Sam Adams Won't Seek Re-election as Portland's Mayor

The openly gay mayor of Portland, Sam Adams, announced today that he will not seek re-election because a campaign would be too time consuming.

"For me to win re-election as mayor, I would need to fundraise and campaign full-time, starting now," he wrote to residents in a letter posted on the city's website.

Adams was dogged by controversy almost immediately after winning election in 2008, when he admitted lying about a sexual relationship he had with a teenaged legislative aide named Beau Breedlove. The mayor refused calls for him to step down and instead served out the remainder of his term.

Among his accomplishments on the job, Adams added comprehensive transgender health care benefits to one of the available plans for city employees. If he had chosen to campaign for a second term, Adams reasons that it would inevitably take time away from his work as mayor.

"As I have considered the reality of a possible re-election effort, I have come to the conclusion that I have a choice: Move this agenda forward, or campaign full-time for re-election," he wrote. "Making progress... is the reason that I entered public service. We have a lot more work to do."

Adams has 18 months left on the job.