Tony Robertson is running for Multnomah County Commission District 2 in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election for a four-year term, according to the county’s official ballot content. The nonpartisan race has seven certified candidates. The other six are Bri Williams, Bruce Broussard, Herman Greene, Nabil Zaghloul, Nathan Ong Norris and Serena Cruz.

Robertson has not held elected office. He said in our questionnaire that he is running because he was "born and raised in District 2 and choosing to raise my own family here." He added: "I want to do more than complain about the tough times we're in and contribute to making District 2 a place where our neighbors can thrive."

Candidate information

Legal name: Anthony Robertson; he chose to appear on the ballot as Tony Robertson, according to his candidate filing with Multnomah County.

Party affiliation: "Unaffiliated," Robertson said in our questionnaire.

Hometown: Northeast Portland. Robertson said on his campaign website that he was born at Kaiser Hospital on Greeley Avenue and grew up in the district he seeks to represent. He said he was raised by a single father.

Education: "Bachelors of Arts in Social Work/Sociology, George Fox University," Robertson said in our questionnaire. He said on his campaign website that he attended Alameda Elementary, Beaumont Middle School and Benson Polytechnic High School, where he said he was a five-sport letterman. He said he attended San Diego State University and played baseball before earning NAIA All-American honors at George Fox University. Robertson said he is an inductee of both the Portland Interscholastic League Hall of Fame and the Benson High School Hall of Fame.

Family: "I've been married to my wife for 28 years. We have two sons … graduates of Central Catholic High School. My wife is an HR Director for a locally-owned small business," Robertson said in our questionnaire.

Experience and public service

Robertson listed the following work history in our questionnaire:

"Current: Customer Service and Quality Assurance Manager at the Civil Rights Division of Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries."

Previous positions he listed include housing services manager at JOIN, workforce manager at Urban League of Portland, operations manager at Hertz, owner and chief executive officer of Portland Tissue Processing Lab, real estate investor and program coordinator at Portland Parks & Recreation.

His candidate filing shows those roles spanning from 1994 to the present, covering government, nonprofit and private-sector work. He said on his campaign website that he invested in residential and commercial real estate in North and Northeast Portland for approximately 20 years and coached youth baseball, basketball and soccer for over 20 years.

On the issues

What sets him apart: Asked about critical differences between himself and other candidates, Robertson said in our questionnaire: "We need someone who will ask the hard questions united to political ambitions. I'm not a politician. I haven't been groomed to be one. I'm not interested in long-term political goals. My goal is to make meaningful forward progress as a bridge builder connecting our jurisdictions to make the experience of our residents responsive to the way regular life unfolds."

Accomplishments: Robertson cited several in our questionnaire: "My wife, Dad, and I worked tirelessly to grow our family business into the largest, independent minority-owned laboratory on the West Coast in histology." He also said that at the Bureau of Labor and Industries he is "consistently recognized as a steady force of calm, problem solving, and human-centered management."

Guiding advice: Robertson said in our questionnaire: "You never let your community down. My dad, Eddie Robertson, always taught me that you keep your word and you serve your community with heart and dedication."

Responses are based on public data and answers to a Surround Sound Media questionnaire if they were provided.