MEET DAVID
David is a third-generation resident and small businessman from Southwest Oregon who has spent his life serving his community and standing up for the people who live and work here. His approach to public service is simple: working for you, not for political insiders.
David is the son of Frank and Bonnie (Hodge) Smith, both raised in Port Orford, and he comes from a family deeply rooted across Southwest Oregon, many of whom you know as neighbors, coworkers, and friends. David learned the value of hard work, responsibility, and service at a young age as the son of a Navy Lieutenant Commander-Mustang, and by working in his family's restaurant, the Port & Starboard in Port Orford. Built in 1970 by his grandfather, Lester T. Smith, after retiring from the logging industry, the restaurant later became a family business when David's father purchased it following a 27-year career in the U.S. Navy. After working in the culinary industry in the Rogue Valley, David came back home to take over his family's 45-year business from his parents. It was then that David was asked by our communities and their residents to begin his public service work for us.
David has dedicated his career to protecting and growing the industries that built rural America: fishing, farming, forestry, tourism, and small business, while supporting responsible economic development that creates jobs and keeps tight-knit communities strong.
As a small business owner and experienced public servant, David has served in a wide range of leadership roles at the local and state level, including on the Chamber of Commerce, School Board, City Council, County Commission, State Representative, State Senator, and other boards and elected positions. These roles have given him real-world experience solving problems, balancing budgets, and advocating for working families and their employers.
Now, David is running for U.S. Senate to bring common sense, accountability, and a strong rural voice to the federal level, so that all the people of Oregon are heard, respected, and represented.
State senators write and vote on state laws and the state budget, and in most states they also confirm the Governor's appointments. In most states the senate is the smaller of the legislature's two chambers, with larger districts and longer terms than the house.