Kate Lieber

Kate Lieber
Majority Leader of the Oregon Senate
In office
January 9, 2023 – July 15, 2024
Preceded byRob Wagner
Succeeded byKathleen Taylor
Member of the Oregon Senate
from the 14th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 11, 2021
Preceded byMark Hass
Personal details
Political partyDemocratic
EducationSmith College (BA)
Indiana University, Bloomington (JD)
Signature

Kate Lieber is an American politician, who served as Majority Leader of the Oregon State Senate from 2023 to 2024. She represents Oregon's 14th Senate district, which includes the cities of Beaverton, Aloha, and portions of Washington and Multnomah counties.

Professional background

Prior to her election to the Oregon Senate, Lieber worked for many years as an attorney prosecuting domestic violence and child abuse cases for the Multnomah County District Attorney's office. She was nominated by Governor Ted Kulongoski to the Psychiatric Security Review Board (PSRB) on which she served for eight years (and chaired for five).[1]

Political career

Lieber was first inspired to run for public office after the election of Donald Trump as US President.[1] She ran for the District 14 seat in the Oregon Senate after incumbent Democrat Mark Hass decided to run for Oregon Secretary of State, instead of re-election.[2] She defeated Republican candidate Harmony Mulkey in the general election, winning 69% to 30.8%, with 0.2% of the vote going to other candidates.[3]

On November 18, 2022, Lieber was elected Majority Leader by the Oregon Senate democratic caucus.[4] In June 2024, she announced she would step down from the role on July 15 to become co-chair of the joint ways and means committee, a position being vacated by Senator Elizabeth Steiner.[5]

In 2024, Lieber co-wrote a bill reinstating criminal penalties for drug possession, which had been removed in 2020 by Measure 110, as well as expanding access to drug treatment.[6] The bill was signed into law on April 1, 2024.[7]

Personal life

Lieber is gay and is the first openly lesbian member of the Oregon Senate.[8] She lives with her wife and two children.[1]

Electoral history

2020 Oregon State Senator, 14th district[9]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Kate Lieber 48,900 69.0
Republican Harmony K Mulkey 21,838 30.8
Write-in 141 0.2
Total votes 70,879 100%
2024 Oregon State Senator, 14th district[10]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Kate Lieber 60,002 85.0
Libertarian Katy Brumbelow 10,149 14.4
Write-in 456 0.6
Total votes 70,607 100%

References

  1. ^ a b c "About me". Kate Lieber: Democrat for Oregon Senate. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
  2. ^ Jaquiss, Nigel. "Sen. Mark Hass Officially Concedes Democratic Secretary of State Primary to Sen. Shemia Fagan". Willamette Week.[permanent dead link‍]
  3. ^ "2020 Oregon State Senate – District 14 Election Results". IndyStar. Archived from the original on May 28, 2023. Retrieved February 16, 2021.
  4. ^ Dake, Lauren (November 19, 2022). "Oregon Senate will have new leader for first time in about 20 years". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  5. ^ VanderHart, Dirk (June 3, 2024). "Oregon Senate Democrats shuffle leadership ahead of November election". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  6. ^ VanderHart, Dirk (March 1, 2024). "Oregon's drug decriminalization experiment appears dead". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  7. ^ Wilson, Conrad (April 1, 2024). "Oregon governor signs bill criminalizing drug possession". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  8. ^ Haynes, Dana (September 27, 2021). "Oregon's Human Service budgeteers are members of LGBTQ community". Portland Tribune. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
  9. ^ "November 3, 2020, General Election Abstract of Votes" (PDF). Oregon Secretary of State. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 12, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  10. ^ "November 5, 2024, General Election Abstract of Votes" (PDF). Oregon Secretary of State. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 12, 2024. Retrieved December 12, 2024.
Oregon Senate
Preceded by Majority Leader of the Oregon Senate
2023–2024 		Succeeded by