Suzanne Bonamici
Suzanne Bonamici, a Democrat who has represented Oregon's 1st congressional district since winning a 2012 special election, seeks re-election in 2026 against Republican Barbara Kahl, a veterinarian.
2026 Races & Market Forecast
Live TruthIndex™ and prediction market consensus for races contested by Suzanne Bonamici.
- Born
- October 14, 1954
- Birthplace
- Detroit
- Education
- Lane Community College (associate degree, 1978)
University of Oregon (bachelor's degree, 1980)
University of Oregon (JD, 1983)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Suzanne Bonamici was born on October 14, 1954, in Detroit. She earned an associate degree from Lane Community College in 1978, followed by a bachelor's degree in 1980 and a J.D. in 1983, both from the University of Oregon.
After college she worked as a legal assistant at Lane County Legal Aid in Eugene, and after law school she became a consumer protection attorney for the Federal Trade Commission in Washington, D.C. She later went into private practice in Portland, where she represented small businesses.
Career
Suzanne Bonamici entered elected office in 2006, when incumbent Democrat Brad Avakian retired from Oregon's 34th House district to run for the state Senate and she won the open seat, defeating Republican Joan Draper by 62% to 36%.
On April 30, 2008, commissioners from Washington and Multnomah counties appointed her to the 17th Senate district seat vacated by Avakian, and she won the November 2008 special election with 97% of the vote before being re-elected in 2010 with 64%.
After Representative David Wu resigned from Congress, Bonamici won the Democratic nomination for the special election to replace him on November 8, 2011, with 66% of the vote, and she defeated Republican Rob Cornilles by 14 points on January 31, 2012.
She resigned from the Oregon Senate before taking her seat and won her first full term in November 2012.
Her House committee assignments include the Committee on Science, Space and Technology and the Committee on Education and the Workforce, including the chair of its Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Human Services.
2026 race
Oregon's 1st district covers northwestern Oregon, including the western Portland metropolitan area, the suburbs of Beaverton and Hillsboro, parts of Portland west of the Willamette River, and Tillamook County. Bonamici won re-election there in 2024 with 68.6% of the vote.
In the 2026 Democratic primary she defeated mechanical engineer Jamil Ahmad with 86.6% of the vote. Her Republican opponent in the general election on November 3, 2026, is Barbara Kahl, a veterinarian who won the Republican primary with 71.5% of the vote over retired banker John Verbeek.