Staying Grounded

Jo Ann was elected in 2018 alongside the resistance to the damaging and dehumanizing Trump Administration. She promised transformative change, and she delivered with political courage and serious achievements. From Day 1, Jo Ann and her team worked long hours, nights and weekends. They went above and beyond, hosting forums in every corner of the city, meeting with business owners, and engaging new, diverse, and working class voices in city policy.

We knew her re-election would be tough. Jo Ann receives hate mail, and is swamped with racist, sexist, right-wing reactions to her every move. Every news reporter I've spoken to has acknowledged this terrible reality. As the first Black woman elected to council, we expected this. We all work hard to share the burden of tracking threats.

But now in our final 40 days, conservative agitators from as far away as Europe are weighing in on things like Jo Ann's vacation time. To be clear, Jo Ann took her first vacation days of 2022 in March, and like all of us, deserves time off. We understand that elected officials are subject to scrutiny, and changemakers like Commissioner Hardesty even more so.

We refuse to be distracted from the solving the real problems facing our city. You should expect wealthy special interests and local media to continue to come for us. We encourage you to join us in staying grounded in our values and focused on what is most important - serving the people of Portland everyday.

Thank you for your support,

Rev. Joseph Santos-Lyons
Campaign Manager