Nike co-founder Phil Knight has contributed $3 million to help Republicans get elected in Oregon.
Knight made the donation Oct. 22 to the Bring Balance to Salem PAC, which has aimed to elect Republicans to the Oregon Legislature, campaign finance records show. The donation was disclosed Friday in accordance with campaign finance rules.
It is the single largest donation Knight has made to an Oregon candidate or political action committee, according to campaign finance records. Willamette Week was the first to report on the donation Monday.
With Knight’s donation, the political action committee now has $3.93 million in cash on hand.
Knight has been making large contributions to the Bring Balance to Salem PAC since 2022, donating a total of $2 million each year from 2022 to 2024 in an effort to reduce Democratic control over Oregon’s Legislature.
Democrats currently hold supermajorities in both legislative chambers, with a 18-12 majority in the Senate and 37-23 majority in the House. With a three-fifths majority in both chambers, Democrats can push through new taxes or increase existing ones without Republican support.
In 2022, Knight also contributed a total of $3.75 million over several months to former Democratic state Sen. Betsy Johnson, who was running for governor as a non-affiliated candidate. He then pivoted late in the race and contributed a total of $1.5 million to now-state Sen. Christine Drazan, a Republican from Canby. Drazan and Johnson lost to Democrat Tina Kotek, who was elected governor.
Drazan plans to challenge Kotek for governor again in 2026.
