Cliff Bentz
Cliff Bentz, a Republican lawyer who has represented Oregon's 2nd congressional district since 2021, seeks re-election in 2026 against Democrat Chris Beck, a former Oregon state representative.
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Live TruthIndex™ and prediction market consensus for races contested by Cliff Bentz.
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- Born
- January 12, 1952
- Birthplace
- Salem, Oregon
- Education
- Regis High School (1970)
Eastern Oregon State College, now Eastern Oregon University (bachelor's degree, 1974)
Lewis & Clark Law School (JD, 1977)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Cliff Bentz was born on January 12, 1952, in Salem, Oregon, and was raised on ranches in the eastern Oregon communities of Fields and Drewsey.
He graduated from Regis High School in Stayton in 1970, received a bachelor's degree from Eastern Oregon State College (now Eastern Oregon University) in 1974, and earned a J.D. from Lewis & Clark Law School in 1977.
From 1977 to 1980 he was a law associate with the Ontario, Oregon, firm Yturri Rose, and he became a partner in 1980. He specializes in agricultural, water and real property law and owns a 100-acre alfalfa farm.
Career
Cliff Bentz began his public career on the Oregon Water Resources Commission, where he served from 1988 to 1996 and chaired the commission from 1994 to 1996.
In 2008 county commissioners appointed him to House District 60 in the Oregon House of Representatives to replace Tom Butler, and he served in the House until 2018. On January 8, 2018, he was sworn in as a state senator after being appointed to replace Ted Ferrioli.
Beginning June 20, 2019, he was among all 11 Republican state senators who stayed away from the Oregon State Capitol to prevent a vote on HB2020, a cap-and-trade proposal.
Bentz resigned from the state Senate effective January 2, 2020, to run for Oregon's 2nd congressional district, and after winning the Republican primary he defeated Democrat Alex Spenser and independent Patrick Archer in the general election.
He was re-elected in 2022 and 2024, and since 2025 he has been the sole Republican in Oregon's congressional delegation. In the House he serves on the Committee on Natural Resources and the Committee on the Judiciary.
2026 race
Oregon's 2nd district takes in most of Eastern Oregon and part of southern Oregon, and Bentz won re-election there in 2024 with 63.9% of the vote. In the 2026 Republican primary he received 79.6% of the vote, defeating admissions counselor Peter Larson and personal support worker Andrea Carr.
His Democratic opponent is Chris Beck, who represented the 12th district in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1997 to 2003 and won a six-candidate Democratic primary. The general election is on November 3, 2026.