Teressa Raiford

Teressa Raiford is the founder of Don't Shoot Portland, a Black-led nonprofit in Portland, Oregon.

Teressa Raiford
Raiford's official 2020 campaign portrait
Born	Teressa Raiford Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Occupation	Activist, community organizer, former political candidate
Organization	Don't Shoot Portland
Movement	Black Lives Matter Social justice

Activism

On the morning of September 26, 2010, Raiford's nephew Andre Dupree Payton was shot and killed in downtown Portland.[1] In response, Raiford started Don't Shoot Portland, a group of activists who work for police accountability within the Portland Police Bureau and Multnomah County Sheriff's Office.[2][3]

In 2015, Raiford was arrested, charged and jailed[4] for obstructing traffic and disorderly conduct by five officers, at a march she had organized to honor Michael Brown. In 2016 the case was dismissed by a jury. In 2017, Raiford filed a countersuit claiming damages of $500,000,[5] claiming she was "signaled [sic] out for her outspokenness against police violence" and claiming officers made disparaging comments as they arrested her. The case was dismissed by a judge in 2019.[6]

In June 2020, Don't Shoot Portland filed a class-action lawsuit against the City of Portland for seeking a temporary restraining order to force the Portland Police Bureau from using tear gas in the city.[7] Don't Shoot Portland also published an in-depth report on Riot Control Agents, describing the irreparable harm caused by RCAs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In July 2020, Don't Shoot PDX and Wall of Moms filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, claiming that President Trump's deployment of federal forces to Portland was unlawful.[8]

Political campaigns

2012 Portland City Council election

Raiford attempted to unseat Commissioner Amanda Fritz in the 2012 Portland City Council election. She finished in 4th out of 5th place with 3,840 votes (3.21%).

2014 Multnomah County Commission election

In the 2014 County Commission elections, Raiford attempted to unseat then Commissioner Loretta Smith. Raiford finished 3rd out of 4th place with 1,986 votes (6.56%).

2014 Multnomah County Commission Election, District 2

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Loretta Smith	23,644	78.11%
	Nonpartisan	Bruce Broussard	3,595	11.88
	Nonpartisan	Teressa Raiford	1,986	6.56
	Nonpartisan	Kelvin Hall	881	2.91%
	NOTA	write-ins	163	0.54%
Total votes			1,092,746	100.0%

2016 Multnomah County Sheriff election

Raiford announced a write-in campaign against Mike Reese, former Portland Police chief, who was running unopposed.[9] Reese won with 96.55% of the vote.

Multnomah County Sheriff Election, 2016

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Mike Reese (Incumbent)	88,146	96.55%
	Nonpartisan	Teressa Raiford (Write-in)	3,000	3.28%
		write-ins	150	0.16%
Total votes			60,422	100%

2020 Portland Mayoral election

Raiford announced her plan to run for mayor in late 2017,[10] being one of the first candidates to announce her plan. In late 2019 and early 2020, she began recruiting volunteers and actively campaigning. On May 19, 2020, Raiford lost the primary election to Ted Wheeler and Sarah Iannarone, coming in 3rd place with 18,310 votes (8.40%).

After her defeat in the primary, supporters of Raiford have promoted a write-in campaign,[11] although Raiford has said she won’t be actively campaigning.[12]

Portland mayoral primary election, 2020

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Ted Wheeler (incumbent)	107,241	49.29%
	Nonpartisan	Sarah Iannarone	51,849	23.82%
	Nonpartisan	Teressa Raiford	18,310	8.40%
	Nonpartisan	Ozzie González	12,632	5.80%
	Nonpartisan	Bruce Broussard	11,336	5.20%
	Nonpartisan	Randy Rapaport	3,816	1.75%
	Nonpartisan	Piper Crowell	3,272	1.50%
	Nonpartisan	Mark White	2,308	1.06%
	Nonpartisan	Cash Carter	1,488	0.68%
	Nonpartisan	Sharon Joy	901	0.42%
	Nonpartisan	Willie Banks	789	0.36%
	Nonpartisan	Daniel Hoffman	702	0.32%
	Nonpartisan	Michael O'Callaghan	629	0.29%
	Nonpartisan	Michael Burleson	406	0.19%
	Nonpartisan	Lew Humble	299	0.14%
	Nonpartisan	Michael Jenkins	262	0.12%
	Nonpartisan	Beryl McNair	259	0.12%
	Nonpartisan	Jarred Bepristis	105	0.05%
	Nonpartisan	Floyd LaBar	95	0.04%
	Write-in		861	0.40%
Total votes			217,560	100.00%

References

1. "ANDRE DUPREE PAYTON". City of Portland Police Bureau. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
2. "ABOUT US – Don't Shoot Portland". Retrieved 2020-06-02.
3. VanderHart, Dirk (October 24, 2016). "Don't Shoot Portland's Teressa Raiford Wants to be Sheriff". The Portland Mercury. Index Publishing. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
4. Casey Jackman (August 2019). Death:An Oral History. ISBN 978-1-942186-12-0. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
5. Oregon, About Karina Brown Reporter for Courthouse News I. cover legal issues throughout. "Don't Shoot Portland Activist Teressa Raiford Sues City for $500,000 Over Her Arrest at Protest". Willamette Week. Retrieved 2020-06-20.
6. "Judge dismisses lawsuit filed by Don't Shoot PDX organizers Teressa Raiford over her arrest at a Portland protest". wweek.com. 28 January 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
7. "Don't Shoot PDX Sues Portland Over Police Use Of Tear Gas". opb. Retrieved 2020-09-04.
8. KATU Staff (2020-07-27). "Don't Shoot PDX, Wall of Moms file lawsuit against Homeland Security". KATU. Retrieved 2020-09-04.
9. "Write-in Campaign for Sheriff". portlandobserver.com. Retrieved 2020-06-02.
10. Sevcenko, Melanie. "Teressa Raiford Running for City Mayor 2020". The Skanner News. Retrieved 2020-06-02.
11. "Mercury 2020 Endorsements: Mayor and Portland City Council". Portland Mercury. Retrieved 2020-10-16.
12. Silverman, Julia. "Grassroots Organizers Are Pushing a Write-In Mayoral Campaign for This BLM Activist". Portland Monthly. Retrieved 2020-10-16.