we thinking about undecided, we want to make sure that people who’ve already decided to vote for my candidacy actually scribble in the ballot and walk it in.”

Ballots are due by 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

Want to learn more about the candidates or find a place to drop off your ballot? Visit the KATU.com Politics page for a complete list of election resources.

Check back on Tuesday evening starting at 8 p.m. for elections results.