Bethany, Cedar Mill, Oak Hills and West Haven-Sylvan voters will see a lopsided congressional race on their November ballots. Rep. Janelle Bynum has raised $3.7 million for her reelection campaign in Oregon's 5th Congressional District, compared with the $424,000 reported by Republican challenger Patti Adair as of late June.

An OPB analysis published Friday, Sept. 25, found that the Cook Political Report now rates the seat as solid Democratic. Two other national forecasters, Decision Desk and Inside Elections, also rate it solid or safe Democratic, while Sabato's Crystal Ball rates it as likely Democratic, according to a Portland Tribune commentary by Randy Stapilus published Friday, Sept. 18.

The 5th District stretches from Portland's suburbs to Bend. In 2022, Republican Lori Chavez-DeRemer won the seat by just 1.9 percentage points. Bynum, a Happy Valley Democrat, unseated Chavez-DeRemer in 2024 by a 2.7-point margin.

John Horvick, senior vice president at DHM Research, a Portland-based public opinion firm, told OPB that national Republican money is not flowing into the district to support Adair. He described it as a self-reinforcing cycle: national donors do not think Adair can win, so she does not get the money she would need to mount an effective challenge.

"It's like a chicken and egg thing," Horvick said.

Adair, a Deschutes County commissioner, won her Republican primary in May with 60% of the vote, defeating Jonathan Lockwood. As of June 30, Bynum had $2.7 million in cash on hand compared with Adair's $135,000, the Portland Tribune reported Monday, Sept. 14.

Most registered voters in the 5th District are nonaffiliated, according to OPB.

Bynum launched her first TV ad of the cycle on Saturday, Sept. 12. The 30-second spot shows her ripping up a piece of paper meant to represent the Trump administration's plans, along with footage of her talking with schoolchildren and workers, the Portland Tribune reported.

On the legislative front, Bynum requested more than $36 million in Community Project Funding for the 5th District for Fiscal Year 2027 (FY2027), according to an April 13 press release from her office. The requests cover clean drinking water, infrastructure, public safety, child care and workforce development. Three housing bills she introduced became law as part of Congress's 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, the Portland Tribune reported.

Ballots will be mailed to in-state voters on Wednesday, Oct. 14. Bynum and Adair are scheduled to debate that same day on Bend-based station KTVZ. All ballots must be returned by 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3.