The Colorado GOP is expected to announce today that it has changed its caucus date to Feb. 5 and will hold a presidential-preference poll, Republican sources said Wednesday.
The move, intended to lure candidates to the state, comes six weeks after state Democrats moved their caucus to the same date.
Colorado, which usually holds its caucus in the third week of March, is now one of more than 20 states that are holding, or planning to hold, their presidential caucuses or primaries Feb. 5.
The preference poll, which will follow the election of county delegates, is nonbinding and functions much like a straw poll. It is not until the Colorado state convention June 7 that delegates select their presidential candidate. By then, however, the GOP nominee should be picked.
Dick Wadhams, head of the state Republican Party, declined to comment Wednesday. However, he has said for months that he supported moving up the caucus and conducting a preference poll.
“I think this is an opportunity to renew interest in the precinct caucus, if people knew they could essentially cast a vote for who should be the Republican nominee for president,” he said in July. “It would increase some traffic here by Republican candidates, but I personally favor moving it to the 5th because it will give us some leverage in the process.”
How much traffic, however, is uncertain. For months, states have been playing political checkers as they vie for earlier primary and caucus dates.
With big states like Florida, New York and California having earlier primaries, most political experts predict candidates won’t have time to focus on less populous states like Colorado.
Although critics argue that primaries produce a faster result and open the process to more voters, Colorado lawmakers dumped the primary five years ago because of the nearly $2 million cost.
Currently, Iowa is scheduled to hold its caucus Jan. 14, followed by Nevada on Jan. 19. The South Carolina Republican primary is also that day.
But Michigan has decided to move both its primaries up to Jan. 15.
New Hampshire, whose state law requires its primary to be seven days before any other, is waiting for things to sort out.
The primary and caucus chaos has led party officials to try and rein states in, although with little success.
Florida decided to accelerate its primary to Jan. 29. However, two weeks ago, the Democratic National Committee voted to strip Florida of its 210 convention delegates unless it rescheduled.
Staff writer Karen E. Crummy can be reached at 303-954-1594 or kcrummy@denverpost.com.
