BOULDER — Entrepreneur Jared Polis, who has poured a record amount of his own fortune into the Democratic primary for Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District, insists it isn’t about the money.
That doesn’t appease his opponents, who believe that winning the primary is tantamount to winning the November election. They trail Polis in fundraising by millions of dollars with mail ballots going out on July 12.
Polis, who made his fortune on the Internet before the market went bust at the beginning of the decade, has donated $3.7 million to his own campaign, far outstripping rivals Joan Fitz-Gerald and Will Shafroth, who each raised slightly more than $1 million each.
Polis said by contributing his own money, he can prove to voters that he’s not beholden to interest groups.
“We’re going up against establishment candidates who have taken money from political action committees, oil and gas interests and others. We’re obviously in this to win,” Polis said in an interview with The Associated Press.
Fitz-Gerald said Polis is trying to buy the election. “For him, it’s the money that makes him competitive,” she said.
Fitz-Gerald said she’s proud to be an “establishment candidate” because it means she has the support of teachers, unions and other traditional Democratic supporters.
According to voter registration figures from the secretary of state, the district is heavily Democratic, with 149,000 Democrats and only 117,000 Republicans as of April. Pundits say historically the winner of the primary goes on to Congress.
But a high number of unaffiliated voters—172,000—could be a determining factor this year, giving a dark horse candidate a chance of beating the Democratic primary winner. Though none have entered the race so far, only about 1,000 signatures are needed to get on the ballot and they could qualify after the primary.
Shafroth, former head of the Great Outdoors Colorado open space program and a popular environmentalist, said he raised most of his money from individuals and stands out from both of his primary rivals.
“My campaign is more about grass-roots support. I believe no matter how much money you spend, at the end of the day, it’s about who you are,” he said.
Colorado voters have demonstrated in the past that money won’t guarantee victory. Republican Pete Coors spent $1.4 million in his losing U.S Senate campaign in 2004, and oil baron Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Benson spent an estimated $3.4 million of his own money but lost to Democrat Roy Romer in 1994.
Asked at the time about the money Benson spent on the race, Romer, who got rich in real estate and a farm equipment business, said he only had millions of dollars, while Benson had “millions and millions.”
Independent pollster Floyd Ciruli said Polis, a former chairman of the state Board of Education, is not well known in the 2nd district, unlike Shafroth for his environmental crusades and Fitz-Gerald’s record as the first female president of the state Senate.
Yet turnout for the August primary will probably be low, with no hot button issues on the ballot until the general election in November, and that could be good for Polis, Ciruli said.
“If it comes down to just name recognition, Polis would win because he can buy it. In this case, it’s all about the money to a large extent,” Ciruli said.
