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Oregon Independent Redistricting Commission Initiative (2020)
| Oregon Independent Redistricting Commission Initiative | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 3, 2020 | |
| Topic Redistricting measures | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin Citizens |
The Oregon Independent Redistricting Commission Initiative did not appear on the ballot in Oregon as an initiated constitutional amendment on November 3, 2020.
Measure design
The measure would have created an independent citizens' redistricting commission for reapportioning Oregon's state legislative districts. Commissioners would have been selected by county officials.[1][2]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The certified ballot title for this measure was as follows:[3]
| “ | Amends Constitution: Repeals redistricting process performed by legislature; creates new redistricting commission; membership weighted toward rural areas[4] | ” |
Ballot summary
The certified ballot summary for this measure was as follows:[3]
| “ | Amends Constitution. Currently, Oregon Constitution requires legislature, which is strictly apportioned by population, to reapportion legislative districts. Statutes and Constitution set redistricting criteria. Requires 10 public hearings. Any elector may petition Oregon Supreme Court to review compliance with the law. Measure repeals current process and creates new 11-member commission to redistrict, with limits on who can serve. Rural areas with fewer residents have more representatives (thus more influence) on commission than urban areas. Measure changes constitutional, statutory redistricting requirements; eliminates requirement that legislative districts "not divide communities of common interest" and mandates district boundaries have shortest possible "aggregate linear distance. " Measure requires 5 public hearings. Need 15 electors to petition Oregon Supreme Court to review plan with review limited to constitutional defects. Other provisions.[4] | ” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article IV, Oregon Constitution
The measure would have repealed and replaced section 6 of Article IV of the state constitution. The full text of the withdrawn amendment can be read here.
Path to the ballot
The state process
In Oregon, the number of signatures required to qualify an initiated constitutional amendment for the ballot is equal to 8 percent of the votes cast for governor in the most recent gubernatorial election. Signatures for Oregon initiatives must be submitted four months prior to the next regular general election. State law also requires paid signature gatherers to submit any signatures they gather every month.
Moreover, Oregon is one of several states that require a certain number of signatures to accompany an initiative petition application. The signatures of at least 1,000 electors are required to trigger a review by state officials, a period of public commentary, and the drafting of a ballot title. Prior to gathering these initial 1,000 signatures, petitioners must submit the text of the measure, a form disclosing their planned use of paid circulators, and a form designating up to three chief petitioners.
The requirements to get an initiated constitutional amendment certified for the 2020 ballot:
- Signatures: 149,360 valid signatures were required.
- Deadline: The deadline to submit signatures was July 2, 2020.
In Oregon, signatures are verified using a random sample method. If a first round of signatures is submitted at least 165 days before an election and contains raw, unverified signatures at least equal to the minimum requirement, but verification shows that not enough of the submitted signatures are valid, additional signatures can be submitted prior to the final deadline.
Details about this initiative
- Kevin Mannix, Michele Fletchall, and Charles Lee filed this initiative on June 19, 2018.[2]
- The sponsors of the measure submitted 1,294 sponsorship signatures.[2]
- The initial certified ballot title was appealed and reissued in September 2019.[2]
- Petitioners withdrew the measure on October 31, 2019.[2]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Oregon Secretary of State, "Complete Text of Initiative #5" accessed November 16, 2018
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Oregon Secretary of State, "Oregon Secretary of State Elections Division Initiative, Referendum, and Referral Search for 2020," accessed November 16, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Oregon Secretary of State, "Attorney General Letter," accessed October 26, 2019
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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