Nick Kristof鈥檚 much-publicized bid to become Oregon鈥檚 next governor has encountered a long-expected hurdle: the question of whether or not the former globetrotting New York Times columnist meets the state鈥檚 three-year residency requirement for its top elected office.
The Democrat鈥檚 attorneys have argued for months that he does qualify; they even released a laying out Kristof鈥檚 upbringing in Yamhill, his long-held love for the state, and his increasing presence here recently as he took over the family farm.
But the Oregon Secretary of State鈥檚 office still has questions. A day after Kristof formally filed to run for office, state elections officials sent him notice that they need more information to decide whether he actually can.
鈥淲e typically determine whether candidates meet residency requirements by checking their voter registration records, but your Oregon voter registration record has insufficient information,鈥� Lydia Plukchi, a compliance specialty with the office, wrote in a letter to Kristof on Tuesday. 鈥淚n addition, it has come to our attention that you voted in New York State as recently as 2020. Our office has reviewed the published legal memo concerning your residency in Oregon, but the memo does not address the effect of that vote on your Oregon residency.鈥�
Plukchi requested that Kristof respond with 鈥渁ny documentation or explanation in addition to your published legal memo鈥� that he will have been an Oregon resident for three years prior to November 2022, when the general election for governor is held.
Asked about the inquiry, Kristof鈥檚 campaign said Tuesday that it is just a standard procedure. But the two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and his camp had reason to believe the subject of his residency would see scrutiny.
Earlier this month, the Secretary of State鈥檚 office reached out to Kristof鈥檚 campaign about concerns that he had not filed his candidacy yet. While Kristof in October, and has since raised millions of dollars, he had until March to officially become a candidate.
That posed potential issues for state elections officials. According to documents obtained in a public records request, P.K. Runkles-Pearson, the chief legal counsel for Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, wrote to Kristof鈥檚 attorney on Dec. 1 about some 鈥渓ogistical concerns.鈥�
鈥淢edia reports (and your substantial published memo) suggest that determining Mr. Kristof鈥檚 residency may not be as simple as consulting the [voter registration] database and checking a box,鈥� Runkles-Pearson wrote.
She added that, because determining Kristof鈥檚 residency would require legal interpretation, it is possible elections officials鈥� decision will be appealed 鈥� either by Kristof or by a campaign that doesn鈥檛 believe he qualifies for the ballot.
鈥淚n short, Mr. Kristof鈥檚 candidacy could reasonably generate an extended legal challenge, whether or not there is a determination that he meets minimum qualifications for office,鈥� Runkles-Pearson wrote. 鈥淎 legal challenge could take months.鈥�
The concern, she wrote, was that such a challenge would extend past a March deadline for printing ballots for the May primary election in which Kristof wants to run.
In a response, Kristof鈥檚 attorney, Misha Isaak, referred to 鈥渢he Elections Division鈥檚 deferential treatment of candidates鈥� own views about their residency.鈥� He attached a press release from 1992, in which former Secretary of State Phil Kiesling announced that a candidate for the state Senate qualified for the ballot after moving a trailer into the legislative district he was running in.
Without 鈥渃lear and convincing evidence,鈥� Kiesling said at the time, he would 鈥減lace substantial weight鈥� on the candidate鈥檚 sworn testimony that he intended the trailer to be his primary residence.
Kristof has said repeatedly that he has always considered Oregon his home, despite spending much of his life living on the East Coast or abroad, and voting in New York last year. His attorneys have said that the 2020 vote does not make him a New Yorker, arguing that the state allows voters to participate in elections even if it鈥檚 not their principal residence.
鈥淣othing in the Oregon Constitution or the historical sources used to interpret its meaning suggest that registration to vote in another jurisdiction alone disqualifies a person from residential eligibility for governor,鈥� the memo from Kristof鈥檚 campaign said.
Kristof has some support in his notion that this sentiment could be sufficient. In a recent op-ed, three former Oregon secretaries of state 鈥� Jeanne Atkins, Bill Bradbury and Kiesling 鈥� wrote that a candidate鈥檚 opinion on their own residence makes a difference.
鈥淲hen it came to determining candidate residency and related questions, our North Star was a simple one,鈥� they wrote. 鈥淎bsent compelling evidence to the contrary, a person should be presumed to be a resident of the place or places they consider to be home.鈥�
Melissa Navas, a Kristof spokesperson, said Tuesday that perspective should hold weight with Fagan, the current secretary.
鈥淣ick has always considered Oregon his home,鈥� Navas wrote. 鈥淭he Elections Division鈥檚 review is standard operating procedure, and three former Oregon secretaries of state have interpreted the residency standard to include, not exclude, candidates in order to protect and expand participation in our democracy; we have no reason to think Secretary Fagan would do otherwise.鈥�
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