Public Notice · District Elections

Two Seats Open on the K.I.D. Board in 2026

Directors will be elected this November from Division 3 and Division 4. On 13 August 2026 the Board of Directors approved conducting the 2026 election by mail, as Article 6, Section 2 of the District's Bylaws and ORS 545.163 allow.

Election Day Tuesday, 10 November 2026 Ballots must be received by the District no later than 8:00 p.m.

Why this matters

Klamath Irrigation District is a special government district organized under Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 545, governed by five directors elected by the landowners the District serves — one from each division. Those five people set the budget, set assessment rates, hire the District Manager, and direct the District's policy position in every proceeding that touches your water.

How the District is run, and how patrons take part, is set out on the District Governance & Accountability page — the water rights and legal framework the District operates under, the Bylaws and governance documents, the board meeting agendas and minutes, and the budget and audits.

Dates to put on the calendar

27 Aug 2026 Nomination filing period opens. Nominations are filed with the Secretary of the Board no more than 75 days before the election.
11 Sep 2026 Board openings advertised, as required at least 60 days before the election.
6 Oct 2026 Nomination filing period closes. Nominations must be on file at least 35 days before the election. A candidate not nominated by this date cannot be elected.
20 Oct 2026 Voter registration deadline. A completed District Elector Registration Form must be delivered to the District office at least 21 days before the election.
10 Nov 2026 Election Day. Voted ballots must be received at the District office by 8:00 p.m. Postmarks do not count.

Dates are calculated from the statutory election date under ORS 545.135 and the deadlines in ORS 545.137 and the District's Election Procedures.

Can you vote?

District elections are not the same as county, state, and federal elections. Being registered with Klamath County does not register you to vote with K.I.D. You must register separately with the District, and that registration then stays in effect until your ownership changes.

You are an elector of the District if you are 18 or older and you own — or are the purchaser under a recorded contract of purchase for — land inside the District that is subject to District charges or assessments. This holds whether or not you live in the District, or even in Oregon — the statutory definition of an elector reaches every qualifying owner "whether a resident of the district or state or not" (ORS 545.002, carried into Article 5, Section 1 of the District's Bylaws). Note that the rule for directors is different: a candidate must be an Oregon resident. Corporations, partnerships, LLCs, trusts, and estates that hold qualifying land vote through a designated representative.

Votes are weighted by acreage: one vote below 40 acres, two votes from 40 acres through 160, and three votes above 160. The District counts exactly 40 acres as two votes. The count is based on all of your eligible acreage anywhere in the District, not only the acreage in the division where you vote. When your registration is certified, the Election Official records how many votes you may cast and which division you vote in.

Where land is held jointly — spouses, tenants in common, or any other multiple ownership — one vote is allowed for the ownership, cast by any one of the owners. Voting by proxy is not allowed in irrigation district elections.

How to register to vote

This is how you register to vote. It is a separate process from filing to run for a director seat — see “Thinking about running?” below for that. Registering to vote does not put your name on the ballot, and filing for office does not register you to vote.

Pick up a blank Elector Registration Form at the District office, then return it completed — in person or by mail — with:

  • Your full legal name, mailing address, and date of birth
  • Your street address, if you live inside the District
  • A legible copy of the deed or contract of sale for each parcel you own inside the District
  • The assessor's tax lot number for each parcel
  • For an entity or trust: the resolution, bylaws, operating agreement, or certification of trust showing who is authorized to vote

The form must reach the office by 20 October, not merely be postmarked by then. Section III.B of the Election Procedures requires a completed form to be delivered to the District's business office not less than 21 days before the election. Mail is delivery, but the clock runs on arrival — if you are close to the deadline, bring it in.

If you own land in more than one division and live in one of them, you vote in the division where you live. If you own in more than one division and do not live in the District, you choose one division to vote in and file that choice with the Secretary of the Board. That choice is permanent: under ORS 545.207 it stands until your ownership status changes in any way, or until you become a resident owner.

Forms are not available online. The Elector Registration Form is picked up in person at the District office from the District Elections Officer, Cherrese Wilson. The governing documents are posted on our website:
K.I.D. Election Procedures · K.I.D. Bylaws (amended 14 August 2017)

Thinking about running?

To serve as a director you must be a resident of Oregon and a bona fide owner — or a shareholder of a corporate owner — of land within the division you would represent. Directors serve three-year terms beginning at the annual organizational meeting in January.

Nominations are made one of two ways: by petition signed by at least ten electors (ORS 545.041) qualified to vote in that division, or at an assembly of not fewer than 25 electors. Not more than one elector of a multiple ownership may sign a petition or vote at an assembly. Completed nominations go to the Secretary of the Board.

Petitions are notarized by the District Elections Officer, who validates that every signature belongs to an elector registered to vote in that division, and who checks the one-signature-per-multiple-ownership limit against the District's own assessment roll. Both checks are done at the District office — the County keeps no record of who is registered to vote with K.I.D. Plan around this: a supporter who is eligible but has not registered with the District does not count toward the ten. Because petitions are due 6 October while registration runs to 20 October, your signers need to be registered before you submit the petition, not merely before the election.

You must be registered to vote in the division you are running to represent. If you are not sure which division your registration sits in, ask the Elections Officer before the filing window closes — under ORS 545.207 your voting division follows where you live, or the permanent choice you filed as a nonresident.

Filing for office is a separate step from registering to vote, and you must do both. Nomination forms and petitions are not posted online. Pick them up in person at the District office from the District Elections Officer, Cherrese Wilson, who will provide the forms and whatever other assistance is appropriate. District employees cannot give legal advice to a candidate, so questions about eligibility or signature validity should go to your own attorney.

One more thing worth knowing: if only one qualified candidate is nominated for a seat, no election is held for it. The Board declares that candidate elected. Seats have gone unfilled and uncontested in this Basin before. If you have been meaning to step up, this is the year to file.