Ten lawmakers in the Oregon Senate will be ineligible for reelection later this year, the Oregon Supreme Court ruled Thursday, aligning with a new amendment to the state’s constitution after senators participated in a record-long walkout last year to stall bills on abortion, transgender health care and gun rights.
The state senators—nine Republicans and one independent—protested against bills covering abortion, ... [+]
Republicans started a boycott of legislative sessions on May 3, 2023, after Oregon’s Democratic-led House approved a bill that protected access to abortion and gender-affirming health care for transgender residents in the state and another that raised the minimum age requirement for purchasing semiautomatic weapons.
The announcement of the boycott also followed a successful vote for Measure 113, an amendment to the state constitution that would ban lawmakers from reelection if they had more than 10 unexcused absences.
As many as 13 lawmakers joined the walkout, though only 10 reached the unexcused absence threshold: Republican Sens. Tim Knopp, Lynn Findley, Bill Hansell, Kim Thatcher, Art Robinson, Suzanne Weber, Daniel Bonham, Cedric Hayden, Dennis Linthicum and independent Sen. Brian Boquist.
Knopp—the Senate minority leader—suggested the boycott would continue until the legislature’s final session on June 25 so they could pass “lawful, substantially bipartisan budgets and bills,” arguing Democrats were threatening to “shut down the government if they don’t get their way.”
The boycott ended on June 15 after both parties agreed to compromises on several bills, including a provision to the abortion bill requiring a physician to notify the parents of a patient under age 15 unless it’s in the patient’s best interest and the removal of a clause from another bill that raised the minimum age requirement for purchasing semiautomatic weapons.
Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade announced in August the state would uphold Measure 113 and disqualify any lawmakers with 10 or more unexcused absences from reelection, a decision Knopp and four other Republicans sued to overturn, arguing the amendment was “unambiguous” because its language suggests they would be granted another term before being barred.
Oregon’s Supreme Court said Thursday it agreed with Griffin-Valade’s interpretation of Measure 113, shutting down the Republicans’ lawsuit. The court also said it believed voters in the state understood the amendment could result in lawmakers being barred from reelection.
Knopp told Politico the five lawmakers “obviously disagree” with the court’s ruling, adding they are “deeply disturbed by the chilling impact this decision will have to crush dissent.”
The walkout is the longest in Oregon’s history and the second-longest of any U.S. state, trailing a six-month walkout by Republicans in Rhode Island’s state Senate in 1924. Republican state senators in Oregon have walked out three times previously, with boycotts each year from 2019 to 2021.
Oregon High Court Says 10 GOP State Senators Who Staged Long Walkout Can’t Run For Reelection (Politico)
Oregon GOP Senators End 6-Week Walkout After New Agreements On Abortion, Gun Bills (Associated Press)