There is an old saying in politics that there are two major parties in America and one is the party of evil and the other is the party of stupid. The Republican Party is viewed as the party of stupid and that is particularly true in Colorado. The Republican Party in 2001 was on a roll looking like it would be the dominant party in the state. The Democrats then began changing the election rules to their benefit.
First, they put on the ballot a requirement for all mail-in ballots, which was overwhelmingly rejected by the voters in 2002. But then, with the help of the Republican Secretary of State, no excuse absentee balloting was instituted in 2004. In 2013 with Democrats in control of the Governor’s office, the Senate, and the House, they adopted all mail-in balloting even though the voters had previously rejected it. Did the Republicans then put on the ballot a rejection again of all mail-in balloting? No, of course not. Then in 2016 they had the voters approve semi-open primaries where independents could vote in either major party primary (although not in both).
By 2018, the Democrats and gubernatorial candidate Jared Polis began widespread ballot harvesting, and no Republican has since won any statewide election. It is well known that ballot harvesting is an invitation to voter fraud. What is more shocking is what is allowed with ballot harvesting. Did Colorado Republicans then go to court like in Delaware which found it unconstitutional? No. Did the party support closing its primary by ballot or by the courts? No. Did they support a ballot initiative to outlaw ballot harvesting? No.
Instead the changes have resulted in primaries where independent voters choose semi-Democrats as Republican standard bearers like Joe O’Dea for U.S. Senate and Pam Anderson for Secretary of State. Conversely, Democrats often have single person primaries, and their candidates tend to appeal to their base of voters.
Jon Caldara, The One-Eyed Man in the Party of the Blind
Republicans, like former state party chair and Congressman Ken Buck, call the Colorado system the “gold standard.” Former Republican Secretary of State Wayne Williams goes on television in an ad, paid for by the taxpayers’ COVID-19 funds praising the system, and the spot acted as a political advertisement for Democrat Jena Griswold for Secretary of State.
What have Republicans done to protest the clearly one-sided political system? They have told all their voters to wait until election day and vote in person. Brilliant! It guarantees a lower turnout by Republicans and Republican leaning independents, as with only one day to vote, all type of emergencies can develop preventing even the most ardent person from voting that day.
Conversely, the Democrats urged their voters to vote as soon as possible and give their ballots to trusted Democrat ballot harvesters. Thus, Democrats have a three week Get Out the Vote (GOTV) to get their voters to the polls. Essentially the Republicans have no GOTV as they can’t canvass recalcitrant Republican voters who say they intend to vote in person.
Republicans think ballot harvesting stinks and so they won’t do it. Jon Caldara, head of the Independence Institute, a free market think tank, is at least a one-eyed man in the party of the blind. He wrote a column for the Colorado Gazette (which is controlled like the Independence Institute, by Phil Anschutz) titled “Embrace a Vote Harvesting System.” He makes the obvious point that if one side ballot harvests and the other doesn’t, the one that doesn’t will lose.
But the head of the Colorado Republican Party Kristi Burton Brown doesn’t get it. She has done nothing with ballot harvest or GOTV, at least nothing that is in any manner effective.
Watching elections in Colorado is like watching a heavyweight boxing fight with the Republican Party voluntarily tying one hand behind its back and getting pummeled.
It’s looking more and more like there will be a red wave nationally. But we don’t think it will wash up through the Colorado Rockies. With probably the dumbest state Republican Party in the country, Republicans will likely at most make some minor gains and perhaps win the new 8th Congressional District. It has been said that if Republicans can’t make major gains in Colorado in 2022 it probably will never do so. When you let your opponents write all the rules in their favor and then call it “the gold standard,” you probably don’t deserve to win.
- Editorial Board