Image by Raya Deussen
In the years following Paige Kreisman’s self-described “abusive and transphobic” upbringing, her life has become a series of firsts. After leaving home to join the U.S. Army at the age of 17, she became the first woman to serve as an Indirect Fire Infantryman. In the wake of President Trump’s ban on transgendered individuals serving in the Army, she returned to Oregon to complete her education and went on to receive the first-ever campaign endorsement from the Portland Democratic Socialists of America. Now, she is seeking to become the first transgender person elected to Oregon’s State Legislature.
Kreisman joins a nationwide wave of far-left candidates vying for a seat in the upcoming election. The Oregon primaries, where she will go head to head against incumbent Representa tive Rob Nosse, are scheduled for May 19. The two will compete for Oregon House District 42, which encompasses most of southeast Portland, including areas where many off-campus Lewis & Clark students live.
Unseating Nosse, who has been a member of the Oregon House of Representatives since 2014, is no small task. While Nosse has established himself as a strong Democrat, Kreisman is running a bold campaign that falls even further to the left. The main tenets of her platform include affordable housing, improved labor rights, stricter campaign finance laws and an Oregon specific Green New Deal.
In accordance with her calls for campaign finance reform, Kreisman refuses to accept any corporate campaign contributions. This differentiates her from Nosse, who has accepted donations from corporations including Nike and Comcast. Kreisman is also a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, a political and activist organization dedicated to improving the lives of working people by supporting labor movements and policies like Medicare for All.
While Nosse’s policies are not quite as progressive as Kreisman’s, his experience in government will be advantageous come election day. His past legislative accomplishments include a bill that allows undocumented immigrants to obtain a driver’s license, as well as a ban on single-use plastic bags. However, he also voted to cut retirement benefits for public employees, a decision that drew criticism from unions across the state.
The upcoming election presents a chance for LC students to make their voices heard through voting, both at the federal and state level. For many students, 2020 will be the first election they get to participate in. For Kreisman, it is a chance to enact change and make history.
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