Statement: Oregon’s Secretary of State should investigate use of public funds claims before election

We commend the City Auditor for referring Rene Gonzalez’s use of public funds to polish his image to the Secretary of State’s office for a fuller investigation.  

We request that the Secretary of State take up this investigation promptly so voters have all the facts before they vote in November.

As the auditor noted, using public funds to update his Wikipedia page “have no obvious relation to City business, and instead could be interpreted to relate to Gonzalez’s campaign for mayor.” 

Voters should be deeply concerned about Gonzalez’s efforts to game the public financing system and use his public office for personal gain. In 2022, he received dramatically reduced rent for his campaign office from donor Jordan Schnitzer. At the time, a standard 3,000-square-foot downtown office space at 1010 SW 11th Ave. would cost a typical tenant $6,900 monthly. Gonzalez paid only $250 a month.

City Auditor’s Findings:https://www.portland.gov/elections/documents/2024-01-rg-determination-corrected/download