Keith Wilson has a sizable early lead in Portland's mayoral race, though in the city's first-ever ranked-choice election, it could take days to determine a winner.

Why it matters: Whoever wins will usher the city into a new era and a new form of government.

Context: The new power setup, known as a mayor-council model, means the mayor will act as the public-facing voice for the city, breaking ties on the council and managing day-to-day operations with a new city administrator.

By the numbers: As of 8pm last night, Wilson — the CEO of a green energy trucking company — was ahead with 63% of the vote, with sitting Portland Commissioner Carmen Rubio trailing behind with 37%.

What they're saying: "We've shown we can bring together folks from every walk of life and every corner of our city and create a coalition to bring real change to Portland," Wilson told Axios in an emailed statement.

• His single-issue platform of ending unsheltered homelessness appears to have resonated with many voters.
• Wilson noted that there are still votes to count, but he "can't wait to get to work."

Caveat: Candidates with early leads in the first ballot drop are not necessarily favored to win the race, Multnomah County elections director Tim Scott told Axios earlier this week.

• A candidate will win if they receive more than 50% of first-choice votes.
• If no candidate reaches that threshold in the first round, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. Then, the voters who selected the eliminated candidate as their top choice have their votes transferred to their second pick, and so on until a winner is declared.

What's next: Multnomah County elections officials are expected to publish updated results throughout the week.

Tell a voter

Ballots are still being counted in Oregon's general election, but several key races have already been called by the Associated Press.

Catch up quick: Former Democratic Oregon state Rep. Maxine Dexter won Oregon's 3rd Congressional District race against Republican Joanna Harbour, the AP reports.

• Dexter easily prevailed over Harbour in the solidly Democratic district, which retiring U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer represented in Washington, D.C., for over 30 years.

The intrigue: In Oregon's 5th Congressional District — one of the state's most competitive races — things are a little tighter.

• Democratic state Rep. Janelle Bynum had a small lead on incumbent U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer, with nearly 48% of the vote as of Wednesday morning, per AP.

Zoom in: State Treasurer Tobias Read, a Democrat, is ahead of Republican state Sen. Dennis Linthicum in the race for the next secretary of state, with nearly 54% of the vote, per early results.

• Former Democratic Oregon House Speaker Dan Rayfield led with 53% of the vote over Republican challenger Will Lathrop for the state's attorney general seat.
• Plus: Democratic state Sen. Elizabeth Steiner was leading against Republican state Sen. Brian Boquist for treasurer, with 49% of the vote.

In the Multnomah County Commissioners race, Meghan Moyer had a strong lead over Vadim Mozyrsky for the District 1 seat, with 58% of the vote as of late Tuesday night, according to early returns from the county's elections office.

• In District 2, former Portland Mayor Sam Adams was behind Shannon Singleton, the former head of the Joint Office of Homeless Services, who had 54% of the vote.

What's next

Oregon voters are rejecting a measure in early returns that would give every resident a $1,600 annual rebate through an increase in the corporate sales tax, according to the Oregon secretary of state's office.

Why it matters: The controversial measure received fierce pushback from lawmakers, local businesses and labor unions alike.

The latest: Measure 118 had nearly 79% of votes against it as of Wednesday morning.

State of play: Measure 118 is one of five initiatives put to Oregon voters this year.

• Here's a brief look at where the other four measures stand as of 5am this morning.

Measure 115: Impeachment of Elected State Executives, with nearly 63% of votes in favor.

Measure 116: Independent Public Service Compensation Commission, with 53% of votes against.

Measure 117: Ranked-Choice Voting for Federal and State Elections was defeated, with roughly 60% of votes against, the Associated Press reports.

Measure 119: Unionization of Cannabis Workers, with 55% of votes in favor.

Go deeper

🧐 Who will sit on Portland's expanded, 12-seat City Council is still up in the air. But some frontrunners have appeared in early returns. (The Oregonian)

🛬 Union machinists voted to accept the latest contract offer from Boeing, ending a weeks-long strike that kept thousands of workers in the Pacific Northwest out of factories. (Axios)

🛼 Portland's own Rose City Rollers, the largest roller derby league in the world, turns 20 this year. It started with a nondescript ad in a local paper asking if anyone wanted to play. (Portland Mercury)

The Oregon Ducks football squad is riding high — owners of an undefeated record, the No. 1 ranking in the country and, now, the top spot in the first College Football Playoff (CFP) rankings this year.

Why it matters: As the name implies, the ranking determines the seeding for the college football playoffs, which get underway in late December.

• The top four seeds get a bye for the first round and are automatically moved into the quarterfinals.

Context: This season marks the significant expansion of the playoff field — 12 teams instead of four — and the first in which the Ducks compete in the Big Ten Conference.

Yes, but: The Ducks will need to keep winning to stay in the top four.

What's next