Five Vietnamese Americans seek election to the next Oregon Legislature

(JULY 1, 2022) Every year there are many elections in Oregon. Citizens vote on issues, but they also vote for representatives in the state government. These representatives are sometimes called state legislators because they legislate, or make laws, for the state of Oregon. They meet in the capitol building in Salem. Individually, they express the views and opinions of the people where they live. Together, they make decisions about the laws and policies of the state.

Something interesting is happening among the nominees in the November elections this year. (A nominee is someone who has been nominated, or named, as a candidate. When you choose someone in an election, you choose that person from a list of nominees.) The interesting thing is that five of the nominees this year are Vietnamese Americans.

Why is that interesting? According to Willamette Week newspaper, there are 60 state legislators. So if all five nominees win, then 8% of the seats will be held by Vietnamese Americans. That is approximately 10 times the number of Vietnamese people living in Oregon. It's a significant change for Oregon government because in the past most legislators have been white. If all five win their elections, then Oregon's state legislature will have the greatest representation by Vietnamese Americans than any other state legislature in the country, says Willamette Week newspaper.

All five candidates are also children of refugees. “We have very different pathways to get here,” says Daniel Nguyen, one of the nominees. “But we have this common thread going through all of our families: We all came from nothing. We had to watch our parents rebuild from nothing. With what little they had, they were able to create a future for us. And look at us now.”

It wasn't a coordinated effort, however, and there isn't a common mission among the candidates. Some of them didn't even realize other Vietnamese candidates were running for office. Willamette Week newspaper says that despite some differences of opinion, all are Democrats, which is surprising because Vietnamese Americans have often voted with the Republican party in the past.

“It has to do with the second generation really coming of age,” Khanh Pham says. She is another candidate, but she is already a legislator. So she is seeking re-election. “I think that is an interesting story about what happens to immigrant communities as they start to become more assimilated, frankly, into social and political systems. We’re learning about how to build political power.”

The five candidates are:

• • • Hai Pham, 42, pediatric dentist; House District 36 (Hillsboro, Beaverton)

    • Daniel Nguyen, 43, restaurant owner; House District 38 (Lake Oswego)

    • Thuy Tran, 55, optometrist; House District 45 (outer Northeast Portland)

    • Khanh Pham, 43, state representative; House District 46 (Southeast Portland)

    • Hoa Nguyen, 38, school attendance coach; House District 48 (outer Southeast Portland and Damascus)

Election Day is Tuesday, November 8, 2022.