Walter Leslie AuCoin served nine terms in the United States House of Representatives between 1975 and 1993. He was the first Democrat elected to Oregon's 1st Congressional District since its creation in 1882. When he left the seat in 1992 to run for the Senate, he was 84th in House seniority, dean of the Oregon House delegation, a majority whip at large, and a veteran member of the House Appropriations Committee, having served on both the Defense Subcommittee and the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee. Before serving in the US House, AuCoin served two terms in the Oregon House of Representatives, from 1971 to 1975, becoming the House Majority Leader in 1973.
As a prominent alumnus of Pacific University, AuCoin donated his professional papers to the Archives in 2020. The Les AuCoin Papers includes over 180 boxes of speeches, office files, press releases, and media clippings related to AuCoin's 22 years in public office. This digital exhibit provides a brief overview of his time in office, as well highlights from his most significant work related to human rights, environmental policy, and arms control.
Credits
Special thanks to Les AuCoin for donating his personal papers to the Pacific University Archives.
Website created by Project Archivist Caroline Kinsley in 2022
Revisions by Pacific U. Archives 2023-present