Barbara J. Kahl, a Republican veterinarian from Northwest Oregon, is running for U.S. House of Representatives in Oregon's 1st Congressional District. She faces Suzanne Bonamici in the Tuesday, Nov. 3 general election.

Asked why she is running, Kahl said in our candidate questionnaire: "I'm a native Oregonian. I've seen Oregon at its best, and unfortunately, I'm living it at its worst right now. … The American dream of owning a home, earning a fair living, and paying the bills is slipping away. … It's time to make a difference."

Candidate information

Party: Republican

Education: Kahl listed her education in our questionnaire as: "OSU Bachelors of Science / Chemistry Minor" and "OSU College of Veterinary Medicine Doctorate." She also listed credentials including "USDA Accreditation for APHIS," "FEMA NIMS and FEMA disaster management for animals" and "TLAER Technical Large Animal Emergency Rescue."

Family: Kahl said in our questionnaire: "I am married with two grown children and four grandchildren. I have extensive family throughout the district. … My parents and grandparents grew up in the Portland and Oregon City areas."

Experience and public service

Asked about her work history, Kahl said in our questionnaire: "I volunteered as a firefighter in Hillsboro and helped train several of the police department's canine officers. From there I moved into veterinary medicine, starting as a receptionist and advancing to technician, before transitioning into business, where I worked in accounting."

She continued: "Once his service ended, we returned home to Hillsboro, where I entered finance and purchasing at Intel. While raising my children, I earned my degrees from Oregon State University, ultimately becoming the Veterinarian I am today, and building my own small business."

Kahl's career also took her overseas.

According to her campaign website, Kahl said the American Samoa territorial government recruited her as its chief veterinarian in 2022, where she said she built the territory's first animal control unit and supervised a staff of 15.

Asked about accomplishments, Kahl said in our questionnaire: "I've served as an expert witness in animal cruelty and neglect cases, written legislation, and testified before Oregon's legislature on bills affecting Oregonians, on behalf of the Oregon Veterinary Medical Association and the Humane Society of the United States."

On the issues

Top priority — government accountability: Kahl said in our questionnaire: "Every problem from affordability to housing, education and the national debt, gets harder when Congress can't show where the money goes." She said she supports legislation that "requires a year-end close on every federal account, with a public report every taxpayer can read showing where our dollars were spent and why." She also supports "a federal audit team" and said, "Any NGO working with or receiving funds from the government is automatically enrolled in a forensic audit process annually."

Affordability and housing: Kahl said in our questionnaire: "I support the Fix our Forests Act that the incumbent voted against. This would clean up our forests and restore timber harvests to mills, providing the materials needed to build homes. … Over 100 mills in Oregon have closed, draining resources from rural communities that depend on the forest harvest for schools, police, and fire safety."

Health care: Kahl said in our questionnaire: "Vertical integration has damaged all medical fields to a degree that private practitioners, stand alone pharmacies, and the people who support them are losing ground." She said Congress should "re-evaluate and update antitrust laws" and "require that costs be transparent to patients before care is given."

Energy and environment: Kahl said in our questionnaire: "Innovation has reignited interest in small modular reactors as a safe, zero carbon, dependable energy source." She said she would support "guidelines requiring data centers to pay their own energy bills, so families, farms and small businesses aren't subsidizing them."

Federal spending: Kahl said in our questionnaire: "Congress must spend within its means and prove where every dollar goes. … I oppose the Fed printing more money."

Endorsements

According to her campaign endorsements page, Kahl has been endorsed by:

  • Jenny Kamprath, candidate for Washington County commissioner chair
  • Oregon Right to Life

Voters can track Kahl's campaign at drkahlforcongress.com.