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Golden leads Sparacino in early state Senate returns By Damian Mann Updated: Nov 08, 2022 09:17 PM A A Sen.Jeff Golden applauds before giving a speech Tuesday to a Democratic gathering at the Compass Hotel in Medford. Golden was leading in his race against Republican Randy Sparacino. [Jamie Lusch / Mail Tribune] Oregon Sen. Jeff Golden was three percentage points ahead of opponent Randy Sparacino when the first round of election returns were released just after 8 p.m. Tuesday. In the Senate District 3 race, Golden had 28,143 votes, or 52%, to Sparacino’s 25,901, or 47.88%. Senate District 3 covers much of southern Jackson County and includes Medford, Phoenix, Talent and Ashland, as well as Jacksonville and the Applegate. After his win four years ago, Golden, an Ashland Democrat, gave Democrats a supermajority in the Senate. Republicans hoped for an upset this time, pouring $1,109,438.96 into Sparacino campaign coffers, according to the Oregon Secretary of State, with most of it coming in over the past two months. Sparacino is Medford’s mayor and was previously Medford police chief. By comparison, Golden, who has campaigned on election finance reform, has received $212,071.90. Golden, a former Jackson County commissioner, has been in politics for 35 years, with stints in broadcasting and journalism. Senate District 3 has been a hotly contested race for the past two decades. In 2018, Golden’s Republican opponent, Jessica Gomez, raised more than $500,000. Golden faced attack ads from outside political groups in both the 2018 election and in the current one. Reach freelance writer Damian Mann at [email protected].