This story will be updated at 8pm on Monday with the first election results.
Raymond Akers, a union operating engineer and precinct committeeman for the Morrow County Republican Party, is challenging incumbent Rep. Greg Smith, R-Heppner, for the GOP nomination for House District 57.
Smith has represented House District 57, which encompasses all of Morrow, Gilliam, Sherman, Wheeler counties and parts of Wasco, Jefferson, Marion, Umatilla and Clackamas counties, since 2002.
Akers described himself as a “conservative alternative to what we’ve had for the last 24 years.”
He said he would prioritize facilitating the construction of affordable housing, job growth and the protection and management of the district’s natural resources, starting with drinking water.
Akers also said his conservative Republican values would drive his work in the Legislature.
Smith did not respond to questions from the Statesman Journal.
No Democrats have registered to run in the primary, so the winner of the Republican primary will be the only name on the November general election ballot for the district.
Dianne Lugo covers the Oregon Legislature and equity issues. Reach her at dlugo@statesmanjournal.com or on Twitter @DianneLugo
This article originally appeared in the Salem Statesman Journal: Election results: Raymond Akers and Greg Smith compete in Republican Party primaries
