Oregonians will not get to vote on a measure that would take the job of redrawing district lines out of the hands of the Democratic-controlled state legislature this November.
The measure would have amended the Oregon constitution to create an independent commission to reapportion state and congressional districts in line with population changes. County officials would have chosen commissioners to serve on the body.
The news was confirmed by Laura Fosmire, a spokesperson for Oregon Secretary of State Bev Clarno, as the result of a decision from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Gov. Kate Brown and both chambers of the state legislature will now be tasked with handling the redistricting process once the 2020 U.S. Census is completed.
A coalition of government watchdog groups and business interests backed the measure, which has since been weighed down by legal challenges over the summer that ultimately delayed its debut on the November 3 ballot.
After failing to gather the required 149,360 signatures by the regular July 2 deadline, supporters of the measure filed a federal lawsuit, claiming they were unfairly tasked with gathering signatures without being able to hold large public events amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
In August, U.S. District Judge Michael McShane lowered the signature threshold to just 58,789, which supporters successfully met.
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay, pausing McShane’s order later that month only for a three-judge panel from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to rule that the measure’s legal hurdles were too great for it to make this year’s ballot.
This is not the first time petitioners have asked Oregon judges to waive signature gathering requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In July, backers of a petition to form a “Greater Idaho” from parts of Idaho, Oregon, California, failed to make the ballot after its request to be granted a lower signature threshold was denied by McShane.
The Oregon redistricting measure will await further judgment.
