New Polling Shows Strong Support for Portland Charter Change Measure 26-228
A Change Research survey of 489 likely Portland voters resulted in 60% support for the November measure to change Portland’s city government.
Support is also strong (62%) for Measure 26-232 to implement ranked choice voting in Multnomah County elections.
[PORTLAND, ORE.] — New results from a public opinion poll conducted by Change Research shows strong voter support for Measure 26-228, a Portland measure to change city government by implementing ranked choice voting, geographic city council districts, and a professional city administrator.
The survey was conducted online from September 27th to October 3rd and included 489 Portland voters and a margin of error of ±4%. An additional 501 voters who live in Multnomah County but not within the City of Portland were polled about Multnomah County Measure 26-232, which would implement ranked choice voting for county candidates.
City of Portland voters heard only negative arguments about Portland Measure 26-228. The only positive messages voters heard were about a different measure (Multnomah County Measure 26-232) and only about ranked choice voting. After hearing these messages, participants were asked how they would vote on the Measure 26-228 ballot question and responded:
60% Yes
23% No
17% Undecided
These results are significant because they confirm that support for the Portland charter change measure remains strong even after voters heard negative messages. Voters also expressed 62% support for Measure 26-232 (ranked choice voting in Multnomah County elections), with 20% saying they would vote against it and 18% undecided.
Another polling firm, DHM Research, conducted two recent polls on Portland Measure 26-228 for the Portland Business Alliance and The Oregonian/OregonLive showing 63% support and 49% support, respectively.
The recent Change Research poll was funded by Oregon Ranked Choice Voting Advocates, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to bringing more voices into elections and greater diversity to government. Oregon Ranked Choice Voting is a supporter of Portland United for Change, the campaign to pass Measure 26-228.
Measure 26-228 was referred to Portland’s November 2022 ballot by an overwhelming majority of the Portland Charter Commission, an independent body appointed once every ten years to suggest improvements to city government. 17 out of the 20 members of the Charter Commission supported the proposal, which will increase the size of Portland City Council from 5 to 12 members, allow voters to rank all local candidates in order of preference, and transfer oversight of city services from council members to a professional city administrator. The measure has the support of over 100 organizations, labor unions, small businesses, political science experts, and community leaders. Learn more at PortlandUnitedForChange.com.
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For Immediate Release: Thursday, October 13, 2022
Contact: Damon Motz-Storey: damon [at] colororegon [dot] org
