ORS 258.016
Grounds for contest

  • persons authorized to contest

The nomination or election of a person, the result of a recall election or the approval or rejection of a measure may be contested by any elector entitled to vote for the person, recall or measure, by any person who was a candidate at the election for the same nomination or office, by the public officer subject to the recall, by the Secretary of State if the contest involves a state measure, the recall of a state officer or a candidate for whom the Secretary of State is the filing officer, or by the county clerk who conducted the election, only for the following causes:

(1)

Deliberate and material violation of any provision of the election laws in connection with the nomination, election, recall election or approval or rejection of a measure.

(2)

Ineligibility of the person elected to the office to hold the office at the time of the election.

(3)

Illegal votes.

(4)

Mistake or fraud in the canvass of votes.

(5)

Fraud in the count of votes.

(6)

Nondeliberate and material error in the distribution of the official ballots by a local elections official, as that term is defined in ORS 246.012 (Definitions), or a county clerk.

(7)

A challenge to the determination of the number of electors who were eligible to participate in an election on a measure conducted under section 11 (8), Article XI of the Oregon Constitution. [Formerly 251.025; 1983 c.170 §1; 1993 c.493 §48; 1997 c.541 §313a; 2001 c.965 §29; 2009 c.511 §13]

Source: Section 258.016 — Grounds for contest; persons authorized to contest, https://www.­oregonlegislature.­gov/bills_laws/ors/ors258.­html.

See also annotations under ORS 251.025 in permanent edition.

Notes of Decisions

Challenge to PUD general obligation bond issue election was election contest under ORS chapter 258 and trial court properly applied “deliberate and material” standard of this section. Stork v. Columbia River P.U.D., 58 Or App 51, 646 P2d 1372 (1982), Sup Ct review denied

Court was without jurisdiction to consider education service district’s claim concerning validity of defendant’s election to district board as claim was election contest required under this section to be prosecuted by “elector” or “candidate.” Lane Education Service District v. Swanson, 71 Or App 328, 692 P2d 622 (1984)

Attorney General Opinions

Effect upon election’s validity of school election board clerks serving without compensation, (1975) Vol 37, p 679

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