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A THEME came up in nearly every one of the Mercury's endorsement interviews: housing. Something else came up, too: housing. And every once in a while, a candidate would mention one of their pet projects: housing.

Those running for office in Portland know what voters are interested in. And Portlanders—many of whom are facing the possibility of no longer being able to afford being Portlanders—care about housing.

Out of everyone the Mercury interviewed for our 2016 endorsements, no one was as devoted to the issue as Chloe Eudaly, who stands apart from incumbent Steve Novick and challengers Stuart Emmons, Fred Stewart, and Suzanne Stahl.

Not only does Eudaly know Portland—as the owner of Reading Frenzy and a co-founder of the Independent Publishing Resource Center, she's helped create the arts scene that makes the city so appealing to residents and newcomers—she's also entrenched in Portland's grassroots advocacy, having co-founded the Special Education PTA of Portland and rallied thousands via her Portland housing Facebook group "That's a Goddamned Shed." And as a renter, Eudaly's familiar with the day-to-day challenges of getting by in Portland in a way few local politicians are.

"We cannot build ourselves out of this housing crisis," Eudaly told the Mercury, correctly noting she had yet to hear of a "holistic approach" to the problem from the other candidates. "I'm actively pushing for rent control and an end to no-cause evictions," she said. "We will not be able to deal with the homeless population with people continuously fed into that system."

Unlike Emmons and Stewart—both of whom have enthusiasm to spare, but whose ideas can be vague and regressive—Eudaly is a pragmatist when it comes to Mayor Hales' camping policy, calling it a "rational move" made to meet "a deplorable situation." Stahl, who has an admirable history of pressing the city for equal access on behalf of disabled Portlanders, says the policy "encapsulates everything that's wrong with Portland."

In the past, the Mercury's generally endorsed Novick—and in fact, the Endorsement Strike Force was divided on this decision. We still like the guy, particularly when he serves as a brusque wildcard in a government sometimes known more for manners than effectiveness. (Take his response when we asked about his well-intended yet poorly received street fee: "We screwed the process up," Novick admitted. "The difference is that unlike every other transportation commissioner in the past 20 years... I decided I had a responsibility to try to do something.") All things being equal, we'd be happy to see Novick continue his work on the council.

But in Portland in 2016, things are anything but equal—in large part thanks to housing. Eudaly would bring a fresh perspective and a deep-rooted passion to city government, with a hard-earned awareness of the ways trying to make rent and stay one step ahead of gentrification affect Portlanders' lives. In our interview, Eudaly stated that if elected and offered a choice of bureaus, she'd choose the Portland Housing Bureau and the Office of Equity and Human Rights. She'd be a great fit.

READ ALL OF OUR ENDORSEMENTS HERE.