Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan announced Tuesday she is resigning office effective May 8, a major turn in a moonlighting scandal that broke out just last week.

“It is clear that my actions have become a distraction from the important and critical work of the Secretary of State’s office,” Fagan said in a statement released through her office just after 11 a.m. Tuesday. “Protecting our state’s democracy and ensuring faith in our elected leaders – these are the reasons I ran for this office. They are also the reasons I will be submitting my resignation today.”

Fagan, 41, said she believes any investigations of her actions would “show that I followed the state’s legal and ethical guidelines in trying to make ends meet for my family.”

Gov. Tina Kotek said Fagan called her Tuesday morning and Kotek told her she supported the decision to resign.

“It is essential that Oregonians have trust in their government,” Kotek said. “I believe this is a first step in restoring that trust.

Deputy Secretary of State Cheryl Myers will fill-in for Fagan on a temporary basis until Kotek names a replacement for Fagan. Emily McLain, Fagan’s chief of staff, also resigned.

Secretary of State’s office spokesman Ben Morris said there would be no other immediate staff changes.

Kotek is required by the state constitution to appoint a member of the same party to fill the vacancy. Fagan is a Democrat.

Kotek press secretary Elisabeth Shepard wrote in an email Tuesday evening that no public announcement was imminent.

“The Governor is visiting multiple counties this week on her One Oregon Listening Tour and we’ll plan to follow up with more information next week,” Shepard wrote.

If confirmed by the Senate, the replacement would serve the remainder of Fagan’s term until the winner of the 2024 election takes office in January 2025.

Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp, R-Bend, who had called on Fagan to resign, called the decision “the right thing to do.”

“Treasurer Tobias Read and former State Senator Mark Hass would be good appointments that could return integrity to the SOS office,” Knopp said in a text from the Senate floor. Hass narrowly lost to Fagan in the 2024 Democratic primary. Read cannot run for a new term in 2024 because of term limits. 

Hass could not be reached for comment, while Read told OPB he was interested in the idea, but is not sure yet if he would pursue an appointment. OPB also quoted former Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, who retired last year, saying he would serve if asked. OPB said Courtney would be a short-term option if Kotek wants a reliable steward in the position but leave Democratic options open for the 2024 election when the position is on the ballot.

As the elected treasurer, Read now replaces Fagan in the line of succession to to become governor if the state’s top office becomes vacant because of death or other events.

The secretary of state conducts audits of state agencies and spending of state funds, oversees public records and archives, and registers businesses in Oregon.

The office is also Oregon’s chief elections officer — though balloting is handled by local officials in Oregon’s 36 counties.

Kotek said an immediate goal is to provide continuity and public confidence during the upcoming May 2016 elections.

“My office will do everything possible to support the hard-working staff in the Secretary of State’s office.”

Scandal builds, leaders react

Fagan’s decision to step down was a stark turn of events over six days.

Willamette Week first reported April 27 that that Fagan had signed a contract to do outside consulting contract work for a subsidiary of La Mota, a cannabis dispensary company run by major Democratic donors. The company had also been in the news for problems with back taxes owed the state Department of Revenue and regulatory issues with the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission.

Fagan said at the time that the $10,000-per month contract to assist a La Mota subsidiary with applying for cannabis licenses in other states wasn’t a conflict of interest.

Republican leaders in Oregon called for Fagan to resign. 

“This appears to be an ethics violation and if it isn’t then Oregon’s ethics laws are broken,” Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp, R-Bend, and House Minority Leader Vikki Breese-Iverson, R-Prineville, said in a joint statement.

On Friday, Kotek said she was “dismayed” by Fagan’s outside work. House Speaker Dan Rayfield, D-Rayfield, and Senate President Rob Wagner, D-Lake Oswego, expressed bewilderment and concerns. 

On Saturday, Kotek called for a state ethics investigation of Fagan’s work. She also asked the state attorney general to review an audit released last week by the Secretary of State’s office critical of the OLCC’s level of regulatory restrictions. Fagan said she had no impact on the report’s findings.

Oregon Public Broadcasting also reported Fagan had reached out to at least one fellow public official, Connecticut Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz, to ask about licensing protocols for that state. Bysiewicz told OPB her staff had directed Fagan to public information officers of state agencies involved in cannabis regulation.

Fagan rapidly shifted direction of her responses after the weekend amid a growing backlash.

On Monday, Fagan announced she had terminated the contract with La Mota, would do no more outside work, and apologized to Oregon voters.

“I exercised poor judgment by contracting with a company that is owned by my significant political donors and is regulated by an agency that was under audit by my Audits Division,” Fagan said in a statement.

Fagan said she would use the remainder of her term to rebuild confidence in her and the office of Secretary of State.

On Tuesday, she announced her resignation.

By noon Tuesday, Rayfield, Wagner, House Majority Leader Julie Fahey, D-Eugene, and Senate Majority Leader Kate Lieber, D-Beaverton issued a joint statement saying Fagan’s actions eroded trust in the public and also with legislators who use audits to shape legislation.

“This breach of trust became too wide for her to bridge,” the statement said. “Her decision to resign will allow the state to move on and rebuild trust.”

House Republican Leader Vikki Breese-Iverson, R-Prineville, said the problem was also the result of Democrats holding all state executive offices and majorities in both chambers of the legislature.

“The level of abuse Secretary Fagan flaunted from her official position is just another example the extreme measures of one-party rule in Oregon,” Breese-Iverson said.

Jamie McLeod-Skinner, the Terrebone attorney who was defeated in the three-way 2020 Democratic primary for secretary of state, said she had empathy for the impact on Fagan as a person, but said leaving office was the best move.

“That had to be the toughest decision she’s ever had to make, but it was the right decision,” McLeod-Skinner said. “Public service is a great honor. It’s now in the Governor’s hands to decide the appointment and I’m confident she’ll do so in the best interest of Oregonians.”

Fagan’s resignation means two of the state’s top jobs – secretary of state and treasurer – will be on the ballot in 2024 without an elected incumbent. The ballot will also include attorney general, which does not have term limits. Ellen Rosenblum has held the office since 2012, but has not yet indicated if she will run for re-election.

Among Republicans mentioned in a possible 2024 electoral mix: 2020 GOP governor nominee Christine Drazan of Canby and Sen. Kim Thatcher of Salem. Drazan is the former House minority leader. Thatcher lost the 2020 race for secretary of state to Fagan, but was elected to the Senate in 2022.