Lookout Eugene-Springfield to Host 2026 Candidate Forums for County, City Races

Lookout Eugene-Springfield will put eight county commissioner candidates on stage at the Wildish Theater in Springfield on April 13, followed two days later by a Eugene City Council forum at WOW Hall, giving Lane County voters face time with the field before the May 19 primary.

Four Eugene City Council seats and three Lane County commissioner seats are up for election in the May 19 primary, making these forums among the most consequential public events before ballots drop. All four Eugene City Council and three Lane County Commissioner races feature multiple candidates for the first time since 2020.

The Lane County Board of County Commissioners forum runs from 2 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 13, at the Wildish Theater, 630 Main St., Springfield. The event is structured as three back-to-back one-hour sessions, each focused on a single district. District 2 goes first, from 2 to 3 p.m., with incumbent David Loveall facing Springfield Mayor Sean VanGordon and William Monsoor. Loveall is an incumbent commissioner and real estate developer, while VanGordon is the current mayor of Springfield and a former Springfield city councilor and planning commissioner. District 1 follows from 3:15 to 4:15 p.m., with incumbent Ryan Ceniga squaring off against Thomas Hiura. Ceniga, first elected in 2022, represents the District 1 seat covering western Lane County, including Florence, Veneta and Junction City. Hiura is the director of Lane Education Service District, as well as a multimedia engineer, business owner and broadcaster. District 5 closes out the afternoon from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., with incumbent Heather Buch defending her seat against Jake Pelroy and Bob Zybach. Buch represents District 5, which includes parts of southwest Eugene and primarily eastern Lane County communities such as Cottage Grove, Creswell, Oakridge, Lowell, Westfir, the McKenzie River valley and Coburg. Pelroy, 40, is a former Marine and consultant for whom this is a first run for public office.

Ben Botkin, Lookout's policy and politics correspondent, and Elon Glucklich, Lookout's opinion editor, will moderate the county forum. Glucklich spent more than a decade covering business, government and health care for several dailies and online news organizations across Oregon, with reporting recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists and the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association.

The Eugene City Council forum shifts to WOW Hall, 291 W. Eighth Ave., Eugene, on Thursday, April 15, starting at 4:30 p.m. The format pairs two wards per session. Ward 4 candidate Jennifer Yeh and Tom Stedman will share the stage with Ward 6 candidates Tai Pruce-Zimmerman and Greg Evans in the opening 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. session. A second session covering Ward 3 and Ward 5 follows, though Lookout has not yet released the full candidate lineup for those wards. All four of Eugene's contested City Council seats, covering Wards 3, 4, 5 and 6, are on the ballot. Grace Chinowsky, Lookout's Eugene correspondent, and Glucklich will moderate the city council forum.

Both events are structured as forums, not debates, a distinction Lookout emphasized in its event announcements. Seating is limited and tickets are free; registration is available through Lookout Eugene-Springfield's website at lookouteugene-springfield.com. Oregon is a closed-primary, vote-by-mail state; county election offices mail ballots to registered voters based on their address and party affiliation. The last day for voters to turn in their primary ballots is May 19.