First-term Republican U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer and Democratic challenger Janelle Bynum sparred over abortion, immigration, and crime during their first of three debates on Oct. 8.
The two differed on the issues that make Oregon’s 5th Congressional District—a swing district considered a tossup by the Cook Political Report—one of the most competitive races in the country. It is one of a handful of districts that could help Republicans hold their razor-thin advantage in the U.S. House or allow Democrats to take it back.
The first Republican to represent the district in decades, Chavez-DeRemer is the former mayor of Happy Valley, Oregon, and a business owner. Bynum is a business owner who served in the state Legislature from 2017 until she resigned last year to field her run for Congress….