Baretto

Business background meets public service background in Oregon House District 58 primary race

They both have an “R” behind their names, but mountains separate John Turner and Greg Barreto.

The candidates would tell you their backgrounds separate them, too.

Turner and Barreto face off in the May Republican primary. They are vying for the State Representative District 58 seat that will be vacated when Rep. Bob Jenson retires. In the November general election, the primary winner will face Democrat Heidi Van Schoonhoven, a Cove resident and La Grande business owner.

Barreto, a Cove resident and longtime Union County business owner, says his experience – three decades of owning and operating Barreto Manufacturing – sets him up for a chance to bring a private sector mindset to Salem, while Turner touts his years of public service – nine years at the helm of Blue Mountain Community College plus a long history with the Marines – and working with the Legislature.

“We see things through different lenses,” Barreto said in a recent interview with The Observer’s editorial board. “The private sector produces everything in terms of dollars.”

(For full story see Friday’s edition of The Observer)