This is an unprecedented moment.

Our city is facing local challenges of homelessness and sizable budgetary needs including library funding, and federal pressures with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers grabbing community members off of our streets, federal and state funding for key services drying up and the climate crisis accelerating unabated. It is moments like these that demand strong leadership that will stand up and protect the most vulnerable, steady our economy, defend our environment and chart a fair and equitable path forward.

That’s why I’m supporting Jennifer Smith in her run for Eugene City Council Ward 3. Jennifer’s background as a union leader and a community organizer is exactly what our city needs for our working families. As a former Eugene mayor and state legislator, I know what it takes to hold elected office, and Jennifer has shown me that she is prepared. From her experience leading SEIU 085 at the University of Oregon campus as president, to her work on commissions on education, housing and transportation at the city, county and state level, Jennifer has demonstrated that she is comfortable developing policy and working with and for the community. 

Now it is essential that we stand up for our city’s shared progressive values of racial, economic and environmental justice, and I believe Jennifer Smith is the best candidate to step in with that critical effort. I encourage Ward 3 residents to vote for her ahead of election day on May 19. 

Kitty Piercy
Former Eugene Mayor
Former Oregon State Representative