Albany Democrat-Herald from Albany, Oregon • A3

AlbAny GAzette-times Wednesday, January 12, 2022 A3 1 PETER WONG Oregon Capital Bureau The House District 44 seat Tina Kotek is vacating in north and northeast Portland will be filled by appointment of the Multnomah County commissioners. It will be the ninth time this cycle, going back to the 2020 election, that a legislative seat has been filled by an interim ap- pointee. The process starts upon resignation Jan. 21. Kotek is a can- didate for the Democratic nomi- nation for governor in the May 17 primary.

Resigning ahead of the 2022 session, which is scheduled to start Feb. 1, will enable her to raise campaign funds. A House rule bars lawmakers from raising campaign money during sessions. Kotek has been in the House since 2007. The timing of resig- nation will allow someone to take the seat for part of the 2022 session, which is limited to 35 days.

Assuming a Feb. 1 start, the session will end no later than March 7. State law requires her succes- sor to be a Democrat, because she was elected as a Democrat. Democratic precinct people from within District 44 will nominate three, four or five candidates. All candidates must have lived within the current district boundaries for at least one year, and been regis- tered Democrats for at least 180 days.

They also cannot be in the custody of the Oregon Depart- ment of Corrections. The Democratic Party of Ore- gon supervises the process. Nor- mally the nomination meeting is in person, but because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, party officials can choose alter- nate methods such as mail ballots or virtual meetings. The candidates also can be ranked in order of preference, although the order is not binding. The actual appointment is made by Multnomah County commissioners because the dis- trict is entirely within the county.

They must choose from the nom- inees supplied by the party, or they can choose no one. They cannot appoint someone else. If the process is not completed within 30 days after the seat be- comes vacant, Gov. Kate Brown is empowered by law to appoint any Democrat who qualifies within the district. Unlike the county commissioners, she would not be limited to the list of nominees.

Although that happened recently, Gov. John Kitzhaber in- voked that authority twice during his first two terms as governor. In 1997, after Sen. Bill Kenne- mer of Oregon City was elected as a Clackamas County commis- sioner, the then-three member county board declined to appoint any of the nominees Republi- cans put forward for the Senate seat. Kitzhaber appointed Verne Duncan of Milwaukie, a former state schools superintendent and Idaho legislator, who ended up serving six years after Duncan won a full term in 1998.

In 2001, after Sen. Lee Beyer of Springfield was appointed to the Public Utility Commission and Rep. Bill Morrisette of Spring- field was appointed to seat, Lane County commis- sioners balked at the nominees Democrats put forward for Mor- House seat. Kitzhaber appointed Terry Beyer, Lee Bey- wife, who ended up serving through 2010. Morrisette retired from the Senate that same year, and Lee Beyer ran for and won the Senate seat again.

seat will be the ninth filled by appointment under state law since the 2020 election an unusually high number. The others in chronological or- der, with the appointee listed first: Andrea Valderrama of Port- land, a Democrat who succeeded Diego Hernandez in House Dis- trict 47 in East Portland. Hernan- dez resigned, effective March 15, 2021, ahead of a scheduled expul- sion vote after a House commit- tee concluded he committed 18 violations of a rule against sexual harassment. He was in his third term. She took the seat on April 1.

Anna Scharf of Amity, a Re- publican who succeeded Mike Nearman in House District 23 in the Mid-Willamette Valley. Ne- arman became the first sitting legislator expelled on June 10 in connection with his allowing an- ti-lockdown demonstrators, some of them armed, to enter a closed Capitol during a special session on Dec. 21, 2020. He was in his fourth term. Scharf, who once worked for Nearman, took the seat on July 6, after the close of the 2021 session.

Christine Goodwin of Rose- burg, a Republican who suc- ceeded Gary Leif in House Dis- trict 2 in Southern Oregon. Leif, who was in his second term, died of cancer July 22. Goodwin took her seat on Aug. 27. Akasha Lawrence Spence of Portland, a Democrat who suc- ceeded Ginny Burdick in Senate District 18, which currently covers Southwest Portland and Tigard in Washington County.

(It has been redrawn.) Burdick resigned Nov. 1 after 25 years to accept an appointment to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council. Lawrence Spence took her seat on Dec. 4. Lawrence Spence also was the interim successor in 2020 to Rep.

Jennifer Williamson, who resigned early in preparation for a statewide campaign Williamson later dropped. Jessica George of Keizer, a Republican who succeeded Bill Post in House District 25. Post, who was in his fourth term, re- signed Nov. 30 after moving to Nevada. She took her seat Dec.

13. Chris Hoy of Salem, a Dem- ocrat who succeeded Brian Clem in House District 21. Clem, who was in his eighth term, resigned Dec. 1 for family reasons. Hoy took his seat on Dec.

10. An appointment is in process for the seat of Sen. Betsy Johnson of Scappoose, who resigned Dec. 16 to concentrate on her indepen- dent bid for governor. Her interim successor in the Senate will be a Democrat, since most recent election in 2018 was as a Democrat.

Three Democrats have been nominated for consider- ation by commissioners in the six counties within District 16. John- son had been in the House since 2001 and the Senate since 2005. An appointment is in process for the seat of Sen. Chuck Riley of Hillsboro, who resigned Jan. 1.

Washington County commission- ers will choose from the nominees offered by Democrats. District 15 is entirely within the county. Riley was in the House six years, lost a bid for the Senate in 2010, then won in a rematch with Republican Bruce Starr in 2014. Kotek seat to be filled by appointment ANDREW SELSKY Associated Press SALEM at- torney general on Tuesday urged the state Supreme Court to promptly decide if former New York Times journalist Nicholas Kristof is eligible to run for gover- nor, after elections officials declared he Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, who until late November was herself con- sidering running for gover- nor, said in a memorandum to the court that the justices should take the case, as Kris- tof has requested, and so Last Thursday, Secre- tary of State Shemia Fagan announced that Kristof was ineligible to run in this election because he meet the three-year residency requirement. She told reporters claim to have been an Oregon res- ident the past several years pass the smell Fagan, a Democrat, said that for the past 20 years Kristof has been living, working, raising his children, holding a license, filing taxes and voting in- cluding as recently in 2020 as a New York resident.

Kristof, a Democrat who calls himself a political out- sider, quickly tweeted that failing political establish- ment in Oregon has chosen to protect On Friday, attorney, who used to be Gov. Kate gen- eral counsel, asked the Ore- gon Supreme Court to over- turn decision. Secretary of State has made the unprecedented decision to deny voters the opportunity to choose Kris- tof as their next attorney Misha Isaak wrote to the justices. They then asked Oregon Department of Justice attorneys for a re- sponse. Kristof won two Pulitzer Prizes as a foreign corre- spondent and columnist for The New York Times, and his candidacy for Oregon governor made headlines in the national media, fueling interest in a gubernatorial race that often lacks drama.

In her response to the Su- preme Court, Rosenblum urged the justices to rule on eligibility before March 17, the deadline for finalizing the list of candi- dates for the primary bal- lot, that ballots can be printed and mailed to voters on She suggested both parties file all briefs by Jan. 26 so oral arguments, if needed, could be conducted Jan. 31 or Feb. 1. attorney has also asked the court to decide quickly.

Oregon AG asks court to quickly decide candidate eligibility VANCOUVER, Wash. (AP) A shortage of bus drivers caused by a surge of the highly contagious COVID-19 omicron variant has forced Vancouver Public Schools in southwest Wash- ington to switch to a rotating schedule of remote instruc- tion in its middle and high schools, making it the latest Pacific Northwest school district to suffer impacts from the spread. Three groups of schools will take turns doing on- line instruction for one week each in a rotation that started Tuesday and goes until Jan. 27, The Columbian reported. The move comes as the district faces a sharp in- crease in staff absences due to illness or quaran- tine measures.

Vancouver Public Schools is offering a $500 hiring bonus for sub- stitute bus drivers who meet the requirements through June 15. The district, which hopes that full-time in-person learning can return to all schools in February, also had to shut down its testing site this week when test kits ran out, the newspaper reported. The district in southwest Washington is the latest in the Pacific Northwest to deal with the fallout from omicron. The Washing- ton Department of Health reported 13,733 new coro- navirus cases on Tuesday, according to The Seattle Times, but data on deaths and hospitalizations updated Tuesday because of a data systems interruption, health officials said. Oregon reported 8,040 new presumptive or con- firmed cases Tuesday and 35 deaths.

A number of districts Portland and its suburbs switched to remote learn- ing or have adjusted their schedules due to COVID-19, and Jefferson County School District shut down a K-8 school on the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs res- ervation in central Oregon this week out of concern for the tribe. Ashland School District in southern Oregon announced Tuesday that one class at the John Muir Outdoor School went virtual on Monday and its high school will go to online learning on Thursday. In Seattle, classes were canceled Monday and Tuesday at one high school and one elementary school because of staffing short- ages and Seattle Public Schools leaders are weigh- ing whether to bring back remote instruction tempo- rarily, The Seattle Times re- ported Tuesday. Portland has shifted at least four of its schools to remote instruction this week and Parkrose School Dis- trict, which also serves part of largest city, also shifted to remote learning. The Tigard-Tualatin School District announced Tuesday that they would shift to remote learning for two high schools and three middle schools starting Thursday through Jan.

21. Bus driver shortage forces schools to go remote CHRISTINA LARSON Associated Press WASHINGTON A snowy owl apparently touring iconic buildings of the capital is cap- tivating birdwatchers who manage to get a glimpse of the rare, resplendent visi- tor from the Arctic. Far from its summer breeding grounds in Can- ada, the snowy owl was first seen on Jan. 3, the day a winter storm dumped eight inches of snow on the city. Since then, been spotted in the evenings fly- ing around Capitol Hill neighborhood, landing on Union Sta- tion, the National Postal Museum, various Senate buildings, and Capitol Po- lice headquarters.

The nocturnal hunter appears to be targeting the plentiful downtown rat population. Rare snowy owl thrills crowd in D.C. ytinummoCgniviLdetsissA tiforP-rof-toNA gro.ecalPgniraCsillavroC 2002ecniS spihsdneirFgnidliuB 5780-757 145 sillavroC evA nosidaM WS 103 mp5-11 nuS mp6-01 taS-noM SU WOLLOF EAST ALBANY LIONS SPORTSMAN GUN SHOW Linn County Fairgrounds Albany Oregon EXPO BUILDING January 15th 16th, 2022 ALL PROFITS GO TO SUPPORT THE SIGHT AND HEARING CHARITIES OF THE LIONS CLUB Table Rental $50.00 before Dec 31st $55.00 after Dec 31stBuy Sell Trade Display New, Used Antique guns and related items, hunting supplies, knives, military collectibles, ammo, reloading, and lots more NO ITEM SALES OR ACTIVITIES IN VIOLATION OF FEDERAL, STATE, OR LOCAL LAWS Admission (12 and Over) NRAMembers, Active Military 250 Tables Minimum FREE PARKING FOOD ON PREMISES OPEN TO THE PUBLIC Jan 15th 9am 5pm Jan 16th 9am 3pm Set-up Friday, Jan. 14th, 12-8 pm Armed Guards Friday Saturday Nights Exit 234 off I-5 Tables not set up by January 15th will be forfeited without notice. Management not responsible for lost or stolen items, or any accidents.

For Information or Reservations Contact Eric Elder at EAST ALBANY LIONS CLUB P.O. Box 123 Albany, OR 97321 ph. (541) 812-0371 email.