Both leading candidates for Oregon governor were feeling the heat of the race as they attacked each other’s trustworthiness at Thursday night’s first televised debate in Eugene.

At times, Democratic incumbent Gov. Tina Kotek and state Sen. Christine Drazan, R-Canby, talked past each other about issues such as the National Guard and Portland U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility. In other instances, they were more blatant in mischaracterizing each other’s positions and statements.

The result of the quick back-and-forth and rebuttals during the hour-long debate left multiple misleading or untrue claims unchallenged on live television.

Kotek, for instance, accused Drazan of misrepresenting Kotek’s work as a governor, hiding her voting record as a Republican legislator and inaccurately describing protests outside the Portland U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility last year that led President Donald Trump to attempt to federalize the Oregon National Guard to what he called a “war zone.”

Although there was some violence by protesters leading the Portland Police Bureau to declare a riot in June 2025, the site has seen thousands of largely peaceful crowds since, including children, people with disabilities and seniors.

Drazan, who opened her debate speech with a warning that Kotek would try to mislead voters and made some false claims of her own about state legislation, issued a statement condemning “violent mobs and domestic terrorists” and said “we need...

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