Voting Leave Requirements in Oregon
At a glance
| Governing law | No general private-employer voting-leave statute located; related protections are Or. Rev. Stat. §§ 260.665, 260.995 |
|---|---|
| Eligible workers and elections | No statutory employee-leave eligibility; § 260.665 protects any person against undue influence intended to induce voting, nonvoting, or voting in a particular manner |
| Outside-work-hours test | None; Oregon states no general private-employer voting-leave entitlement |
| Time-off amount | None required by the located statutes |
| Paid or unpaid | No mandatory voting-leave pay under the located statutes |
| When leave is taken | No statutory voting-leave window or scheduling rule |
| Employee notice and employer posting | No voting-leave request deadline, required form, or private-employer posting duty stated |
| Protection and penalties | Actual or threatened loss of employment is 'undue influence' and may not be used to induce voting, nonvoting, or a particular vote (§ 260.665(1)-(2)); where no other civil penalty applies, the Secretary of State or Attorney General may impose up to $1,000 per violation (§ 260.995(1)) |
No private-sector time-off mandate
The located current Oregon statutes do not require an ordinary private employer to release an employee from a scheduled shift to vote. They state no leave duration, wage-continuation rule, outside-work-hours test, employee request procedure, employer scheduling authority, or voting-leave posting duty.
Oregon instead protects voting choices from undue influence. Section 260.665(1) defines that term to include actual or threatened loss of employment, along with force, violence, restraint, injury, damage, harm, other loss, and specified offers of value.
Under § 260.665(2), a person may not use that undue influence to induce someone to register or vote, refrain from registering or voting, or register or vote in a particular manner. The prohibition is not limited to employers, but its express reference to loss of employment reaches job-based threats.
Section 260.995(1) authorizes the Secretary of State or Attorney General, following an investigation, to impose a civil penalty up to $1,000 for an election-law violation when another civil penalty is not provided.
What trips people up
Protection from a threatened job loss over how or whether someone votes is not a right to interrupt work. Section 260.665 does not require leave and does not say an employer must pay for time away.
Oregon conducts elections primarily by mail, but the voting method does not itself create an employment scheduling duty. Voluntary time off remains a matter of employer policy or agreement.
Common questions
Does Oregon require paid time off to vote?
No. The located current statutes state no private-sector voting-leave or pay requirement.
May an employer threaten job loss to control a vote?
No. Loss of employment or its threat is expressly included in “undue influence” under § 260.665.
Must an employee give advance notice?
No statutory notice deadline exists because Oregon has no general private-employer voting-leave entitlement.
Statutes and sources
- Or. Rev. Stat. § 260.665(1)-(2): undue influence, including job-loss threats, used to affect voting — official text (accessed July 13, 2026).
- Or. Rev. Stat. § 260.995(1): general civil penalty up to $1,000 — official text (accessed July 13, 2026).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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