In a letter addressed to Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, Oregon Elections Director Deborah Scroggin has submitted her letter of resignation. She is the second Elections director on a row to resign shortly after a general election. In 2020, almost exactly two years ago, Election Director Steve Trout resigned.

“Deborah has a lot to offer elections administration at a time when this work is so critical for our country,” said Secretary of State Shemia Fagan. “I thank Deborah for her service to Oregon and wish her the best of luck in the future.”

Scroggin‘s resignation will be effective January 20th, 2023. Molly Woon, Strategic Projects Director and Senior Advisor to Secretary Fagan, will take over as Interim Director until a permanent replacement is hired.

Ms. Woon has over 15 years’ experience in public service, working in the state legislature, in city and county government, and in the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office for Secretary Fagan and former Secretary Jeanne Atkins. In her current role, she serves as the primary liaison between the Secretary and the Oregon Association of County Clerks and accompanied Secretary Fagan on the vast majority of her 36 county elections office meetings in the past year. Among her recent projects, she led the work to disperse $2 million in election modernization funds, she is leading several innovation projects focused on election modernization, and she was responsible for day-to-day coordination between the Elections Division and the Secretary of State’s Executive Team during the November 2022 election.

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“Molly Woon is the perfect fit to provide stability in the Elections Division during this transition,” said Secretary Fagan.

In her letter to Secretary Fagan, Scroggin said,

I am writing to inform you that I am tendering my resignation as Director of the Oregon Elections Division effective January 20, 2023 I want to thank you for the opportunity to serve Oregonians in this position. After careful consideration, I have decided to seek other opportunities outside the Secretary of State’s office.

We are at an extraordinarily challenging time for elections officials. Mis and disinformation have made the work of administering elections extremely challenging. Increasing complexity and funding uncertainty has stretched the state and counties thin. These challenges make the work we do all the more important.

We have made progress by building strong systems at the state level that will protect democracy in Oregon, and I want to thank everyone on the team for their hard work these past two years.

--Staff Reports

Post Date: 2022-12-09 16:30:31

Last Update: 2022-12-09 16:49:22