A Senate panel voted 3-2 Wednesday evening against a bill that would establish special elections for vacant U.S. Senate seats.
Colorado law states it is the governor’s job to make temporary Senate appointments, though elections already are used to fill vacant seats of congressional representatives.
Sen. Mike Kopp, R-Littleton, was one of two sponsors of the bill and presented it to the state affairs committee. He insisted it wasn’t a political issue.
Gov. Bill Ritter recently named Denver Public Schools Superintendent Michael Bennet to replace Ken Salazar in the Senate.
Sen. Bob Bacon, D-Fort Collins, vice chairman of the committee, said it would be difficult to put together a Senate campaign in such a short period of time.
The bill’s lone witness was Jenny Flanagan, executive director of Colorado Common Cause. She supported the bill, saying it sends a message that voters have the right to decide who will represent them.
