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This story was produced by the Oregon Journalism Project, a nonprofit newsroom covering the state.
Much has changed in the ongoing dispute over a May 20 election result for a position on the board of the Umpqua Public Transportation District in Douglas County.
At the center of the conflict was district CEO Ben Edtl, who refused to certify—or promptly pay for—the election that unseated his political ally, claiming the result was “abnormal.”
On Aug. 13, Edtl submitted his resignation from the job for which the board hired him in April. At an Aug. 18 meeting, the transit board accepted Edtl’s resignation and voted to take two other key steps: The board certified the May election results and agreed to seat Natasha Atkinson, the winner of the contested board race.
Meanwhile, incumbent Todd Vaughn, who lost his seat to Atkinson, is still contesting the result in Douglas County Circuit Court. His attorney in that proceeding, Stephen Joncus, is a co-petitioner, along with Edtl and transit board member Michaela Hammerson, for Initiative Petition 37, a proposed 2026 ballot measure that would end vote-by-mail in Oregon.
Vaughn and Joncus are due in court Aug. 22 for a status conference on the elections case. A trial is set for October.
