Jeff Duyck formally appeals ballot disqualification
Jeff Duyck, the GOP candidate in HD29, has appealed his disqualification from the legislative race. From the O:
Duyck acknowledged that his home lies outside of District 29, which makes him ineligible to hold the office based on the Oregon Constitution.But Duyck said the majority of his Forest Grove property -- and his postal address -- are inside in the district. He said he was certified by Washington County and state election officials as living in District 29, and he's "consistently participated in the electoral activities" of the district.
For those reasons, Duyck said, he should satisfy the constitutional requirement of being a resident of the district. Furthermore, Duyck offered to move into a residence that is wholly within the boundary line.
Meanwhile, Washington County has committed to improving its services, to ensure that this doesn't happen again:
Duyck, whose house was less than 125 feet across the boundary line into District 26, was erroneously entered into the county's voter registration database as residing in District 29. When county officials checked the database to verify Duyck's eligibility for office, he popped up in the wrong district.Since discovering the mistake, the county will use mapping technology to verify candidate's eligibility, Bransford said. Officials will work to validate the database and physically verify registration after the next state redistricting in 2011.
Discuss.
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July 11, 2008
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Jul 11, '08
Hey, wait a minute. I heard this guy getting mocked for not knowing what district he was in, but it sounds like the County TOLD him he was in the wrong district.
I think in this instance, he ought to be allowed to run in the wrong district. If the folks in that district don't want him representing them, then they won't vote for him.
Jul 11, '08
Let's see:
1) He doesn't live in the district, as required by the Constitution.
2) If he "moves" to the new district, he won't have lived there for a year, as required by the Constitution.
What's the issue here?
10:49 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
"I think in this instance, he ought to be allowed to run in the wrong district. If the folks in that district don't want him representing them, then they won't vote for him."
Breaking the law, breaking the law!
(thanks, judas priest!)
11:18 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
Long-time resident of HD 29 here...
As a fair-minded Oregonian I very much empathize with Duyck's predicament and frustration. I'd be pissed if it I were him.
But... two wrongs don't make a right.
The bottom line here is that Duyck doesn't live in the district and his offer to move into the district comes approximately one year too late to have any legal merit.
Where I think Duyck might well have legal merit would be in suing to recoup the money he's spent. Seems to me that he spent it in good faith and ought to be reimbursed. But that's the limit of his legal merit as far as I can see.
11:58 a.m.
Jul 11, '08
it sounds like the County TOLD him he was in the wrong district.
...and that justifies violating the Constitution? Really?
(I have heard an interesting wrinkle on this: it might be possible for him to RUN -- but if he wins, he can't SERVE. Though I gotta think you have to be eligible to serve in order to run in the first place.)
3:07 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
Yet another reason we need to rewrite that ol' Constitution. Dumb rule. (And no, I don't care that he's a Republican, the same thing could have happened to any candidate, and it's not right.)
Representation based on rigid, but ever-changing, geographic rules, is just silly and outdated. Surely we can come up with something better.
5:13 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
They're not ever changing - they change every 10 years after the census. Those districts are made up from census blocks to try to get as close to even districts as possible.
No matter what you do, a district is always going to mean a certain number of people based on the census. And you have to have a way to break down where those districts are. Following census lines in such a way that you try to make district lines follow already set borders (whether those be man-made like streets or natural like rivers) is the easy way to do it.
No matter how we were to change things, we will always have districts that have set borders.
That's why anytime you run for office that you should look at the map and see where in the covered area your residence is. And if you see you're right near the border, I'd recommend a second check using the census data to ensure you really are where you think you are.
People think this is so crazy, but it only takes a few minutes. I did the same when I was moving and saw our new residence was near the border.
10:13 p.m.
Jul 11, '08
TJ,
"I fought the law, and the law won"? The Clash, covering ??