Two years ago, Ruth Anna crammed 82 Republicans into her home in Jefferson County on caucus night, many of them swept up in the excitement over the presidential election.
She’s not expecting as big a crowd this Tuesday, but enough people that she’s borrowed folding chairs and plans to move the living room furniture out.
“People don’t mind being a little bit crammed,” the 61-year-old Anna said. “Our neighbors got to meet each other again, and talked about the issues.”
Anna’s precinct is one of the few remaining locations in the metro area where members of the Democratic or Republican parties meet in a living room to caucus. Most caucus meetings are held in schools or churches and can accommodate a number of precincts, and those needing disabled access.
It’s a process that ultimately leads to the first Tuesday in November, when Coloradans will elect, in part, a governor, treasurer, a U.S. senator, seven U.S. representatives, dozens of state lawmakers, a handful of district attorneys and scores of local officials.
Straw polls will be conducted in certain races and delegates are selected for county assemblies and conventions.
Critics of the caucus process call it antiquated and Byzantine. Anna said she got stopped in her neighborhood last year to ask what happened to the precinct meeting.
“They hadn’t really grasped the fact that it was every two years,” she said.
Democrat Dan Pabon loves the caucus. Two years ago, as the chairman of Precinct 421 in northwest Denver, he urged as many Democrats as he could find to attend the caucus at Skinner Middle School.
This year, he’s one of three Democrats running in House District 4, and people are working on his behalf to get supporters to the caucus.
“People feel very left out with what is going on in Washington, but with the caucus they get to have a say in their own backyard,” Pabon said.
One of the biggest caucus defenders is John Wren of Denver, who holds meetings and seminars on the caucus process.
“It neutralizes the effects of big money and big power in politics,” he said. “The system has served Colorado well since it was created in 1912 as part of the Teddy Roosevelt progressive reforms.”
Two years ago, Art Dubus of Federal Heights showed up for his first caucus meeting since the late 1970s. The 69-year-old Republican will be back again this year, at Northglenn High School.
“I don’t like the way the country is headed,” he said. Colorado Republicans, but especially Democrats, in 2008 turned out in unprecedented numbers. (Anna remembers 2004, when there were all of seven people at her GOP precinct meeting). Many had never been to a caucus before.
Republicans are predicting more new faces again this year. The GOP has three contested statewide races: U.S. senator, governor and treasurer.
“We have a lot of young people who want to participate,” said Sean Duffy, spokesman for GOP gubernatorial candidate Scott McInnis.
“The new faces are great. They believe it’s a very cool process, and they are excited.”
The Democrats’ big race is the matchup in the U.S. Senate primary between Michael Bennet and Andrew Romanoff. Both campaigns have been holding caucus seminars, and the candidates have been urging Democrats to turn out on Tuesday.
Lynn Bartels: 303-954-5327 or lbartels@denverpost.com
The caucuses
Q. What is a caucus?
A. A neighborhood meeting every election year where people in the same political party begin that party’s nominating process.
Q. Who can participate?
A. Registered voters who have been affiliated with the Republican or Democratic parties since at least Jan. 19. There are some exceptions, including someone who turned 18 or became a naturalized citizen after Jan. 19.
Q. What precinct do I live in?
A. Call your county clerk. Each voter has a 10-digit number. The last three numbers indicate the precinct number.
Q. Where is my caucus?
A. Call your county party or check county or state party websites, including and .
Q. When do caucuses start?
A. At 7 p.m., but voters are urged to show up earlier because their names must be matched against registration lists.
Atwitter over caucus?
We’re looking for social-media-savvy caucus-goers to help us keep readers up to speed on the action during our live blog from 6 to 10 p.m. Here’s how:
Twitter: Report from your caucus by including #caucusCO with your tweet.
Computer: Don’t send tweets? No problem. Simply go to Tuesday night and look for the caucus live blog. It will include a field where you can post comments and ask questions.
Photos: Send pictures via Twitter using #caucusCO, or e-mail them to newsroom@denverpost.com for inclusion in our caucus photo gallery.
