Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan said Tuesday that she would resign on May 8, a rapid fall that came just days after the Democrat acknowledged she’d been doing paid consulting work for a cannabis company at a time when her office was finishing an audit into how the state regulates such businesses. Deputy Secretary Cheryl Myers will take over for Fagan until Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek appoints a successor to a post that will next be on the ballot for a full four-year term in 2024, and state law requires her to pick a Democrat.
Until last week, Fagan looked like a likely future contender for higher office. In 2020 she regained the secretary of state’s office for her party by defeating her fellow state senator, Republican Kim Thatcher, 50-43, a victory that made her first in line to become governor in the event of a vacancy. (Oregon is one of five states that lacks a lieutenant governor, though Arizona will start electing one in 2026.)
But her situation began to deteriorate Thursday when the Willamette Week reported Fagan spent the last two months consulting for an affiliate of a cannabis company owned by two of her major donors, revelations that came the day before her office released a report arguing the state needed looser regulations for the industry. While auditors have insisted that Fagan had no role in their conclusions, it didn’t help that state and federal revenue collectors have filed a total of $7 million in liens against those owners and their businesses while vendors have also sued them.
Kotek responded to the news by asking state officials to investigate the matter, while Fagan’s chief of staff soon announced she’d be quitting. Fagan said Monday she’d left that $10,000 a month gig, which paid significantly more than her $77,000 salary as secretary of state, and argued she’d followed state ethics rules, though she acknowledged she’d shown “poor judgment.” She also said she’d recused herself from the audit days before signing on as a consultant, though the report was almost complete by then.
None of this was enough to stop Fagan’s former allies from arguing she needed to resign, with the head of the powerful SEIU Local 503 saying her problems were distracting from the legislature’s work. Kotek and the legislature’s top four Democrats responded to her Tuesday departure by saying her move was necessary to restore trust in state government.
Can we have fairer, more representative elections in the U.S.? Absolutely, says Deb Otis on this week's episode of "The Downballot." Otis, the director of research at FairVote, tells us about her organization's efforts to advocate for two major reforms—ranked-choice voting and proportional representation—and the prospects for both. RCV, which is growing in popularity, not only helps ensure candidates win with majorities but can lower the temperature by encouraging cross-endorsements. PR, meanwhile, would give voters a stronger voice, especially when they're a minority in a dark red or dark blue area.
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Until last week, Fagan looked like a likely future contender for higher office. In 2020 she regained the secretary of state’s office for her party by defeating her fellow state senator, Republican Kim Thatcher, 50-43, a victory that made her first in line to become governor in the event of a vacancy. (Oregon is one of five states that lacks a lieutenant governor, though Arizona will start electing one in 2026.)
But her situation began to deteriorate Thursday when the Willamette Week reported Fagan spent the last two months consulting for an affiliate of a cannabis company owned by two of her major donors, revelations that came the day before her office released a report arguing the state needed looser regulations for the industry. While auditors have insisted that Fagan had no role in their conclusions, it didn’t help that state and federal revenue collectors have filed a total of $7 million in liens against those owners and their businesses while vendors have also sued them.
Kotek responded to the news by asking state officials to investigate the matter, while Fagan’s chief of staff soon announced she’d be quitting. Fagan said Monday she’d left that $10,000 a month gig, which paid significantly more than her $77,000 salary as secretary of state, and argued she’d followed state ethics rules, though she acknowledged she’d shown “poor judgment.” She also said she’d recused herself from the audit days before signing on as a consultant, though the report was almost complete by then.
None of this was enough to stop Fagan’s former allies from arguing she needed to resign, with the head of the powerful SEIU Local 503 saying her problems were distracting from the legislature’s work. Kotek and the legislature’s top four Democrats responded to her Tuesday departure by saying her move was necessary to restore trust in state government.
Can we have fairer, more representative elections in the U.S.? Absolutely, says Deb Otis on this week's episode of "The Downballot." Otis, the director of research at FairVote, tells us about her organization's efforts to advocate for two major reforms—ranked-choice voting and proportional representation—and the prospects for both. RCV, which is growing in popularity, not only helps ensure candidates win with majorities but can lower the temperature by encouraging cross-endorsements. PR, meanwhile, would give voters a stronger voice, especially when they're a minority in a dark red or dark blue area.
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