SALEM, Ore. (AP) – A boycott by Republican state senators in Oregon threatens to derail dozens of bills, including gun control and abortion rights, as a deadline looms that could also alter the political future of the demonstrators.
Democrats control the Statehouse in Oregon, but under the rules they still need a certain number of Republicans to be present in the chambers to pass legislation.
Republican and Democratic leaders of the Oregon Legislature met behind closed doors for a second day Thursday to try to bridge the gap as the boycott entered its ninth straight day, with partisan abortion bills, the affirmative gender and gun control at stake. Lawmakers with 10 unexcused absences are barred from re-election under a constitutional amendment overwhelmingly approved last November by voters tired of repeated absences.
Several statehouses across the country, including Montana and Tennessee, have been ideological battlegrounds. Oregon: has been a pioneer in the decriminalization of marijuana, recycling, and the protection of immigrants, is often considered one of the most liberal states in the United States. But it also has deeply conservative rural areas.
This clash of ideologies has caused the Senate to be out of action since May 2, with pending bills piling up and the biennial state budget, which must be passed by both the House and Senate by the end of June , it is not done. Democrats control both the House and Senate, but two-thirds of members must be present for a quorum, and the GOP is taking advantage of that rule.
To allow time for negotiations, and to prevent boycotters with nine unexcused absences from reaching this 10-day wire, Senate President Rob Wagner agreed to cancel Senate sessions that were scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Sunday . Instead, it was scheduled to meet again on Monday.
“I hope this agreement to stop the Senate sessions will create room for progress,” Wagner said.
About 100 people, including members of Moms Demand Action, a gun safety group, protested the march Thursday afternoon on the steps of the Oregon State Capitol in Salem.
“Get back to work,” they chanted.
“We demand that you appear!” Liz Marquez, political organizer for PCUN, a farm workers union, said over the loudspeaker. “Every day, Oregon workers report for difficult and sometimes dangerous jobs.”
Oregon Republican lawmakers have filibustered several past legislative sessions. In a boycott, they were supported by dozens of truckers who surrounded the Capitol while honking their horns, fearing that a bill addressing climate change would negatively affect them.
This time, Republican senators insist their absence is largely due to a 1979 law, rediscovered last month by a GOP Senate member, that requires project summaries to be written at an eighth-grade level . Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp said Republicans also want Democrats to drop “their more extreme bills.”
But for Democrats, it’s obvious that the readability issue is just an excuse to prevent progress on Democratic priority bills, like the 2002 House bill aimed at protecting abortion and care gender-affirming health care for transgender people by increasing legal guarantees and expanding access and insurance coverage. .
“It’s very clear that there is a concerted effort to undermine the will of the people and stop the Legislature in violation of the Oregon State Constitution,” Wagner said as he closed the May 5 session. for lack of quorum “It is also clear that this is an effort to prevent this chamber from holding a debate 2002 House Bill.″
Knopp, the GOP Senate leader, said Thursday that he hopes canceling this weekend’s Senate sessions will “give us time to craft a legitimate deal that benefits all Oregonians.”
But Wagner says the abortion rights and gender affirmation bill is non-negotiable.
A prolonged boycott by Senate Republicans would throw into doubt not only the remainder of the 2023 term, which is set to end on June 25, but could sow complications for next year’s primaries and general election.
That’s because it’s unclear how boycotters would be disqualified from running again. The 2022 ballot measure is now part of the Oregon Constitution, which was amended to state that 10 or more unexcused absences “shall disqualify the member from serving as a senator or representative for the term following election a upon completion of the member’s current term.”
A disqualified candidate “can run in the next primary and general election and win, but can’t hold office,” says a explanatory exhibition for Ballot Measure 113, filed with the Oregon Secretary of State and signed by a former state supreme court justice and others.
Ben Morris, a spokesman for the secretary of state’s office, said the secretary of state’s elections division should be able to prevent a disqualified candidate’s name from appearing on the ballot.
“A lawmaker who violated M113 would not be eligible to run in the next election,” Morris said in an email. “Although this may differ from the statement of reasons, courts have interpreted election statutes to indicate that a presenting officer may not allow a candidate to appear on the ballot if he knows that the candidate will not be able to hold office.”
Republicans are expected to file legal challenges to the constitutional amendment if they are disqualified.
The union SEIU503, which represents health care workers, nonprofit employees and public workers across Oregon, strongly supported the ballot measure. Union Executive Director Melissa Unger said just because Measure 113 didn’t prevent a walkout doesn’t mean it’s a failure.
“The reality is that all things take time to change,” Unger said Thursday. “So I guess we’ll have new senators in two years, and maybe they’ll learn a lesson.”
