Hiura urges more everyday workers to run for Lane County office

Thomas Hiura is trying to turn Lane County’s District 1 race into a test of who gets to govern, not just who can afford to run. The Lane Education Service District director and Eugene small-business owner is challenging incumbent Ryan Ceniga for the West Lane seat on the Lane County Board of Commissioners in the May 19, 2026 primary, arguing that county government has become harder for working people to enter as rents climb and campaign costs rise.

Hiura’s message is rooted in his own rise through local civic life. He won his Lane Education Service District seat in the May 2025 special election with 6,796 votes, or 78.99 percent, and the district lists his term through June 30, 2029. He also serves as president of City Club of Eugene and has been active on Eugene’s Human Rights Commission, building a profile around public service, accountability and rural support.

The race matters because Lane County commissioners help shape the budget, property taxes, roads, public health and public safety. District 1 covers West Lane communities including Florence, Veneta and Junction City, along with other western parts of the county. Ceniga, who represents the district and was selected as board chair for 2026, has the advantages of incumbency and a campaign account that public Oregon Secretary of State filings show had $41,350 in 2026 contributions and about $43,965.84 in cash on hand.

Hiura’s argument lands in a county where housing pressure is already visible. Lane County’s 2025 point-in-time count found 3,509 people experiencing homelessness on the night of Jan. 29, a 14 percent increase from 2024. Local analysis from Live Healthy Lane says 55.6 percent of renters are housing-cost burdened, paying more than 30 percent of their income for housing. U.S. Census estimates put median gross rent in the county around $1,355, while newer market measures have pushed Eugene rents higher, tightening the squeeze on teachers, care workers, service employees and others trying to stay in the area.

Hiura has framed his campaign around accountability, transparency, affordable housing, health care access and bringing county services closer to coastal and rural communities. In a county where a commissioner’s office can shape daily life from road maintenance to emergency response, his challenge is whether Lane County politics is still open to people who earn a paycheck instead of a donor list.