The following statement was released by Sho Dozono's campaign manager Monday, regarding his decision to stay in the Portland mayoral race:

“For all the people who want a different direction in City Hall, who are working for me or some other candidate or cause they believe in, I say, quitting is not an option. I am announcing today that I will continue my campaign for Mayor of the City of Portland. I intend to run a vigorous and competitive campaign to end the same old politics that protect City Hall insiders and the status quo”, said Dozono.

“This is about a City Hall insider, who thinks he is entitled to the Mayor's job -- using every political maneuver possible to eliminate his only competition. Commissioner Adams championed a flawed system that Sho tried to make work and he receive specific instructions from the Auditor…only to have Sam Adams spend $10,000 to over rule the Auditor’s decision. If Commissioner Adams gets his way, the system will be forever rigged to protect the incumbent and the status quo. Sam Adams’ legal challenge was never done to protect the system; it was done for his own self-interest. Commissioner Adams has a hard time distinguishing what is in the public’s best interest and his old-style inside City Hall manipulation of the Voter-Owned Elections process is the wrong politics for Portland and demonstrates, yet again, why Sam Adams is the wrong candidate to lead our city”, said campaign manager Amie Abbott.

“Now let's get serious about what Commissioner Adams calls the need to protect the integrity of the system, reinforcing the values of transparency and fairness. During the course of his administration, while planning to run for Mayor, Sam Adams conducted polls, created an in-house campaign staff, created an independent, city operated website and sent mailings to Portland households. Sam Adams was promoting a plan that would be a cornerstone of his candidacy for Mayor…a 400 million dollar transportation TAX on Portland homeowners and businesses. The worst part about that was he did it all with tax payer monies, converting the Bureau of Transportation into his own self-promotion machine and campaign slush fund”, said Abbott.

Abbott stated further, “In the name of integrity, fairness and transparency, I challenge Commissioner Adams to release the real budget and expenditures for this campaign he conducted at the public’s expense. Ask the hard working city employees; about the commissioner’s behavior. With the true numbers out in the open, the public will be able to distinguish between what Sam Adams did that was good for them from what was good for Sam Adams…he can have his day in court on May 20.”

“I look forward to the campaign ahead...there is a lot to talk about when it comes to bringing about the kind of change that makes the future better for all Portlanders.and in determining which candidate for Mayor is best able to bring a new perspective on leadership that harnesses the energies of all our citizens to do what is best for Portland”, said Dozono.