Rep. Darlene Hooley (D-Ore.) announced Thursday that she will not seek a seventh term in Congress, adding her name to a short list of Democratic retirements and creating the first Democratic-held battleground open seat.

Hooley’s sudden departure sets up a competitive race to fill a seat that frequently changed parties before she was elected in 1996. Republicans currently maintain a significant registration advantage there and President Bush won the district by one point in both 2000 and 2004.

“There is a verb in the title Representative, and representing the people of Oregon’s 5th congressional district for the last 12 years has been my greatest honor and privilege,” Hooley said. “All the terrific ideas that I’ve been able to turn into reality have come from Oregonians, from identity theft protection to consumer product safety to honoring our veterans and ensuring Oregon Guard members are given due respect for their heroic efforts.”

Hooley, 68, was born in North Dakota. She first got involved in politics in the 1970s, when local council members wouldn’t replace rugged asphalt on a playground where her son cut his head.

She served on city council, in the state House and on the Clackamas County board before being elected to the House in 1996, defeating freshman Republican Rep. Jim Bunn. Since then, she has built a reputation for consumer advocacy issues and a largely moderate voting record.

Hooley is just the eighth Democrat to vacate her seat this cycle. Three of them are seeking Senate seats, one died, and one, former Rep. Marty Meehan (Mass.), left for the presidency at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell.

Hooley’s seat is certain to be among the most competitive, as it has gone back and forth between the two parties over the years and was held by two Republicans and two Democrats in the 1990s alone.

The GOP has long targeted Hooley to no avail, but an open-seat race should draw plenty of attention from both parties.
Businessman Mike Erickson, who lost by 11 points in 2006, was already running again and will apparently retain the loyalty of many members of the party even if other candidates jump in.

Both the state and national party issued statements supportive of Erickson.

“Darlene Hooley’s decision not to run is a testament to the candidacy of Mike Erickson,” said a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, Ken Spain. “He will be in a strong position to compete for the seat given his strong record as a businessman and as an aggressive campaigner.”

Two names immediately rose to the top as potential Democratic candidates: Clackamas County Commissioner Martha Schrader and Paul Evans, an Iraq veteran and adviser to Gov. Ted Kulongoski (D). Schrader told The Hill she will announce by Monday, while Evans said he will decide by early next week.

Anyone else weighing a bid will have only a month to deliberate, with the state’s filing deadline set for March 11.

Evans, who lost a state Senate race in 2006 and has also served as mayor of Monmouth, appears to be a favorite among some influential Democrats. His wife, Joan, is Hooley’s chief of staff.

“I’m one of those guys who believes you measure twice and you cut once,” Evans said. “The focus today is making sure that attention is spent on Darlene.”

Schrader stressed that she would be a conservative candidate who can win in a tough district, but she emphasized that she was truly undecided at this point.

“We have some real significant issues coming down the pike in this county, particularly in the land use and environmental arenas, so I have to decide whether it’s right for me to leave the work I’m already doing,” Schrader said.

A spokesman for the state Democratic Party, Marc Siegel, said the Democrats’ prospects remain strong in the seat.

“We don’t know who the candidates are, but the Republican brand stands for keeping American troops in Iraq and obstructing change in Washington, D.C.,” Siegel said. “The 5th district isn’t going to support that.”