A political committee launched what is thought to be the first TV ad campaign in Greeley municipal election history, buying a 30-second ad that will run through Election Day.
The committee, Greeley for a Stronger Economy, is supporting mayoral candidate John Gates, Ward 2 candidate Brett Payton, at-large candidate Eddie Mirick and Ward 3 candidate Michael Fitzsimmons. The Denver-based committee made waves late this past week after it spent nearly $50,000 on mailers supporting those same candidates.
The ad, which premiered Wednesday night, appears to be a response to a Greeley Tribune article detailing $1,500 in , to three different city council candidates.
In the ad, an ominous-voiced narrator intones Polis, a “Boulder Democrat” is “trying to handpick Greeley’s City Council,” and urging voters to select Gates, Payton, Mirick and Fitzsimmons.
Steve Mazurana, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Northern Colorado, speculated the group may be tied to the oil and gas industry and may be trying to counter Polis’ involvement.
“The oil and gas industry might have been extremely frightened with Congressman Polis (recommending three candidates),” Mazurana said, pointing to Polis’ anti-fracking history. “That may have stimulated the effort — almost like a panic.”
It’s unclear who is funding the . Its donor report is due Monday.
The group recently named DeAndrea Arndt its Greeley spokeswoman, which sheds more light on its orientation. She is the co-president of Republican Women of Weld County and the president of a pro-fracking citizens group called Erie Forward!
When asked a variety of questions, including whether the group was funded by oil and gas industry money, Arndt didn’t answer.
Greeley for a Strong Economy lists a Denver address on its disclosure paperwork with the city. It shares an address with Blueprint Strategies, a strategic communications firm formed a year ago that includes Karen Crummy, a former Denver Post reporter and communications director for pro-oil and gas Coloradans for Responsible Energy Development; Cinamon Watson, a veteran political communications strategist; and Jennifer Webster, a former communications director for the Denver Chamber of Commerce and government relations director of Pioneer Natural Resources.
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