Monique DeSpain

DeSpain was born in Long Beach, California, and says she made Oregon her home in 1995, when she left active duty to attend law school at Willamette University in Salem.[1] She earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Utah in 1986, a graduate degree from Central Michigan University in 1993, and a law degree from Willamette University College of Law in 1998.[1]

She served 30 years in the U.S. Air Force, Air Force Reserve and Oregon Air National Guard, retiring as a colonel. Twenty of those years were as a Judge Advocate General's (JAG) Corps lawyer, with postings including Singapore, Bosnia, Kosovo, Cyprus, Italy, the Pentagon and Oregon, where she handled investigations, litigation and military justice advice.[1] Alongside her military service, she practiced law on business and family matters, veterans' affairs and dispute resolution, and volunteered for ten years as a board member and mediator with the Center for Dialogue and Resolution in Eugene.[1]

After retiring from the military in 2019, DeSpain joined the Kevin Mannix Law Firm, working on cases for crime victims and business owners. In 2022 she joined the nonprofit Common Sense for Oregon, where she works on policy on homelessness, addiction and crime.[1] She was the Republican nominee for the 4th District in 2024 and lost the general election to Hoyle, 43.9% to 51.7%.[1][4] She won the Republican primary on May 19, 2026, to become the party's nominee again, and she also appears on the Libertarian line.[2][1] She describes herself as a single mother who raised twin sons in Eugene.[1] According to her Ballotpedia survey, she described herself as an outsider running on public safety, border security and cost-of-living issues.[1] She received 42.8% of the vote to Val Hoyle's 53.7%, according to unofficial results reported by NBC News.[3]