Multnomah County voter turnout reaches 32.49% on Election Night; voters will use ranked choice voting to elect candidates in the November General Election

NEWS RELEASE: Multnomah County voter turnout reaches 32.49% on Election Night; voters will use ranked choice voting to elect candidates in the November General Election

Multnomah County, Ore. (May 20, 2026) — With an influx of ballots returned on Election Day, Multnomah County voter turnout climbed again for the May 19 Primary Election. As of 11:30 p.m. on Election Night, voter turnout reached approximately 32.49%.

That number is expected to rise as mailed ballots that are postmarked on or before Election Day and arrive at the county Elections Office within 7 days are processed.

This election includes candidate contests for Metro Council and federal, state and judicial positions.

“Voter turnout is comparable to previous primary elections, such as the May 2022 election when voter turnout reached 36.55%,” said Tim Scott, director of Multnomah County Elections. “We're projecting almost 35% overall turnout for the election.”

Information about daily voter turnout can be found on our daily voter turnout page as well as the May 2026 Primary Election Ballot Returns dashboard.

The unofficial elections results schedule is also available online.

This election saw a steady flow of ballots returned by mail and by Official Ballot Drop Site. Multnomah County Elections encouraged voters to return ballots to an Official Ballot Drop Site location in the days leading up to Election Day to help ensure ballots were received on time to be accepted.

Thank you Election Workers

Each sworn election worker serves a valuable role in ensuring accurate, accessible and secure elections for Multnomah County voters. Election workers’ roles include collecting ballots at drop sites, running ballots through high-speed sorters, opening ballot envelopes, providing direct voter services in Portland and Gresham, answering thousands of phone calls, and countless other duties in between. The Elections Division can also employ up to 200 on-call election workers who join permanent staff to help conduct elections. We thank all election workers for their service.

Ranked choice voting coming this November to Multnomah County candidate contests

Starting this November, Multnomah County voters will use ranked choice voting (RCV) to elect all Multnomah County candidate positions.

Unlike traditional voting in which voters choose a single candidate, RCV allows voters to rank multiple candidates by preference. That means once a voter’s top choice is eliminated, their vote can automatically count toward their next-ranked candidate.

In November 2022, voters approved measures to require the use of ranked choice voting for all City of Portland and Multnomah County candidate contests.

Portland voters began using ranked choice voting in November 2024 and Multnomah County voters will join Portlanders in using ranked choice voting to elect all Multnomah County candidates this November.

The specific RCV contests on the ballot this fall include Multnomah County Chair, Auditor, Sheriff and District 2 Commissioner.

With the use of ranked choice voting, there are no longer May primary elections for Portland or Multnomah County candidate contests.

Now is a great time to get acquainted with the new voting process. Check out the guides, videos, mock election options and more by visiting multco.us/rcv or by calling 503-988-8683 (VOTE) to learn more about RCV.

Track Your Ballot

Ahead of the November 2026 General Election, Multnomah County voters are encouraged to sign up for our Track Your Ballot Service! More than 168,000 voters have signed up for the service.

Track Your Ballot lets voters know when their ballot is mailed out to them and alerts voters when their ballot has been accepted for counting or whether it requires further action. Voters will also receive a special Oregon “I Voted” sticker (ready to share on social media!) inside the “Accepted Ballot” message.

Nov. 3, 2026, General Election

Local elections are important and count tremendously in the decision- making that shapes the future of our communities. Thank you to the thousands of voters in Multnomah County who participated and made sure their voices were heard.

The next scheduled election in Multnomah County is the Nov. 3, 2026, General Election. You can find information on the November 2026 General Election webpage, including deadlines and important dates for voters.