Tualatin High School alumnus Ben Bowman defeated Bob Niemeyer in the general election for Oregon House of Representatives District 25 on Nov. 8, 2022. Bowman received 64.7 percent of the votes, winning by a margin of 29.6 percent. 

Bowman is no stranger to politics, with a graduate degree in education policy, organization and leadership from Stanford University. Since receiving his graduate degree in 2018, Bowman has served as the Chair of the Tigard-Tualatin School Board. Prior to serving as the Chair, he worked for Democratic State Representative Margaret Doherty. 

In an interview with The Wolf, Bowman touched on the key issues he wants to address now that he is a member of the House. 

“On a state level, my priorities are addressing Oregon’s housing and homelessness crisis, expanding access to behavioral health care and addiction treatment and increasing support for students and teachers. I also want to help improve our civic culture in Oregon, build bipartisan relationships with my colleagues and make our government function better.”

After studying education in college and working closely with teachers and students on the school board, Bowman has developed a political platform focused on helping the youth of America. He even has a youth campaign team with students from both Tualatin and Tigard High Schools. As an alumnus of the district, he said it has been fulfilling for him to work closely with and see the changes he can make in the community he grew up in. 

“I hope that young people understand why voting and civic engagement are so important—and how they can make a difference in their community. I wouldn’t have been elected to the school board without the help and support of student leaders. I’m also excited to have student interns work in my office in the legislature,” Bowman explained. 

Campaigning can be a grueling process, with many obstacles and roadblocks. After winning the primary election in May and continuing to campaign for the general election in November, Bowman has spent months going through the campaigning process, and it hasn’t always been easy.

“The hardest part of campaigning was dealing with homophobic attacks—but fortunately that didn’t happen very often.”

However, the campaign trail also reminded Bowman that most people appreciate people like him, who want to make positive change.

“The best part of campaigning was getting to meet new people and hear their ideas. Despite all the negativity in politics, most people I met [wanted] our leaders to tone down the divisiveness and focus on solving problems—that was refreshing.”