SPRINGFIELD – Sean VanGordon has been involved in Springfield government since 2011, and most recently as the City mayor. This election year, he is taking his role one step further and running for Lane County Commissioner.
On Monday, VanGordon and David Loveall, the incumbent, announced their campaigns for the Lane County Commissioner seat representing Springfield.
“Lane County faces significant challenges, compounded by misguided policies from the state, but my priorities haven’t changed. I’ll continue putting public safety, economic growth, and common-sense governance first,” Loveall stated.
VanGordon joined the city council in 2011, where he represented the Gateway Area under Ward 1 for over a decade. After that, the Springfield City Council elected VanGordon to serve as the Interim Mayor in 2021, and he ran unopposed in 2022. His current term expires in 2028.
According to his LinkedIn account, he currently works for Optum, a healthcare company, as a director of financial and capacity planning.
David Loveall is a lifelong Lane County resident and local entrepreneur, married 45 years to his wife Nita, with three children. He served six years in the United States Navy and later built a career in photography and real estate. Loveall has played a vital role in revitalizing downtown Springfield, investing in new housing and business spaces.
Since taking office, Loveall said he has championed fiscal responsibility, “fighting waste, speaking out against unnecessary projects, like ‘Clean Lane,’ that increase costs on families, and defending residents’ property rights,” according to his campaign announcement.
VanGordon hosted a press conference at Lovely in downtown Springfield on Monday.
The mayor emphasized the importance of community effort and the local government’s role in economic development, infrastructure, and public safety.
“I believe in a Lane County where every community, urban and rural, has the tools to grow, where kids can see a future here and families don’t have to leave the places they love to find security, where government feels like a partner that you can call, not a system that you have to fight,” he said.
VanGordon highlighted the progress Springfield has made during his leadership and noted how his experience at the local level will help translate to the county level.
“I think the biggest thing that my experience over the last 15 years has brought is really how to effectively work on boards. One of my strengths as a business person and elected official is my ability to sort of understand different things from staff, from the community, from other elected officials, and really translate that for each other,” he said. “Really, I want to run to be able to help the county be as effective as they can possibly be to serve more businesses in Springfield.”
“I am not backing down,” Loveall stated. “The issues at the county are real, and Springfield deserves a commissioner who will be honest even when it’s unpopular, not compromise or back down from them.”
Lane County residents can expect to see VanGordon’s and Loveall’s names on the May 2026 primary ballot.
