Thomas Jay Potter (born September 12, 1940)[1] is an American politician and law enforcement officer in the U.S. state of Oregon.

[citation needed] Although the neighborhoods are considered desirable residential locations today, at the time they were largely crime-ridden and threatened by gangs.

The comment helped motivate Potter's early interest in making changes between the relationship of the police and the citizens.

He was appointed police chief in 1990 by Mayor Bud Clark, heading up the 1,300 officers in the city's largest bureau.

In the months following the 2004 primary election, Potter maintained a 2–1 lead over City Commissioner Jim Francesconi in polls with roughly 25% of the electorate still undecided through October of that year.

Potter was inaugurated on January 3, 2005, succeeding Mayor Vera Katz (who had served for three terms, but did not run for a fourth).

[4] Potter is widely credited for emphasizing diversity, and making city hall more accessible to underrepresented communities, such as people of color, immigrants and refugees, and youth.

One of his major progressive projects was working with latinx activists, as an ally, and making 39th Avenue Cesar Chavez Blvd.

[citation needed] In October 2006, Potter introduced a resolution affirming the city's commitment to the inclusion of immigrants and refugees in civic life, and convened the city's first-ever Immigrant and Refugee Task Force to recommend strategies to address barriers to engagement.

The changes included language providing for: A regular review of the charter every ten years, increased control of the Portland Development Commission by the City Council, exclusion of some city government job classes from civil service protections, and the most dramatic of the proposed changes, the establishment of a new form of government that provided greatly increased authority for the Mayor relative to the existing system.

Of the proposed changes to the charter, the form of government switch was the most debated and was characterized by opponents as a power grab.