Oregon Republican State Senators Denied Request to be Placed on Ballot After Terms End
Federal Judge Ann Aiken of the U.S. District Court has rejected a request from three Oregon Republican state senators to be allowed on the ballot after their terms come to an end. State Sens. Dennis Linthicum, Brian Boquist, and Cedric Hayden had filed a federal lawsuit challenging their disqualification from running for reelection under Measure 113, a voter-approved constitutional amendment. The measure prohibits legislators from seeking reelection if they have accumulated 10 or more unexcused absences.
During the 2023 legislative session, which was paralyzed by a six-week walkout, each of the three senators had more than 10 absences. The walkout was a response to controversial bills related to abortion, transgender health care, and guns. Seeking a preliminary injunction to prevent the secretary of state’s office from enforcing their disqualification, the senators’ attorneys argued that the walkouts were a protected form of political protest under the First Amendment.
However, Judge Aiken disagreed with their claims, stating that the walkouts were actually an exercise of the senators’ official power intended to hinder the legislature’s ability to conduct business. In both the Oregon Senate and House of Representatives, a quorum of two-thirds of members is required for business to be conducted. Republicans have frequently utilized walkouts as a way to protest Democratic policies and stall bills.
The federal lawsuit named Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade and Democratic Senate President Rob Wagner as defendants. The attorneys representing Griffin-Valade and Wagner argued that the senators’ refusal to attend legislative floor sessions is not protected by the First Amendment. The federal court’s decision comes just one day before the Oregon Supreme Court was set to hear a separate challenge to Measure 113.
In oral arguments, a lawyer representing another group of Republican state senators argued that the wording of the constitutional amendment has caused confusion and allows senators whose terms end in January to run in the 2024 election. All parties involved in the lawsuits are seeking clarity on the issue prior to the March 2024 filing deadline for candidates running in the next election.
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