Former New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof is not eligible to run for governor of Oregon because he does not meet the state’s three-year residency requirement, the Oregon Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
"Today’s Supreme Court ruling excluding me from the ballot is, of course, very disappointing. But while I won’t be on the ballot, I’m not giving up on our State. I know we can be better. I will continue working to help people who are struggling, who lack opportunity and hope," Kristof tweeted.
EX-NEW YORK TIMES COLUMNIST NICHOLAS KRISTOF ANNOUNCES HE'S RUNNING FOR OREGON GOVERNOR
The Democrat's eligibility to run as Oregon governor faced scrutiny since a candidate has to be a resident for at least three years, and he cast his ballot in New York during the 2020 election. He argued, "My soul is here," but it turns out the state's highest court doesn't agree with him.
"The rules are the rules and they apply equally to all candidates for office in Oregon. I stand by the determination of the experts in the Oregon Elections Division that Mr. Kristof does not currently meet the Constitutional requirements to run or serve as Oregon Governor," Secretary of State Shemia Fagan said in a statement last month.
Kristof had appealed the decision to justices, to no avail.
In a sworn statement, Kristof told election officials that he moved as a 12-year-old with his parents to a farm in Yamhill, Oregon, in 1971, and has considered it to be his home ever since.
The liberal columnist has since purchased additional acreage nearby and his lawyers said Kristof has paid taxes on the properties and that he filed Oregon income tax returns for 2019 and 2020. However, Kristof voted in New York in the 2020 election and justices ruled he doesn't qualify to serve as Oregon governor as a result.
In October, the two-time Pulitzer Prize winner officially announced he would run after weeks of speculation following his exit from the Times after 37 years. In his campaign video, Kristof touted his career as a journalist, saying while he has never held political office, he had "spent a lifetime shining a light in the darkest corners of the globe," adding, "it broke my heart when I'd return from crises abroad only to find crises here at home."
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Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek and state Treasurer Tobias Read are Democrats currently running for Oregon’s governor’s office, which the party has held since 1987.
Republicans seeking their party’s nomination include state Rep. Christine Drazan, former Republican nominee Bud Pierce and Sandy Mayor Stan Pulliam, while ex-Democratic state Sen. Betsy Johnson is running as an independent.
The Associated Press and Fox News' Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.