Multnomah County chair has unparalleled power to block proposals she doesn’t like

Four women, wearing red and black, walk abreast ahead of sign-carrying people behind them across a broad sidewalk on a bridge. One woman holds a huge sign in front of her body that reads "Multnomah County vs Big Oil."

The chair of the Multnomah County Commission has unparalleled power to determine what proposals come before the commission and which do not. Last June, four of the county's five commissioners were photographed protesting the role of big oil in creating climate change. County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson held the biggest sign, while fellow commissioners, from left, Lori Stegmann, Susheela Jayapal and Julia Brim-Edwards also walked across the Hawthorne Bridge.Motoya Nakamura / Multnomah County

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Multnomah County’s elected chair has the power to unilaterally decide what proposals come before the county commission – and which do not.

That little-known authority, unparalleled among other large local government heads, is attracting scrutiny as simmering political tensions grip the county’s elected body.

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