PORTLAND, Ore. — Oregon voters met with local candidates running in the Nov. 5 general election on Sunday. The Pride in Voting meet and greet gave voters the opportunity to get to know who they might be voting for.
The event was specifically for people in LGBTQIA+ communities, but everyone was welcome to the Marie Equi Center. Oregon Pride and Business helped organize the event, along with Pride Northwest and the Marie Equi Center.
“What I really like about this event that we planned here today is seeing people face-to-face and getting a feel for who they are as people and how do they solve problems,” said Michael Jonas, the executive director of Oregon Pride and Business. “I think there’s a lot of apathy with elections, as you know, or in all these sort of changes with ranked choice voting.”
Voters who attended had questions in mind for candidates they spoke with, like Sandy Hart. She has been a prison volunteer, and said she thinks that authorities arresting and incarcerating people doesn't help fix the problems.
“I’ve been interested in hearing candidates' positions about the police department, about Portland street response,” Hart said. “I like being an informed voter, I definitely have opinions.”
Other voters like Rainbow Colder agreed.
“I believe we should know what our representatives are doing because it should be what we have asked them to do,” Colder said. “I’m concerned with accessibility and transit, and whether or not this great new chance we have with this city government — the change in charter — if we can actually begin as we mean to continue with all of the city values actually being expressed.”
The location of the meet and greet at the Marie Equi Center was also significant, as the center just held its grand opening Friday. It will serve as a vital resource for those apart of LGBTQIA+ communities, while also being the first-of-its-kind center in the area.
“We got a contract with the Joint Office of Homeless Services with their supportive housing services funding for day centers and decided to get our own space,” said Katie Cox, the executive director and co-founder of the center. “This is going to be a space where folks can find safety off of the streets during the day, reset their nervous systems, get a snack, connect with a peer worker, have access to resources and support that they need and then eventually, we’ll be turning the backyard of the gymnasium here into inclement weather shelter.”
The center will be open Monday through Thursday from 1-5 p.m., and also on Fridays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
For those who plan to register to vote, the deadline is Tuesday, Oct. 15.