West
Oregon Supreme Court stops 10 GOP lawmakers from running for re-election, siding with Democrat's ballot ban
The Oregon Supreme Court on Thursday decided that 10 Republican state senators who participated in a record-long boycott last summer to block bills extending access to abortion for minors, transgender procedures and medical intervention, as well as another measure on ghost guns, cannot seek re-election this year.
The Oregon Senate Republican Caucus charged that the “Democrat-stacked supreme court sides with Democrats and union cronies on Measure 113 despite plain language of Constitution.” The caucus stressed that the state high court’s decision is “effectively ending the service of 10 Republican senators, who represent one-third of the Oregon Senate.”
The ruling upholds Democratic Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade’s announcement last August to disqualify the 10 lawmakers from the ballot under a measure aimed at stopping such boycotts. Measure 113, passed by voters in 2022, amended the state constitution to bar lawmakers from re-election if they have more than 10 unexcused absences.
Last year’s boycott lasted six weeks — the longest in state history — and stalled hundreds of bills. Five lawmakers sued over the secretary of state’s decision: Sens. Tim Knopp, Daniel Bonham, Suzanne Weber, Dennis Linthicum and Lynn Findley. They were among the 10 GOP senators who racked up more than 10 absences.
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Oregon Senate Republican Leader Tim Knopp speaks as Democratic Senate President Rob Wagner listens during a news conference on Wednesday in Salem, Oregon. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
“We obviously disagree with the Supreme Court’s ruling. But more importantly, we are deeply disturbed by the chilling impact this decision will have to crush dissent,” Senate Republican Leader Knopp said Thursday.
“I’m disappointed but can’t say I’m surprised that a court of judges appointed solely by Gov. [Kate] Brown and Gov. [Tina] Kotek would rule in favor of political rhetoric rather than their own precedent. The only winners in this case are Democrat politicians and their union backers,” Weber added.
“Every legal mind I’ve heard from, regardless of political leanings, has affirmed that when there is only one interpretation for the plain language of the law, that is final,” Bonham added. “The language incorporated into the Oregon Constitution was clear and yet the Supreme Court ruled that voter intent, which cannot be determined by any metric, supersedes the Constitution. There is no justice in a political court.”
In deciding to remove the GOP lawmakers from the ballot, Griffin-Valade had directed her office’s elections division to implement an administrative rule based on her stance.
During oral arguments before the Oregon Supreme Court in December, attorneys for the senators and the state wrestled over the grammar and syntax of the language that was added to the state constitution after Measure 113 was approved by voters.
Democratic senators sit at their desks during a roll call at the Oregon state Capitol in Salem on June 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman, File)
The amendment says a lawmaker is not allowed to run “for the term following the election after the member’s current term is completed.” The senators claimed the amendment meant they could seek another term, since a senator’s term ends in January while elections are held the previous November. They argue the penalty doesn’t take effect immediately, but rather, after they’ve served another term.
The two sides also wrestled with the slight differences in wording that appeared on the actual ballot that voters filled out and the text of the measure as included in the voters’ pamphlet.
The ballot said the result of a vote in favor of the measure would disqualify legislators with 10 or more unexcused absences from holding office for the “term following current term of office.” It did not include the word “election,” as the text of the measure that appeared in the pamphlet did. What appeared in the pamphlet was ultimately added to the state constitution.
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The state argued that in casting a “yes” vote in support of the measure, voters intended that legislators with that many absences be barred from running after their current term is up.
All parties in the suit had sought clarity on the issue before the March 2024 filing deadline for candidates who want to run in this year’s election.
The state Senate convenes at the Oregon state Capitol in Salem on May 11, 2023. The Oregon Supreme Court said Thursday that 10 Republican state senators cannot run for re-election. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman, File)
Oregon voters approved Measure 113 by a wide margin following Republican walkouts in the Legislature in 2019, 2020 and 2021, according to The Associated Press.
The 2023 walkout, which paralyzed the Legislature for weeks in preventing the state Senate from reaching a two-thirds quorum, ended after concessions from Democrats on a sweeping bill related to expanding access to abortion for minors and transgender procedures and medical intervention that Republicans had deemed too extreme and an affront to parental rights.
The initial measure would have allowed doctors to provide abortions regardless of a patient’s age, with medical providers not required to notify the parents of a minor in certain cases.
As part of the deal to end the walkout, Democrats agreed to change language concerning parental notifications for abortion. Under the compromise, if an abortion provider believes notifying the parents of a patient under 15 years old would not be in that patient’s best interest, the physician would not have to notify the parents — but would need another provider to concur. However, no second opinion would be needed if involving a parent or guardian would lead to the abuse or neglect of the patient.
Democrats said the measure will still ensure abortion access and protect caregivers from measures restricting abortion or sex reassignment procedures passed by other states. It will also require that health insurance covers “medically necessary” sex reassignment procedures for treating gender dysphoria.
Democrats also agreed to drop several amendments to a bill that would punish the manufacture or transfer of undetectable firearms. The now-removed clauses would have increased the purchasing age from 18 to 21 for semiautomatic rifles and placed more limits on concealed carry.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A former Oregon corrections officer received a lifetime hunting ban on Wednesday after pleading guilty to several poaching-related charges.
Christopher Mason, 49, of Umatilla, was sentenced in two separate court cases to 24 months of probation and 300 hours of community service. He was also fined over $114,000 and was required to forfeit his firearms.
Oregon State Police said they began investigating Mason in 2024 after receiving information that he had been poaching big game animals.
“In February 2025, OSP served a search warrant, and multiple big game animals and firearms were seized as evidence. Sixty-seven criminal charges were referred for prosecution,” officials said. “The charges spanned multiple counties.”
Mason pleaded guilty to four counts of unlawful take of buck deer and three counts of unlawful take of black bear on June 18. In a separate case on June 26, he pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a short-barreled rifle, unlawful possession of a silencer, unlawful possession of multiple wildlife and unlawful take of mule deer.
“This is another example of serial poaching which rises to the level of felony conduct based solely on the repeated poaching conduct and impact of one individual on Oregon’s game mammals,” prosecutor Jay Hall said. “The conduct across the several counties amounts to one of the highest damage amounts done to Oregon wildlife by any singular actor.”
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — In the middle of Utah’s drought, an environmental group is calling out what it labeled “hysteria” over water supplies for Wasatch Front cities.
“We’ve heard for 50 years that Utah is about to run out of water for its cities,” said Zach Frankel, director of the Utah Rivers Council. “And it’s a myth.”
Frankel, a frequent presence on Utah’s Capitol Hill, said cities — including the people who live in them — account for only a sliver of Utah’s total water use.
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He said that water rates are so low we have “the most wasteful water users in the country” and that outdoor watering could be dramatically curtailed with little to no impact.
Claims of running out of water, Frankel said, are aimed at pushing pricey, publicly funded water construction projects.
Ogden is embarking on a $100 million replacement of a 100-year-old pipeline through Ogden Canyon aimed at “improving reliability, reducing water loss, and supporting long-term water security.”
The Weber Basin Waster Conservancy District is not driving or financing the construction, but is involved with it, and the general manager called the Utah Rivers Council position “hogwash.”
“We’re not doing projects … just to spend hundreds of millions of dollars,” said GM Scott Paxman. “We are running out of water.”
Paxman said 20,000 more homes are already approved and/or permitted within the district boundaries, and even more permits are likely in Ogden Valley, Summit and Morgan Counties.
Laura Briefer, director of the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities, said the city rates have gone up, and are “encouraging conservation.”
Frankel said conservation efforts can go further, even as more and more water is diverted in northern Utah from agriculture to growing communities — water that will not end up in a near-record-low Great Salt Lake.
“If you went to the gas station and saw someone pouring gasoline on the sidewalk while simultaneously simply telling us, ‘We’re running out of gas,’ it would be, ‘What are you talking about?’” Frankel said. “Put the nozzle back.”
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NAVASOTA, Texas (KBTX) – For many Texans, the Fourth of July is about fireworks and family cookouts. At Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site, it’s also about standing where Texas’ own independence story began, and marking a milestone in how the Lone Star State became part of the nation it celebrates.
The Texas historic site, set on 293 acres of parkland along the Brazos River, is known as “Where Texas Became Texas.” It is the place where 59 delegates met and signed the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico on March 2, 1836, launching what would become the Republic of Texas.
From 1836 to 1846, Texas existed as a separate nation, before the question of annexation came to the forefront. Site staff say Washington-on-the-Brazos offers a “bookended” look at the Republic’s decade-long history because discussions about joining the United States also took place there and were ultimately voted on in the property.
This year’s July 4 programming is designed to connect those chapters of Texas history with the national holiday, including a commemoration tied directly to the Lone Star being added to the American flag.
“This is also the 180th anniversary of when Texas was added to the American flag,” said Chandler Wahrmund, assistant site manager for the Fanthorp Inn State Historic Site, which is part of the broader Republic of Texas Complex.
A historic site with multiple stops
Washington-on-the-Brazos includes several major attractions:
- Visitor Center: The recommended starting point for guests. It features interactive exhibits presenting a timeline of the Texas Revolution and includes the Museum Store, with snacks and Texas-themed items. The Visitor Center is free and is where visitors can gather information and purchase entry tickets for the site’s paid attractions.
- Independence Hall: A replica building that sits on the spot where the Texas Declaration of Independence was signed, allowing visitors to visualize where that pivotal moment unfolded.
- Star of the Republic Museum: A central museum on the grounds focused on the Republic era.
- Barrington Living History Farm: A living-history area that interprets life in the Republic of Texas period through demonstrations and activities.
The historic site is also the core of the Republic of Texas Complex, which includes Fanthorp Inn, a preserved 19th-century stagecoach inn in nearby Anderson.
July 4 events across the grounds
Staff say this year’s July 4 celebration will include activities happening throughout the site, with scheduled programs at key times.
According to site staff, the day includes:
- Flag raising ceremony at 11 a.m.
- Readings of the American Declaration of Independence at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
- Star of the Republic Museum cockade-making, creating patriotic lapel decorations
- Barrington Living History Farm games, including trap ball, a precursor to baseball
- Townsite activities at Hatfield’s Exchange, a recreated high-class bar from the period, with lemonade and other period-inspired nonalcoholic drinks for visitors
Wahrmund said the day is a chance to revisit the country’s founding words, and understand why they still matter.
“I love to read the words of Thomas Jefferson on the day, July 4th, to really understand why we exist as a nation,” he said.
Hours and admission
Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site will be open 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on July 4, and admission is free all day.
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