PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley announced Thursday that he will seek re-election to a fourth term in 2026. Merkley was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2008 and officially took office on Jan. 3, 2009. As of July 2025, he has served as Oregon’s junior senator for around 16 and a half years.

Oregon, announced Thursday that he will seek re-election to a fourth term in 2026, "pledging to continue to fight for working families and stand firm against growing threats to democracy, freedom, and economic justice,

Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley announced his run for reelection in 2026, while his colleague Sen. Ron Wyden has stated he will run for reelection in 2028.

Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) confirmed he will run for a fourth term in office next year despite some speculation that he may retire. The progressive senator who has served since 2009

Merkley, 68, announced his decision in a video Thursday morning. He was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2008 and is currently serving his third term.

From the late 1960s until the mid-1990s, two Republicans, Mark Hatfield (1967-1997) and Bob Packwood (1969-1995), represented Oregon in the Senate. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) replaced Packwood in 1996 and Merkley defeated Smith 12 years later.

The challenge comes as more Oregonians than ever are excluded from primary contests that decide many general elections.

That agency head, Ben Edtl, is a Tualatin-based political consultant who is also the chief petitioner for a 2026 ballot initiative that would end Oregon’s pioneering vote-by-mail system. Edtl, 47, is a rising player in the MAGA wing of the Oregon Republican Party.

After technical and clerical errors in Oregon’s automatic voter registration system led to a number of people being registered to vote — despite not showing proof of U.S. citizenship

Oregon’s program that automatically registers eligible citizens to vote is generally safe and effective, but remains susceptible to potential errors or faulty data handling, according to an external audit released this week.

The challenge comes as more Oregonians than ever are excluded from primary contests that decide many general elections.