Race for Lake Oswego School Board position 4 nearly tied
Published 12:49 pm Wednesday, May 21, 2025
- In West Linn, there are ballot boxes outside City Hall and the Public Library. (Holly Bartholomew/West Linn Tidings)
Kate Lupton has a narrow lead over Kasey Adler in the race for position 4 on the Lake Oswego School Board, but the race remains too close to call as of press time.
As of Thursday, May 22, Lupton leads with 51.3%, or 4,550 votes, and Adler has 48.2%, or 4,279 votes. A total of 8,871 votes have been counted.
“I am pleased with the results of the race so far. My lead has continued to grow throughout the week and I am very optimistic about the final outcome of the race for Lake Oswego School Board Director, Position 4. It has been a tight race. Our team ran a great campaign, and my opponent’s team ran an impressive campaign, as well. I have enjoyed meeting new friends and neighbors throughout this process, and I look forward to further community collaboration in the years to come. Being a Lake Oswego School Board Director is a great honor, and I look forward to prioritizing our Lake Oswego students in all school board decisions,” said Lupton, by email.
Katherine Lupton
(Submitted by Katherine Lupton)
The contest between Lupton and Adler to replace Liz Hartman, who opted not to run for reelection, was one of three school board elections held on Tuesday, May 20. In the other races, incumbent Neelam Gupta defeated Lena Elbakshish with 64% of the vote for position 1, while Brian Bills ran unopposed for reelection to position 3.
“I feel really lucky to serve here in Lake Oswego,” said Gupta. “I’m grateful that it was a competitive race in which viewpoints could be discussed, especially in the time of budget shortfalls and uncertainty.”
The school board races focused predominantly on the district’s $10 million budget shortfall, which will result in reductions of more than 20 teachers across the district, along with student assessment scores and the upcoming proposed capital construction bond renewal.
Winners of the races will begin their four-year terms at the end of June.
Kasey Adler
(Submitted by Brian Geraths photography)
Oregon election law requires an automatic recount for any election where the difference between the candidates’ votes is one-fifth of a percent or less of the total votes cast for all candidates in a given race. Oregon also allows a losing candidate 35 days to file for a recount.
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