Jessica Vega Pederson

Jessica Vega Pederson is a Democratic politician in the U.S. state of Oregon. She served in the Oregon House of Representatives, for two two-year terms, from January 2013 through 2016. From 2017 to 2022, Vega Pederson served as a county commissioner for Multnomah County, the state's most populous county. In 2022, Vega Pederson was elected to serve as county chair, and took office in 2023.

Jessica Vega Pederson
Chair of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners
Assumed office
January 1, 2023
Preceded byDeborah Kafoury
Member of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners
from the 3rd district
In office
January 1, 2017 – December 31, 2022
Preceded byJudy Shiprack
Succeeded byDiane Rosenbaum
Member of the Oregon House of Representatives
from the 47th district
In office
January 14, 2013 – January 3, 2017
Preceded byJefferson Smith
Succeeded byDiego Hernandez
Personal details
Born1975 (age 47–48)
Crown Point, Indiana, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationLoyola University Chicago (BA)

Early life and education

Vega Pederson was born in Crown Point, Indiana, a small town near Chicago, and raised in a Mexican-American family.[1] Vega Pederson graduated from Loyola University Chicago, where she majored in informational systems management and technology.[2]

Career

Prior to running for political office, Vega Pederson was a project manager for a tech company.[1] Her listing within the Voter's Pamphlet read: "I am not a politician. I'm a mom and a professional. My husband has his own small business. We work hard and we want a better future for our kids."[2] She and her husband have two small children and live in East Portland.[3]

In November 2013, she was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives, for District 47, for a two-year term starting in January 2013.[1] She was re-elected two years later.

In September 2015,[4] Vega Pederson announced that she would not seek re-election to the House,[5] and would instead run for election to the Multnomah County Commission, for a seat that was due to become open as a result of term limits requiring its then-holder Judy Shiprack to leave the seat.[4] She won election to the commission in the May 2016 primary, representing county District 3, for a four-year term to begin in January 2017. She was sworn in on January 3, 2017.[6][7] On May 19, 2020, Jessica Vega Pederson was re-elected to a four-year term on the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners.[8] On November 8, 2022, Vega Pederson was elected Multnomah County Chair, defeating fellow commissioners Lori Stegmann (in the primary) and Sharon Meieran (in the general election), for a four-year term to begin in January 2023.[9]

References
  1. Kozinskiy, Olga (November 14, 2012). "Emerging Women". Willamette Week. Portland, Oregon. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  2. "Jessica Vega Pederson emphasizes education in run for District 47 seat". El Hispanic News. May 3, 2012. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  3. "Voter Guide: State Representative -- 47th District". OregonLive.com. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved January 21, 2013.
  4. Theriault, Denis C. (September 10, 2015). "East Portland lawmaker running for Multnomah County board". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on November 15, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  5. Hansen, Kristina (May 8, 2016). "Oregon Republicans hope to pick up a few seats in Legislature". Mail Tribune. Medford, Oregon. Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  6. Parks, Casey (January 4, 2017) [online date January 3]. "Multnomah County: Commission is more diverse than ever". The Oregonian. p. A6. Archived from the original on May 1, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  7. Manning, Rob (January 3, 2017). "Multnomah County Swears In All-Female Commission". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on January 5, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  8. "No clear winner in Multnomah County chair race". opb. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  9. Hayden, Nicole (November 10, 2022). "Jessica Vega Pederson wins race for Multnomah County chair". The Oregonian/OregonLive. Archived from the original on December 13, 2022. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
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