Despite bankrolling support for the entire slate of winning candidates in last year’s Greeley City Council election, pro-oil and gas group Vital for Colorado has seen its efforts in Broomfield and Boulder County politics fall decidedly flatter.
The tens of thousands of dollars the Denver-based group poured into Erie’s municipal election in its waning days last month behind four candidates it deemed as “pro business” yielded the opposite results.
Jennifer Carroll, an advocate for greater local control over energy development and hard-line supporter of the town’s recent landmark drilling regulations, was elected as Erie’s new mayor by roughly 70 percent of the voters.
Moreover, the three candidates elected to the town’s Board of Trustees all ran on platforms that backed more aggressive approaches to local drilling rules; one of the newly elected leaders is the founder of Erie Protectors, an anti-oil and gas activism group.
The candidates Vital for Colorado tossed its support and cash behind — mayoral candidate Dan Woog and trustee candidates Barry Luginbill, MacKenzie Ferrie and Liz Locricchio — all failed to get enough votes to be elected.
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