Nolan Bylenga on running for District 3, top issues, what’s going right
KOIN 6 News contacted candidates who are running for Oregon’s Third Congressional District in 2024, asking them to respond to these four questions:
Why are you running for office?
What is your prior government/civic experience?
In your opinion, what are the top three issues facing the Third District and the state of Oregon?
In your opinion, what is going right in the Third District and Oregon? How do you plan to build on it?
Nolan Bylenga is running as a Democrat. Here are his responses:
Why are you running for office?
“Democracy is on the ballot.” We’ve all heard this refrain since the 2024 election cycle began, and it is true. But there is something else on this year’s ballot: opportunity. An opportunity for us as a community to uphold the values and promise of democracy and District 3. An opportunity for voters to elect a Gen Z, Black man to Congress, something never before accomplished in this district. An opportunity to send a community organizer and student to the halls of power, to be a loud and productive advocate for the people, and the issues they care about.
I embody that opportunity, and I will work every day for fact-based and academically sound policies that the people need, not some fake progressivism spouted by millionaires or establishment regulars. Corporate donors and wealth are better protected than the people, and that dangerous precedent has to stop. District 3 deserves better than the status quo, we all do. That’s what I’ll do when I’m elected, help make the House of Representatives work for the people.
What is your prior government and/or civic experience?
In 2020, I ran for State Representative in Oregon’s 58th district. I won my Democratic primary, organized marches for justice in Eastern Oregon, and helped found the Pendleton Community Action Coalition, which I am still treasurer for. I would be new to federal office when elected, it’s true, but so would every single one of my Democratic primary opponents. More importantly, I don’t measure my abilities or qualifications by time spent in government or by money raised through some corporate PAC or wealthy donor. Experience doesn’t always translate into procedural or political competence, legislative successes, or happy and safe constituents. Several of my primary opponents know this reality firsthand.
In your opinion, what are the top three issues facing District 3 and the state of Oregon?
Three of the most important issues facing the district and state are climate change, the housing crisis, and access to affordable health care.
Climate change may be an existential threat, but the science is clear for Oregon. We need a Green New Deal, and every step in that direction is a victory for the state and district 3 and all of its residents.
As for housing, both my campaign manager and I have been houseless before and were lucky enough to push ourselves through those struggles. But many are not so lucky. We must address houselessness correctly, without stigma or judgment, and address the issues creating the conditions. Those in Salem are not getting it done, and lip-service won’t put roofs over peoples’ heads. Moreover, Oregon ranks as one of the worst states in the nation when it comes to mental health services.
This is all connected, the housing crisis, the mental health crisis, health care access overall. We must codify a renter’s Bill of Rights and we need to combat economic inequality by properly taxing the wealthiest among us; the 1% are rich enough, it’s time for them to pay their fair share.
Lastly, the answer to accessible and affordable health care is staring us in the face: we have to pass Medicare for All, once and for all. These are not radical policy solutions, these are economically and politically sound possibilities, we just need the political will to pass them into law.
In your opinion, what is going right in District 3 and Oregon? How do you plan to build on it?
It seems like there isn’t much hope at times, it’s true. Even in beautiful Oregon, it can seem like too much to grapple with. But I believe that District 3 & Oregon are heading towards better election systems for one. We’re talking about ranked choice voting, election finance reform, and more. These types of things can help save our democracy that is so much under attack right now, from without and within, and this kind of work can help us to begin fixing the bigger issues.
On a more localized level, organizations like Montavilla Collective, PDX Saints Love, and the Mile Post 5 Studios Artist Collective, all based on the east side of Portland, are doing the work my campaign and I believe in. These organizations, which need help from federal and state funding, are helping the houseless and impoverished, utilizing art as a way to engage, uplift, and house. This kind of local engagement of pertinent issues are how all elected officials need to participate with their community, not simply use rhetoric to gain votes or donations. When I’m elected, this is the kind of work I want to do. It’s time to help the community, not the 1% and big business, they have all the help they could ever need.
When asked for clarification on his answer claiming, “Oregon ranks as one of the worst states in the nation when it comes to mental health services,” Bylenga referenced articles posted by The Oregonian, PBS, and Willamette Week.
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