Lively to face off Burket for Springfield seat
South Lane County will soon have a new representative, after Republican Darin Harbick defeated incumbent Charlie Conrad by a landslide at the polls last week.
With the Republican slot secured and no Democrat running for the position in the General Election in November, Harbick may as well start drawing up business cards with the State Capital’s address on them.
However, should a serious write-in candidate emerge from the Democratic side, Harbick could still face competition in November. As of Friday, there were 1,213 write-in candidate votes counted for the empty Democratic candidate seat. Election results will be certified to the Secretary of State on June 17, and the public will know more then.
That said, with a total of 8,581 ballots cast for the District 12 Republican seat, Harbick raked in 6, 569 of them — nearly 83% of the vote. Incumbent Charlie Conrad, who served as D-12’s representative since 2022, garnered 1,364 votes.
“When you win with that large of a margin, people assume it was an easy race,” Harbick said. “Let me assure you, we worked hard for each and every vote.”
Harbick considered what led him to victory. He said that he campaigned heavily in Cottage Grove — the city with the largest population in D-12 — and was endorsed by the city’s mayor, Candace Solesbee.
Harbick said that his stance on “parental rights, school choice, mental health, homelessness, and cutting through the red-tape for business owners” resonated with the voters.
“The voters sent a message loud and clear when they cast their vote on May 21. I heard them,” he said. Moving forward, “The only thing that will be different now is I will be serving a larger demographic than just my lifetime community of the McKenzie Valley. I know I can do it.”
Conrad declined comment post-election, saying that he is “still chewing on things.”
Meanwhile, in District 7 – Springfield, Democratic incumbent John Lively was the one to win in a landslide in this race. Lively, who has served in the State Legislature since 2013, garnered nearly 87% of the vote, with Democratic contender Ryan Rhoads only siphoning off 694 votes from Lively. Lively will now face off with sole Republican candidate Cory Burket in the General Election in November.
Uncontested, Springfield incumbents mayor Sean VanGordon and councilors Beth Blackwell, and Kori Rodley all keep their seats for another term, and newcomer Alan Stout will replace councilor Joe Pishioneri, who did not run for re-election.
Springfield’s Street Bond Measure squeaked by with a win, with nearly 56% of the voters saying “yes” to a five-year, $20 million general obligation bond to fund repairs for six streets, including Harlow Rd. from I-5 to the roundabout at Pioneer Pkwy. and MLK Jr. Pkwy; Aspen St. from Tamarack St. to Centennial Blvd.; G St. from 10th St. to 23rd St.; 6th St. from Main St. to Commercial Ave.; Daisy St. from S. 51st Pl. to Bob Straub Pkwy.; and 58th St. from Main St. to Thurston Rd.
On May 31, this story was updated to include information regarding the District 12 Democratic Write-In Candidate.
