The city’s future mayor and all 12 members of an expanded City Council took their oaths of office Thursday, completing a dramatic change of Portland City Hall and the last phase of a two-year governance revamp.
As much a civic celebration as a ceremonial swearing-in, the hour-long ceremony packed the Newmark Theatre with cheers, tears, waves of laughter, and clapping.
Councilor-elect Candace Avalos, one of three individuals chosen in November to serve in the newly established District 1 in east Portland, stated, “This is our time to reimagine what’s possible, so let’s make history together.”
She spoke briefly from a podium decorated in roses and bearing the city of Portland seal, along with each of her other new leaders who officially begin their positions on January 1.
Judge Darleen Ortega of the Oregon Court of Appeals presided the pomp and ceremony, which began and ended with performances by the Roosevelt High School Jazz Band and singer LaRhonda Steele.
Amid growing discontent with the way Oregon’s most populous city is governed and the people chosen to run it, voters initially adopted the city’s new form of government in 2022, and Portland’s next generation of leaders will be the first to serve under it.
Portland was a municipal outlier among contemporary U.S. cities for more than a century because its mayor and four elected citywide commissioners each managed a subset of bureaus and agencies.
A 12-member City Council elected from four geographic districts approves the mayor’s choice of the city administrator to oversee day-to-day government operations in Portland.
Portland made a once-in-a-generation investment in the future by creating and implementing these reforms, according to Mayor-elect Keith Wilson, who pledged to restore unity across the city.
Wilson stated, “I’ve seen the best of Portland and the ways that we’ve stumbled.” I think we still have our best days to come.
— Shane Dixon Kavanaugh focuses on accountability and watchdog reporting while covering politics and city administration in Portland.
His number is 503-294-7632.
Get in touch with [email protected].
X@shanedkavanaugh or Bluesky@shanedkavanaugh are the accounts to follow.
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