U.S. Senate candidate · U.S. Congress · November 3, 2026
Jeff Merkley
Incumbent U.S. senator; former Oregon House speaker.
Reach the campaign
- jeffmerkley.com (opens in a new tab)
- 503-200-5518
- Contact form (opens in a new tab)
- Facebook (opens in a new tab)
- X (opens in a new tab)
- Instagram (opens in a new tab)
As published in their pamphlet statement and campaign site.
In their words
Said: Jeff is the son of a union mechanic, attended public schools, was the first in his family to go to college, and lives in the same blue-collar neighborhood he grew up in.
Voters’ pamphlet
Candidate statement · Filed for the November 2026 pamphlet; posted by the Secretary of State September 9, 2026; extracted September 21, 2026
Oregon voters’ pamphlet candidate statement · PDF page 3 ↗Verbatim opening of the candidate's own statement; publication by the state does not verify the claims. Nothing was skipped before it.
The verbatim opening of their voters’ pamphlet statement, the same rule for every candidate. We chose nothing.
What they say they would do
Our summary of their platform, in our wordsSupports expanded public guarantees for healthcare and education, stronger labor rights, climate investment and changes to election and campaign-finance rules.
- Support Medicare for All and lower prescription prices.
- Move toward fully renewable energy and a Green New Deal.
- Expand voting access, reduce undisclosed political spending and protect organizing rights.
Our reading
Our interpretation, not their wordsMedicare for All, a Green New Deal and debt-free college all need financing and Senate majorities; the reviewed pages name goals and a few specific bans but not the budget arithmetic.
Where they stand
Housing and homelessness
No hedge-fund homebuying- What
- Said: Would ban hedge funds from buying single-family homes and names housing, with affordable daycare, as one of four foundations for families to thrive.
- How
- Not in their sources
- Measured by
- Not in their sources
Public safety and immigration
No warrantless ICE raids- What
- Said: Wants an end to ICE agents operating as what he calls secret police: no operations at schools, no warrantless home raids, and full accountability for civil-rights violations.
- How
- Not in their sources
- Measured by
- Not in their sources
Taxes, spending and your bills
Rich pay fair share- What
- Said: Wants the rich to pay their fair share, an end to congressional stock trading and to drug-company price gouging; his site adds overturning Citizens United and ending secret campaign money.
- How
- Said: Ban drug companies from charging more in the U.S. than in Canada, Europe and Japan; overturn Citizens United and shut down dark money.
- Measured by
- Not in their sources
Transportation, energy and climate
100% renewable energy- What
- Said: Would rapidly shift from fossil fuels to cheaper renewables, toward 100% clean energy with a Green New Deal that creates jobs in front-line communities.
- How
- Said: A Green New Deal investing in the shift to 100% clean and renewable energy, with jobs and investment for front-line communities.
- Measured by
- Said: 100% clean and renewable energy as the end state; no date is given.
The choices this office faces
Every candidate in this race is asked the same 8 questions. Jeff Merkley is on record on 8. A question without an answer is a research gap, not a position.
On recordKeep H.R. 1’s Medicaid work rules, six-month renewals and SNAP cuts, or repeal them?
Said: Voted no on passage of H.R. 1 on July 1, 2025 (50–50, tie broken by the vice president), a vote on the whole package, including the Medicaid work rules and SNAP cuts.
Restore the enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits that expired December 31, 2025?
Said: Voted yes on December 11, 2025 to advance S. 3385, a three-year extension of the enhanced premium tax credits; cloture failed 51–48.
End the tariffs and take tariff power back from the president?
Said: Voted yes on October 30, 2025 on S.J.Res. 88 to end the national emergency behind the global tariffs; it passed 51–47.
Fund the $70 billion expansion of ICE and Border Patrol through 2029 (the Secure America Act)?
Said: Voted no on June 5, 2026 on the Secure America Act’s $70 billion for ICE and Border Patrol through 2029; it passed 52–47.
Direct the president to end U.S. military involvement in the war with Iran?
Said: Voted yes on June 23, 2026 on H.Con.Res. 86 directing the president to remove U.S. forces from hostilities with Iran; it was agreed to 50–48.
Pass the Fix Our Forests Act: faster thinning and logging on federal forests with shorter windows to sue?
Said: Introduced the Wildfire Reduction Market Expansion Act with Rep. Bentz on July 22, 2026, paying for hazardous-fuel removal through the Renewable Fuel Standard; the Senate has not voted on the Fix Our Forests Act.
On the topic; the exact choice is unsaid.
Expand the federal role in housing, from the new ROAD to Housing law to more vouchers and tax credits?
Said: Voted yes on June 22, 2026 on final passage of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (85–5), which became law July 11, 2026.
Should federal policy rein in data centers’ power, water and cost impacts, or keep fast-tracking them?
Said: With Sen. Wyden, asked Oregon’s data center advisory committee on July 2, 2026 to weigh rising electricity costs, water use, farmland rezoning and tribal rights; the letter proposes no federal action.
On the topic; the exact choice is unsaid.
A question the evidence leaves open
Which commitments could advance under the next Senate’s rules and majority, and how would you finance them?
Sources (4)
- Merkley · issuesCandidate statement · Undated page; reviewed September 18, 2026
- 2026 qualified filing · DemocratElection authority · Checked September 18, 2026
- 2026 qualified filing · Working FamiliesElection authority · Checked September 18, 2026
- Oregon voters’ pamphlet candidate statement · PDF page 3Candidate statement · Filed for the November 2026 pamphlet; posted by the Secretary of State September 9, 2026; reviewed September 21, 2026Campaign position. Claimed results and numerical premises have not automatically been independently verified.