We asked the two leading candidates for Portland mayor in 2016 - state Treasurer Ted Wheeler and Multnomah County Commissioner Jules Bailey -- to answer a series of questions.

We're running their answers weekdays, Dec. 21-Jan. 1, at oregonlive.com/portland and oregonlive.com/politics. On Jan. 12, we'll give each candidate a chance to critique the other's answers.

The winner of the nonpartisan race could be decided in the May 17 primary if either candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote. Otherwise, the top two vote-getters will advance to the November general election.

Question 1: Identify the single biggest issue facing Portland and describe how you would address it.

Ted Wheeler:

The biggest issue facing Portland is our continuing homeless emergency. Improving economic opportunity, housing affordability and delivering basic services like street maintenance are at the top of my agenda, but nothing challenges the moral character of our city like homelessness. We simply cannot call ourselves a progressive city while so many people are living, and dying, on our streets.

The rules

Candidates were asked to limit answers to 300 words, with no links to outside material.

Candidates were not allowed to see each other's answers beforehand.

Answers are verbatim except for minor edits such as punctuation.

For fairness, we're alternating whose answer goes first each day.

When I announced my run for mayor, I called homelessness a "crisis on our streets," and one that was not being sufficiently addressed. I am heartened that in the weeks and months since, both the city and county have stepped up. They have dedicated additional funds to help those in the toughest circumstances, they have declared a state of emergency to cut through bureaucratic roadblocks, and they have opened additional shelter beds.

But when it comes to emergency shelter beds, we simply do not have enough. We now only have one emergency bed for every three people on our streets, in our parks or in the campsites that now dot our city. In my first two years as mayor, I will call on landlords, businesses and government to work together to ensure that we have an emergency shelter bed for every person sleeping on the streets of our city.

The Obama administration has opened up opportunities for states to use Medicaid dollars to move the most chronically homeless people off the streets and into supportive transitional housing. I'll work hard to make sure that Oregon leverages that opportunity.

Finally, it is unconscionable that children in the state's foster care system are ending up on the streets of our community. If I'm elected mayor, I will work with state leaders to ensure that every child in the Oregon foster care system has a clear transition plan into housing, job-training, employment or education.

Jules Bailey:

Portland isn't working for working families like mine and yours. Rents are rising and housing prices are skyrocketing. Commutes are longer as housing prices force more of us out of the city. Family-supporting jobs are disappearing, wages aren't keeping up, and child care is unaffordable.

The next mayor of Portland needs to understand these issues firsthand. That's why I'm running. Like many of you, my wife and I work hard to achieve the American Dream. Yet we feel that despite our efforts, that dream is slipping away. We struggled to put together a 5 percent down payment on our family's first home. We struggle to find affordable, quality child care for our infant son. And we're terrified at the prospect of saving enough money for our son's higher education. But we're going to make it happen, because we believe the American Dream is still real, that our city can still offer opportunity and a fair shake to every Portlander -- not just the wealthiest. I believe I have the right experience and dedication to bring Portlanders together to make this dream a reality.

As mayor, I will continue the work I've done through "A Home For Everyone" and in partnership with the Welcome Home Coalition to prioritize funding for affordable housing, remove barriers to requiring affordable housing, and streamline the process for affordable housing investment and development. I will prioritize local economic development to create family-supporting jobs by investing in infrastructure and local small businesses, rather than giving away tax breaks to big out-of-state corporations. I will build on the success we've had finding a home for every veteran and shelter for every child, and get people off the streets. I have done this work in the Legislature, at the county, and I can get it done as mayor.

-- Brad Schmidt and Andrew Theen

503-294-7628

@cityhallwatch