Susheela Jayapal, the sister of Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), lost the Democratic primary to replace Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), who is retiring after nearly 30 years in office.
Susheela Jayapal lost the primary to Democratic challenger Maxine Dexter, who won the race with 53.2% of the vote with more than a third of the vote counted. The Associated Press called the race at 8:54 p.m. EST.
Susheela Jayapal ran on a progressive platform, much like her younger sister who heads the House Progressive Caucus.
The race between Susheela Jayapal and Dexter attracted widespread attention, with at least one super PAC pouring more than $1 million into the race to attack Susheela Jayapal’s record. Meanwhile, another group, the 314 Action Fund, spent at least $1.7 million to boost Dexter.
That money prompted Susheela Jayapal and Eddy Morales, who also ran for the seat, to accuse the group of interfering with the Democratic primary and funding its ad campaigns with “MAGA money.” The group has not yet disclosed its donors from April, which is when it began spending money on the Oregon primary.
After winning the primary, Dexter is now highly favored to win the seat in November. Oregon’s 3rd Congressional District is rated as D+22 and is deemed “Solid Democrat” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
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All 435 seats are up for grabs in 2024 as Republicans seek to hold their slim majority in the lower chamber. Of these, 42 are considered competitive, with most of those held by Democrats, giving the GOP a slight advantage as it prepares for the next election cycle.
However, of the 42 competitive seats, 17 are held by Republicans in districts that voted for President Joe Biden in 2020, compared to just five Democrats who must defend their seats in districts carried by former President Donald Trump. That means there are just enough vulnerable GOP-held seats to keep things competitive heading into the next election cycle.
