Updated 11:30 am Thursday, May 22

Multnomah County voters chose new school board leaders and decided the fate of a massive bond for Portland Public Schools on Tuesday. The May 20 special district election primarily included school districts, with a few service and utility district elections peppered in, for some county residents.

By Thursday morning, May 22, Multnomah County Elections Office reported nearly 25 percent voter turnout. Elections officials said a surge of nearly 47,000 ballots were received on Election Day, and another 9,500 ballots that were postmarked on Election Day, but received the following day, were added to the latest results. Mailed ballots are still trickling in.

"Turnout will continue to increase as additional postmarked ballots arrive and are processed, per state law, in the week following Election Day," the Elections Office noted in a news release Wednesday evening. "Turnout in special district elections typically varies from 15 percent to 40 percent."

For voters within the PPS boundaries, Tuesday’s election was particularly consequential. Four of the school board’s seven seats were up for grabs, and voters were asked to consider a $1.8 billion school bond to pay for construction and remodel costs, as well as HVAC and safety upgrades at several schools. 

At David Douglas School District, six of the school board's seven seats were up for election, though only two saw more than one candidate file, leaving the other four seats unchallenged.

Similarly, the leadership boards of both Mt. Hood and Portland community colleges saw no challengers for any of the board seats up for election.

Here’s a breakdown of updated results, as of May 22. Final results will be certified by June 16.

Measure 26-259: PPS bond levy
Voters said "yes" to the school bond, approving it by almost 59 percent, according to Thursday's updated results. The levy will extend the current property tax rate of $2.50 per $1,000 of assessed value. In a statement, PPS Superintendent Kimberlee Armstrong thanked Portlanders for "once again standing with our students and saying yes to the future of public education."

"The passage of the 2025 school bond reflects a shared belief that every child deserves to learn in a school that is safe, modern, and designed for success," Armstrong said. 

Centennial School Board
Position 1: David Linn (uncontested)

Position 3: William Mohring (uncontested)

Position 6: Michael Newman is the likely winner, with a 47 percent lead over challengers SaQuoija Allen (23 percent), Hayden Collier (14 percent), Carol Carrol (9 percent), and Durrell Kinsey Bey (5 percent).

Position 7: Pam Shields snagged 60 percent of the vote for the Position 7 seat on the School Board, maintaining a 21 percentage point lead over opponent Rudie Watzig. 

David Douglas School Board
Position 1: Althea Ender (uncontested)

Position 2: Stephanie Stephens (uncontested)

Position 3: Sarah Ruth Epstein is the projected winner, with nearly 52 percent of all tallied votes. Challengers Deian Salazar and Dylan Souders have garnered 27 percent and 20 percent, respectively.

Position 5: Thomas Stephenson is the projected winner, leading with 68 percent of the vote.

Position 6: Heather Franklin (uncontested)

Position 7: Jose Gamero-Georgeson (uncontested)

Multnomah Education Service District
Position 1, Zone 5: Amanda Squiemphen-Yazzie (uncontested)

Position 2: Susie Jones is the projected winner, with a strong, 67 percent lead. 

Position 3, Zone 2: Renee Anderson (uncontested)

Position 4, Zone 4: Jessica Arzate (uncontested)

Parkrose School Board
Position 1: Paul Tabron Jr is expected to win, with 65 percent of the vote. He is trailed by Karen Carter, who has secured roughly 34 percent. 

Position 3: Joash Bullock (uncontested)

Position 4: Adolfo Jiménez (uncontested)

Position 5: Mariah Galaviz (uncontested)

Portland Public Schools Board 
Zone 1: Incumbent Christy Splitt is the projected winner, having secured 82 percent of the vote. 

Zone 4: Rashelle Chase-Miller, an early childhood literacy advocate and expert, ousted incumbent Herman Greene after securing nearly 60 percent of the vote. 

Zone 5: In what's become an increasingly tight race, Virginia La Forte sits at 50 percent of the vote as of Thursday morning, just one percentage point ahead of her opponent, Jorge Sanchez Bautista

Zone 6: Stephanie Engelsman has secured this seat, earning 82 percent of the vote by Thursday's count. Her closest opponent, Rob Galanakis, pulled in about 12 percent of the vote, and others in the race are in the single digits.  In a social media post conceding the race, Galanakis congratulated Engelsman on her win. 

Reynolds School Board
Position 1: Aaron Muñoz Gonzalez (uncontested)

Position 2: Joyce Rosenau (uncontested)

Position 3: Michael Reyes (uncontested)

Position 4: Cayle Tern (uncontested)

Riverdale School District
Position 1: Shaina Weinstein (uncontested)

Position 3:  Michelle Rosenbaum has secured the seat, with 61 percent of the vote.

Position 5: Milessa Muchmore Lowrie (uncontested)

Community Colleges:

Mt. Hood Community College District Board of Education

Zone 1: Larry Morgan (uncontested)

Zone 2: William Miller (uncontested)

Zone 4: Annette Mattson (uncontested)

Portland Community College Board of Directors

Zone 1: Laurie Cremona Wagner (uncontested)

Zone 4: Brandy Penner (uncontested)

Zone 5: Dan Saltzman (uncontested)

Zone 6: Greg McKelvey (uncontested)

Zone 7: Gina Sanchez Roletto (uncontested)