Gov. Martin O’Malley
Hillary Clinton Tuesday with her visit to Colorado but in 2016 made a less noticed visit to the state.
Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley attended a day’s worth of campaign events and fundraisers for Colorado Democrats — including a couple of the same candidates Clinton appeared with at her event.
The two essentially orbited the same Denver political planet but didn’t cross paths. O’Malley helped raise money for 6th Congressional District candidate Andrew Romanoff, the former state House speaker, and connected with Gov. John Hickenlooper, a close friend, among other events.
O’Malley is the former chairman of the Democratic Governors Association and the current fundraising leader. Hickenlooper is the group’s current vice-chairman.
O’Malley, wearing a Romanoff sticker, ended the day at a small-dollar state Democratic Party fundraiser at Epic Brewing in Denver. The event celebrated Party Chairman Rick Palacio’s upcoming birthday.
He warmed the crowd by promising to buy a beer for anyone who signed up to volunteer on the Democratic coordinated campaign. “I’m serious. This is not an idle promise,” he said.
In his brief remarks, O’Malley tried to impress upon the 50-plus Democrats in the room that Colorado is “on the front lines” this election year.
“We have better days in front of us. You have the leaders how can lead us forward,” he said. “We are better than the despair better than the division, better than the mean-spiritedness, there is dignity in every individual. We are all in this together and Colorado’s going to lead the way in these midterms.”
O’Malley then mingled with the crowd, posing for photos and shaking hands. Among those spotted at the event: Congressman Jared Polis and state Reps. Dominick Moreno, Dan Pabon and Brittany Pettersen.
