Greg Walden

Greg Walden
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon's 2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1999
Preceded by	Bob Smith
Member of the Oregon Senate from the 28th district
In office 1995–1997
Preceded by	Wes Cooley
Succeeded by	Ted Ferrioli
Member of the Oregon House of Representatives from the 56th district
In office 1989–1995
Preceded by	Wayne H. Fawbush
Succeeded by	Bob Montgomery
Personal details
Born	January 10, 1957 (1957-01-10) The Dalles, Oregon
Political party	Republican
Residence	Hood River, Oregon
Alma mater	University of Oregon
Occupation	Former broadcasting executive
Religion	Episcopalian

Gregory Paul Walden (born January 10, 1957) is the U.S. Representative for Oregon's 2nd congressional district, serving since 1999. He is a member of the Republican Party. He is the only Republican representative in the state of Oregon.

The district covers more than two-thirds of the state (generally, east of the Cascades). He is the son of Paul E. Walden, three-term Oregon state representative.

Early life, education and career

Walden earned a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Oregon in 1981. Before being elected to Congress, Walden owned and ran radio stations.

Political career

Walden served as Press Secretary and Chief of Staff to Congressman Denny Smith from 1981 to 1987. He was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives in 1988 and served in the House until 1995, when he was appointed to the Oregon State Senate to fill a vacancy. Walden rose to the position of assistant majority leader in the Senate and was considering a bid for Oregon Governor in 1994. However, upon discovering that the son he and his wife were expecting had a heart defect, Walden decided to not run for Governor and to not seek re-election to the state Senate. Their son died soon after birth.

In 1996, Walden announced he was running for the 2nd District as an independent. The district's freshman Republican incumbent, Wes Cooley, whose 1994 campaign Walden had managed, had been caught in several lies about his military service. Cooley's reelection chances were already in serious jeopardy, but it was generally believed that an independent bid by Walden would allow the Democrats to sneak up the middle and win a seat they hadn't held since 1981.^{[citation needed]} Ultimately, the Republicans persuaded Cooley's predecessor, Robert F. Smith, to come out of retirement.^{[citation needed]}

Smith didn't run for reelection in 1998, and endorsed Walden as his successor.^{[citation needed]} Walden easily won the Republican primary and breezed to election in November and has been reelected five times. Though his district contains some liberal-leaning communities such as Ashland, most of the district leans heavily Republican, and Walden has always been reelected easily. In 2002, he defeated Democrat Peter Buckley, who later became a member of the Oregon House of Representatives. In 2006, Walden defeated Democratic candidate Carol Voisin, and in 2008 he won a sixth term with 70% of the vote over Democrat Noah Lemas and Pacific Green Tristin Mock. Following the defeat of Senator Gordon Smith in the 2008 elections, Walden became the only Republican to represent Oregon in the United States Congress.

U.S. House of Representatives

Party leadership

Walden has been chosen by Speaker John Boehner to be chairman of the House Majority Transition Committee. He served as chairman of the House Republican Leadership through most of 2010.

Committee assignments

• Committee on Energy and Commerce
  • Subcommittee on Communications and Technology (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Power

From 2010 to 2011, Walden gave up his seat on the Committee on Energy and Commerce, at Republican leadership request so that Parker Griffith, who had recently switched parties, could take his spot on that committee.

Walden founded the Small Brewers Caucus (see Alcohol in Oregon) and the Digital Television Caucus; as of 2007, he was a member of 39 congressional caucuses:

Oregon Congressmen Earl Blumenauer (left) and Walden, hiking on Mount Hood during a 2005 fact-finding trip.

Walden is also a member of the centrist Republican Main Street Partnership.

Personal life

Walden and his wife, Mylene, live in Hood River with their son Anthony. They are members of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America and participate in local civic groups such as the Rotary Club and the Chamber of Commerce.^{[citation needed]}

On October 20, 2009, it was reported that Walden was the first Member of Congress to contract the H1N1-A (Swine Flu) Virus.

Civic involvement

• Hood River Elks Club
• Hood River Rotary International
• National Student Leadership Foundation, Honorary Board of Advisors

Walden is a former member of the Boy Scouts of America Board of Directors, the Columbia Bancorp Board of Directors, the Hood River Memorial Hospital Board of Directors, and the Oregon Health & Sciences Foundation Board of Trustees.

Business interests

On January 31, 2007, Walden sold Columbia Gorge Broadcasting, which runs five stations in the eastern Columbia River Gorge, to Bicoastal Columbia River LLC in order to avoid any conflict of interest that might arise with his congressional duties.

Electoral history

Greg Walden General Electoral Results 1998–2010

Year		Democrat	Votes	Pct		Republican	Votes	Pct		Libertarian	Votes	Pct		Socialist	Votes	Pct		Constitution	Votes	Pct		Pacific Green	Votes	Pct
2010		Joyce B. Segers	72,173	25.86%		Greg Walden	206,245	73.91%		No candidate				No candidate				No Candidate				No Candidate
2008		Noah Lemas	87,649	25.75%		Greg Walden	236,560	69.49%		No candidate				No candidate				Richard D. Hake	5,817	1.70%		Tristin Mock	9,668	2.84%
2006		Carol Voisin	82,484	30.35%		Greg Walden	181,529	66.80%		No candidate				No candidate				Jack Allen Brown Jr.	7,193	2.64%		No candidate
2004		John C. McColgan	88,914	25.63%		Greg Walden	248,461	71.64%		Jim Lindsay	4,792	1.38%		No candidate				Jack Allen Brown Jr.	4,060	1.17%		No candidate
2002		Peter Buckley	64,991	25.76%		Greg Walden	181,295	71.86%		Mike Wood	5,681	2.25%		No candidate				No candidate				No candidate
2000		Walter Ponsford	78,101	26.12%		Greg Walden	220,086	73.63%		No candidate				No candidate				No candidate				No candidate
1998		Kevin M. Campbell	74,924	34.81%		Greg Walden	132,316	61.48%		Lindsey Bradshaw	4,729	2.19%		Rohn Webb	2,773	1.28%		No candidate				No candidate

External links

• U.S. Congressman Greg Walden official U.S. House website
• Greg Walden for Congress official campaign website
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Profile at SourceWatch

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Bob Smith	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon's 2nd congressional district 1999–present	Incumbent
United States order of precedence
Preceded by Mike Thompson D-California	United States Representatives by seniority 161st	Succeeded by Joe Baca D-California