Oregon’s Elections Director, Deborah Scroggins, announced her resignation to be effective January 20 after being hired just 18 months ago.

Scroggins noted in her resignation letter that mis- and disinformation made the work of administering elections extremely challenging.

Secretary of State Shemia Fagan is responsible for filling the position.

Molly Woon will be interim elections director until a permanent replacement can be found.

Texas Secretary of State Ruth Hughs announced her resignation May 20, prompting Gov. Greg Abbott to search for the fifth secretary of state during his time in office.

Hughs’ nomination for another term as the state’s top elections officer was not taken up by the Senate Nominations Committee, effectively forcing her resignation.

Hughs stated she plans to transition back into her private practice. Her resignation will become effective May 31 when the session ends.

With the 87th legislative session nearing conclusion, Gov. Abbott’s next appointee, if made after the session, will not need Senate confirmation until the Legislature convenes again.

Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb announced Rep. Holli Sullivan will replace Connie Lawson as the new secretary of state.

Lawson, Indiana’s longest-serving secretary of state, was appointed in 2012 and won elections in 2014 and 2018.

Sullivan, who has represented House District 78 since 2014, will serve as the state’s chief election officer until the next election in 2022.

Sullivan also serves as the current vice chair of the Indiana Republican Party.

The Arizona Secretary of State sent out communication this week regarding updates to the lobbyist filing and registration process.

Senate Bill 1261, passed by the Legislature this year, removes all notarization requirements from lobbying forms.

Updated forms reflecting the elimination of notarization will be put on the state website.

Forms will also be sent to registered lobbyists in advance of the bill’s effective date on August 27, 2019.

The Arizona Secretary of State is also working to implement an online payment portal.

More information about the payment portal is forthcoming.

Secretary of State Jena Griswold will host a town hall on campaign finance reform from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. on March 6 in Boulder.

Griswold previously announced her policy priorities on January 17, calling for meaningful campaign finance reform by expanding the “paid for by” disclosure requirements on political advertisements and exercising the Office of the Secretary of State’s audit and enforcement power to act on campaign finance, ballot access, and lobbyist violations.

Griswold is hosting town hall discussions around the state to discuss her campaign finance reform objectives.

Beginning October 1, 2017, all lobbyists must register and file reports through the new lobbyist registration and reporting system.

The new system requires all lobbyists, regardless of whether they are new lobbyists or currently registered, to re-register and submit a new signature card.

Lobbyists must re-register and submit a new signature card to file third quarter reports. The new system may be accessed at the Secretary of State’s website.

On September 8, 2017, Sec. of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver adopted campaign finance rules after three months of public hearings and reviews.

Oliver introduced the rules to clarify New Mexico’s Campaign Reporting Act (CRA) and bring the CRA into constitutional compliance.

Under the new rules, independent expenditure groups will be required to disclose their significant donors if they expend on any single political advertisement more than $2,500 for a statewide race or more than $1,000 on any non-statewide race.

The rules will be effective October 10, 2017, and are available at the secretary of state’s website.

The treasurer of the state Democratic Party has filed an ethics complaint against Republican nominee for secretary of state, Nora Espinoza.

The complaint alleges violations of state law in her campaign finance reports, specifically failing to report the purpose of some expenditures, failing to identify certain vendors and spending for credit card reimbursement, and failing to properly identify some donors’ occupations, instead stating “business” or “business person.”

Espinoza is running to complete the term of former Secretary of State Dianna Duran, who resigned after misusing campaign funds.

Photo of Nora Espinoza courtesy of the New Mexico Legislature archived website.

Gov. Susana Martinez has set a date for a special election to replace interim Secretary of State Brad Winter. Winter, who was appointed to the position following the resignation of former Secretary Dianna Duran, declined to seek election to the remainder of the four-year term.

A special primary election will be held June 7, 2016. The special general election is scheduled for November 8, 2016.

Oklahoma lobbyist registration renewals are due by December 31, 2015. However, the renewal software is not yet available. Lobbyists will not be able to renew registrations until the software is ready. All registered lobbyists and liaisons will receive an email with instructions when the renewal feature is available.

At the time of renewal, each lobbyist will pay a $100 annual registration fee as well as a $100 fee for each lobbyist principal registered for 2016. If the principal is registered with the secretary of state, the Guardian System will identify when a principal has been registered multiple times to ensure only one $100 principal fee is charged regardless of the number of lobbyists who register the principal.

When a lobbyist principal is not registered with the Oklahoma Secretary of State, the system will initially charge a $100 fee for each principal regardless of whether the principal has previously been registered.

The ability to pay online at the time of registration will be provided for convenience. A lobbyist can choose to pay in person at the Ethics Commission office or by mailing in the fee.

Former Secretary of State Dianna Duran was sentenced to over seven years in jail, with all but 30 days suspended, and was ordered to pay $14,000 in restitution after pleading guilty to felony embezzlement charges. Duran, who siphoned money from her election account to fuel a gambling addiction, was also ordered to perform 2,000 hours of community service.

As part of her plea agreement, Duran has until December 16, 2015 to withdraw her guilty plea and go to trial. If she does not withdraw her guilty plea, she must report to jail by December 18, 2015.

After state lawmakers voiced concerns about problems with the state’s lobbyist reporting system, Secretary of State Mary Quintana intends to clarify campaign finance and lobbying rules.

Members of the Legislature became concerned after reports exposed confusion about what is required under the reporting system.

Quintana admitted to shortcomings in the law, and vowed to work with lawmakers and others to create new, less ambiguous rules.

Dianna Duran resigned as New Mexico’s Secretary of State late Thursday evening, the day before she was due to appear in court on embezzlement and other charges. Duran previously pleaded not guilty to allegations she funneled campaign funds into personal accounts and later used those funds at area casinos.

Her guilty plea, entered this morning, can be withdrawn if the judge decides to impose a prison sentence. The plea agreement requires Duran to pay $14,000 in restitution to campaign donors and to undergo treatment for gambling addiction.

A spokesman for the governor’s office stated Deputy Secretary of State Mary Quintana will serve as acting secretary of state until the governor can make an appointment.

The Office of the Secretary of State has given notice of a special election for state House District 24.

The election will be held on June 16, 2015, with a runoff election on July 14, 2015, if needed.

The vacancy was created by the May 11 resignation of Mark Hamilton, who announced plans to accept a private sector job in Tennessee.