June 16, 2026
Romi Oji of Portland won the 2026 Oregon Civics Bee today and has earned the right to represent Oregon at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s National Civics Bee® in Washington, D.C. Romi was one of nine students who qualified to participate in today’s competition, which was moderated by Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read.
Presented by Kinder Morgan with support from the Oregon State Capitol Foundation, the competition began in fall 2025. Sixth, 7th and 8th graders throughout Oregon were invited to submit essays explaining how they’d use civics principles to address problems they identified in their communities. A panel of judges chose the best essays, and their writers were invited to participate in the contest’s three regional civics bees, which took place in April in Beaverton, Eugene and Tigard. The top finishers in those bees qualified for the Oregon Civics Bee, which took place in the House Chamber of the Oregon Capitol in Salem.
The Oregon Civics Bee began with a quiz-style competition moderated by Secretary of State Read. The top five scorers in the quiz round then made the case for their essays in front of a panel of judges, which included Calli Daly, director of state government affairs at Koch Government Affairs (and chair of the OBI Research and Education Foundation); Allen Fore, vice president of public affairs at Kinder Morgan; and Bob Repine, secretary of the Oregon State Capitol Foundation.
In her essay, Romi proposed a method of addressing food insecurity that consisted of a tax credit system for food donations and a tax on food waste.
The top three finishers in the Oregon Civics Bee received cash prizes. Romi received $1,000, runner-up Lydia Radecki of Tualatin received $500, and third-place finisher Ishwantia Ravi of Portland received $250.
The Oregon Civics Bee was organized by Oregon Business & Industry in partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.
OBI would like to thank Secretary of State Read for moderating the Oregon Civics Bee and Kinder Morgan and the Oregon State Capitol Foundation for providing support.
The National Civics Bee® will take place in Washington, D.C. in fall 2026.