Colorado Democratic Party chairwoman Pat Waak has seen the highs and lows of being a party leader.
During her six years in office, Waak helped the party win a U.S. Senate seat, three congressional seats, and control of the governor’s office and legislature for the first time in 40 years.
She also helped bring the Democratic National Convention to Denver.
But Democrats slipped during the last election, partly because of national discontent over national issues like health care and the economy, and partly due to party infighting over the primary race between former state House Speaker Andrew Romanoff and incumbent U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet. Bennet was appointed by Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter to fill the term of Sen. Ken Salazar after he became Interior Secretary, and went on to beat Romanoff in the primary and Republican Ken Buck in November.
On Saturday, Waak is stepping down, saying the party needs new leadership and new blood.
The three candidates vying to succeed her at the State Central Party meeting—Richard Palacio, a legislative aide from Washington, Polly Baca, a longtime party activist, and Adam Bowen, a Larimer County party official—all praise Waak for her successes.
Waak, who is 68, says it’s time for the party to find better ways to recruit young voters and convince them that parties are still relevant.
“Many of them are unaffiliated voters and we need to persuade them to join the Democratic Party,” she said.
Waak says the party needs to focus on re-electing President Barack Obama next year. It’s Colorado’s only statewide race. She said the last election was a wake-up call for her and Democrats after they lost two congressional seats, one held by Betsy Markey in the 4th District and the other held by John Salazar in the 3rd Congressional District. They also lost control of the state House, giving Republicans a bigger role in congressional redistricting this year.
“The last two years were rough. I think the divisiveness of the Senate primary was a really rough year and I learned the practice of the courage to be silent,” Waak said.
Bowen, who sees himself as “an evolutionary, not a revolutionary” candidate to replace Waak, said he wants local parties to have better communications with the state and national party. Palacio, a former aide to John Salazar, said there is too much partisan bickering and he wants to find more middle ground. Baca, who is 67, wants to recruit more young candidates and party members.
House Minority Leader Sal Pace, a Democrat from Pueblo who supports Palacio, said the party needs someone young who appeals to younger voters and gets them energized to go to the polls like they did in 2008 to vote for President Barack Obama.
“This will be a turning point for the Colorado Democratic Party. Whoever we choose to lead us is very important. We have several people with very different styles,” Pace said.
Waak says politics have become too vitriolic, a feeling shared by her Republican counterpart, two-term GOP chairman Dick Wadhams, who is stepping down this month because of party infighting.
“I have tired of those who are obsessed with seeing conspiracies around every corner and who have terribly misguided notions of what the role of the state party is,” Wadhams said in a letter widely circulated among Republicans last month.
Candidates to succeed Wadhams include state Sen. Ted Harvey of suburban Denver, who says the first job is to unite conservatives; Ryan Call, the party’s legal counsel; and Bart Baron, a 67-year-old retiree and newcomer from Michigan.
Waak said parties still matter, even though the job of handing out money for campaigns has shifted to political committees that are often anonymous.
“I think the party is the messenger, the party is the institution to train activists and get them involved,” she said.
