George K. Shiel
| George Knox Shiel | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon's At-large district |
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In office July 30, 1861 – March 3, 1863 |
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| Preceded by | Andrew J. Thayer |
| Succeeded by | John R. McBride |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1825 Ireland |
| Died | December 12, 1893 (aged 67–68) Salem, Oregon |
| Political party | Democratic |
George Knox Shiel (1825 – December 12, 1893) was a Democratic U.S. congressman from Oregon.
Born in Ireland in 1825, Shiel immigrated to the United States and settled in New Orleans. He moved to Ohio where he was admitted to the bar and began a law practice. He moved to Salem, Oregon in 1854 and continued his law practice. He was nominated for Colonel of Marion County at the 1856 Oregon Democratic Convention, and though it is unlikely he commanded any troops, he kept the title until his death.
In June 1860, Shiel was elected as a Democratic United States Representative for Oregon's at-large district. However, after the June election, the Oregon House of Representatives passed a bill moving the date of U. S. Congress elections to November, effective immediately. The Oregon Senate passed a similar bill, but that bill did not apply to the current election. Though the bills were never reconciled or signed into law, another election was held nonetheless, and was won by Andrew J. Thayer. Thayer's election was certified and he took the seat in March 1861.
Shiel contested the election on the grounds that the Oregon constitution had set the election date and no law had been passed to change it. Thayer argued that the Oregon constitution referred only to Oregon's first congressional election in 1858, and that Shiel's election in June was invalid. Since Oregonians had a right to Congressional representation, and since the Oregon Legislature had the clear intent for a November election, Thayer argued his election was the only valid one.
On July 30, 1861, the House of Representatives' Committee on Elections, led by Henry L. Dawes of Massachusetts, sided with Shiel, holding that the state constitution's June election date should be considered law, and that even if the Oregon Legislature had successfully changed it, it would have been unconstitutional.
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