by Mia Maldonado, Oregon Capital Chronicle
October 1, 2026
A political action committee focused on electing Oregon Republicans to the statehouse is spending hundreds of thousands on a controversial canvassing company Elon Musk hired two years ago to target voters in swing districts.
The Bring Balance Back to Salem PAC, whose largest contributors include Nike cofounder Phil Knight and lumber producer Sierra Pacific Industries, paid Blitz Canvassing $650,000 between Aug. 18 to Sept. 14 to hire door knockers for the campaigns of seven Republicans running in swing state House and Senate districts, according to state campaign finance records.
Those Republicans include incumbent Rep. Kevin Mannix of Salem; challengers Noemi Legaspi of Woodburn and Max Sherman of Hebo; and four candidates running to replace lawmakers who aren’t seeking reelection: Brad Hicks of Medford, Tracy Cramer of Gervais, Courtney Bangs of Knappa and Scott Hege of The Dalles.
Mannix and Sherman declined to comment, while the five other candidates did not respond to calls or emails.
Each of the seven are running to represent closely divided districts and narrow current Democratic majorities in the House and Senate.https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/3kNsq/2/(function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(`message`,function(e){if(e.data[`datawrapper-height`]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(`iframe`);for(var n in e.data[`datawrapper-height`])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[`datawrapper-height`][n]+`px`;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})();
Denver-based Blitz Canvassing pays people $25 an hour to perform door-to-door voter outreach, according to the company’s Glassdoor postings.
People hired by the company do not always know that they are being recruited to campaign for Republican candidates, according to Wired. The news publication reported on the backlash Blitz Canvassing received in 2024 after workers hired on behalf of Elon Musk’s political action committee, which supported Donald Trump’s campaign, said they were transported in the back of a U-Haul van without seats and threatened with losing their lodging if they didn’t meet canvassing quotas.
The Bring Balance Back to Salem PAC did not respond to calls and emails from the Capital Chronicle.
Hicks, a former longtime executive of the Chamber of Medford and Jackson County, has received the most from the political committee for canvassing efforts, or $210,000. Hicks is running against Democrat and small business owner Denise Krause, as well as Independent Clay Bearnson, to replace the retiring Sen. Jeff Golden, an Ashland Democrat.
The committee spent the second-most amount of money to help Bangs, a North Coast Senate candidate. Her campaign received $171,000 to hire Blitz canvassers. She is running against Democrat and former legislator Rachel Armitage to replace Sen. Suzanne Weber, a Tillamook Republican. Weber can’t seek reelection over her participation in a six-week walkout in 2023.
Hege, a longtime Wasco County commissioner, received $112,500 from the political committee to hire Blitz canvassers for his race against Democrat Hank Sanders. The two are vying to replace Rep. Jeff Helfrich, a Hood River Republican who is running for Senate in November. The two are hoping to represent the towns across the Columbia River Gorge area in the Oregon House.
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Sherman received $91,500 to help him campaign door-to-door across the North Coast as he challenges incumbent Rep. Cyrus Javadi, a Tillamook Democrat.
Former state Rep. Tracy Cramer received $82,5000 from the political committee to help her in her senate race against Virginia Stapleton. The two are vying to replace Sen. Kim Thatcher, a Keizer Republican who, like Weber, cannot seek reelection because of her participation in the 2023 walkouts.
Legaspi, who is challenging incumbent Rep. Lesly Muñoz, D-Woodburn, received $41,250 to help with her canvassing efforts.
Mannix, a longtime legislator and attorney, received the same amount as Legaspi. He will face occupational safety professional Michael Welsh in November.
Oregon Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Julia Shumway for questions: [email protected].