The senators say Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade cannot bar them from seeking another term because of a constitutional loophole
Republican state senators who walked away from this year’s Oregon legislative session to block votes on abortion rights and gun safety say
they should be allowed to run for reelection next year, regardless of a
voter-approved law aimed at ending their legislative careers.
Now they’re suing for that right.
In a case with weighty implications for the legislative process in Salem, five Republican senators filed suit Friday against Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade. They are Sens. Tim Knopp, Daniel Bonham, Suzanne Weber, Lynn Findley and Dennis Linthicum.
The Republican lawmakers are hoping to convince the Oregon Court of Appeals that voters were misled last November when they passedMeasure 113, a law designed to end walkouts that Republicans have used repeatedly in recent years to halt business at the Capitol.
Under Measure 113, any lawmaker who accrues 10 or more unexcused
absences during a legislative session is blocked from seeking reelection. The question posed by the lawsuit is when.
In explanatory statements, news stories and other documents, the intent of Measure 113 was clear: Lawmakers would be barred immediately from running again.
But the five senators say the actual verbiage inserted into the state
Constitution didn’t accomplish that aim. That language says a lawmaker
who runs afoul of Measure 113 cannot hold office “for the term following the election after the member’s current term is completed.”
Since elections in Oregon are held before a lawmakers term is completed —elections occur in November, whereas legislative terms don’t end until the following January — Republicans say the constitution allows them to serve another term before penalties take effect
Since the Republican lawmakers are appealing Griffin-Valade’s rule in their lawsuit, they were able to file a case directly before the Oregon Court of Appeals, rather than first filing in a lower court. Their attorney, John DiLorenzo, said Friday that attorneys for the state have agreed the case should be expedited — potentially directly to the Oregon Supreme Court.
Republican lawmakers are paying handsomely for the legal challenge. A
political action committee set up to fund the effort is currently listed in state filings as nearly $60,000 in the hole, after a sizeable legal bill from DiLorenzo’s firm.
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