Commissioner Jesse Beason
Pronouns: he/him/his
Jesse Beason became the interim District 2 Multnomah County Commissioner in November of 2023. Commissioner Beason has worked at Northwest Health Foundation since 2013. Before becoming President in January 2019, he served as Vice President of Strategy & Public Affairs. Prior to joining the Foundation in 2013, Jesse served as Executive Director of Proud Ground, as Senior Policy Director of Housing, Culture and Planning for then-Commissioner Sam Adams and in public affairs at Metro.
Jesse is a graduate of Neighborhood Partnerships’ Future Leaders Initiative, a Marshall Memorial Fellow of The German Marshall Fund of the United States, and recognized by Portland Business Journal as a top 40 under 40 and Portland Monthly as a Rising Star. He was a 2014 cohort member of the African American Leadership Academy.
Jesse serves on the board of directors for Oregon Climate Action, Proteus Action League, and Oregon Public Broadcasting; and the advisory boards of Funders' Committee for Civic Participation, Oregon Futures Lab, and North Star Civic Foundation. He’s member emeritus of Imagine Black, Portland Housing Advisory Commission, Regional Arts & Culture Council and National Community Land Trust Network (now Grounded Solutions).
Jesse moved from Denver, Colorado to Portland to attend Lewis & Clark College two decades ago. He’s a proud uncle, a semi-closeted sci-fi geek and a middling beekeeper. Jesse and his partner live in North Portland.
Sara Ryan
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Chief of Staff
Sara serves as the Chief of Staff for Interim Commissioner Jesse Beason's after serving as Chief of Staff for Commissioner Susheela Jayapal from 2019 - 2023. She has more than 20 years of experience working with community based organizations in both direct service and systems change. Prior to working for District 2, Sara founded the Oregon Labor Candidate School and helped many candidates get elected to the legislature, school boards and local boards. She has a BA from the University of Notre Dame and a Masters in Social Work from San Francisco State University. She grew up in Eastern Washington and has lived in North Portland with her family since 2004.
Adam Renon
Pronouns: he/him/his
Policy Advisor
Adam Renon serves as Senior Policy Advisor for Multnomah County District 2. He has over a decade of experience working in public policy, serving as an adviser to previous County Chair Deborah Kafoury, then House Speaker Tina Kotek, former Multnomah County Commissioner Judy Shiprack, and Oregon Representative Nancy Nathanson. Over that period he gained expertise in a number of fields, including criminal justice, behavioral health, public administration and inter-governmental relations. He also interned in the United States Senate and supported youth voter registration efforts and local electoral campaigns.
Matt McNally
Pronouns: he/him/his
Office & Engagement Coordinator
Matt McNally is an experienced coordinator, researcher, and communicator who joined the District 2 Office after previously serving in City Hall as Community Outreach Coordinator then Communication Strategist for Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty. A first generation graduate from Clark University in Massachusetts, his past work also includes political research with American Bridge, working across the country on the Bernie 2016 presidential campaign, and statewide organizing with the Oregon AFL-CIO.