As Oregonians Celebrate Minimum Wage Increase, Democrats Call Out Christine Drazan For Her Career Fighting Against Oregon Workers

For Immediate Release
Wednesday, July 1, 2026
Contact: [email protected]

Portland, OR - Today, as Oregon's minimum wage increases, one thing is clear - Republican gubernatorial nominee Christine Drazan has never been on the side of working families.

Before entering elected office, Drazan spent five years working as a lobbyist for the Oregon Restaurant and Lodging Association, a group that fought to freeze the minimum wage and pushed for a below-minimum "training" wage for new hires. And that record didn't change when she made her way to the legislature.

Drazan voted against a bill to crack down on wage theft in construction that would have allowed workers to recover unpaid wages from property owners and general contractors.

She voted against funding for the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, the state agency responsible for enforcing workers' rights and processing wage theft claims.

She voted against allowing striking workers to collect unemployment benefits, then publicly attacked supporters of the bill as "putting politics ahead of students."

She voted against protecting Oregon's child labor laws from being weakened by Trump administration rollbacks.

And she voted against requiring businesses to pay the prevailing wage for off-site construction work on public projects.

While Drazan consistently fought against helping working Oregon families, Governor Kotek was raising the minimum wage, expanding paid sick leave, delivering paid family and medical leave, and extending unemployment benefits to all striking workers.

"Christine Drazan has spent years lobbying against minimum wage increases and then voted against the workers who depend on one," said Democratic Party of Oregon Chair Nathan Soltz. "While Governor Kotek has fought side by side with Oregon workers, Drazan has consistently been on the wrong side of every single one of those fights."