Sam Adams (Oregon politician)

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Sam Adams is an elected official from Oregon. In 2004 he was elected to the Portland City Council, defeating attorney Nick Fish. His victory came as a surprise in light of the primary election results, which saw Fish take a considerable lead. After the primary, Adams shifted campaign managers and tactics from a focus on traditional fundraising to grassroots outreach, which took advantage of his personal energy and charisma. Adams appeared in the news by standing on street corners waving at citizens with a sign that read, "Honk for the Wonk." The sign was a response to Mr. Fish, who dismissed Adams as a "wonk" who knew too much about local government.

Commissioner Adams is Portland's Commissioner of Public Utilities; he runs the Portland Office of Transportation (PDOT) and the Portland Bureau of Environmental Services (BES). He also serves as Portland City Council's liaison to the Arts and Culture and Small Business communities. As part of managing PDOT, he inherited the responsibility to oversee development of the Portland Aerial Tram, one of the world's few urban aerial trams. It links the South Waterfront district to the upper campus of Oregon Health & Science University. During its development, the project was plagued with controversy due to poor cost estimates. When Adams assumed responsibility for PDOT and, consequently, control of the project, he replaced the external consultants responsible for the poor cost estimates with in-house expertise. The project was completed on time and revised budget, and is fully operational. It opens to the public on January 27, 2007.

Adams and his staff regularly maintain a blog highlighting their activities in the community, especially pertaining to Adams' priorities such as arts & culture, livability & environment, and transportation.

Before being elected, he was Chief of Staff to Mayor Vera Katz. He took office on December 31, 2004 and his term is scheduled to expire in 2008. Adams is known as a highly energetic office holder, frequently spending 16 hours per day on the job. In response, the press periodically speculates that he may be preparing for a future mayoral bid.

Adams was the first openly gay member of Portland's City Council.