Portland mayor’s campaign sued by rival, others over large donations

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler’s reelection campaign is being sued by mayoral candidate Sarah Iannarone and others, saying nearly $175,000 his campaign accepted in large donations should be deemed illegal.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports city elections officials independent of his control had ruled that the donations were allowed under a court ruling in effect until last week.

The campaign donations the lawsuit challenges were over a $500-per-donor limit approved by Portland voters in 2018. In a landmark reversal, the Supreme Court ruled last week that the county contribution limits don’t violate Oregonians’ right to free speech.

Portland election officials now say they plan to enforce the $500-per-donor limit beginning Monday, but won’t retroactively enforce the cap.