But though some of their party, it’s far less certain if that discontent is strong enough — or focused enough — to pull off a seismic upset against Hickenlooper, the former brewpub owner and onetime Denver mayor and Colorado governor now finishing his first term in the Senate.

Gonzales’ progressive bona fides in Denver and the state Capitol will have to overcome Hickenlooper’s experience, his comparably vast fundraising and the inherent advantage that comes from being a fixture of Colorado’s political scenery.

“There doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of collective outrage at Colorado’s incumbents — like John Hickenlooper, like (fellow U.S. Sen.) Michael Bennet,” said Seth Masket, a political scientist at the University of Denver. “We’ll see what actually happens in the election. But that����ap really Gonzales’ best ticket to office — if there’s a lot of anger for incumbents seeming too complacent nationally or not willing to fight hard enough against the Trump administration.”

Gonzales, a 43-year-old two-term state senator from Denver, has framed her candidacy in large part as a progressive critique and challenge to the Democratic Party’s more moderate standard-bearers, like Hickenlooper.

“Does Colorado want to continue with more of the same, go-along-to-get-along politics?” said Gonzales, whose legislative work has focused on immigrant rights and progressive staples like tenant protections. “… Over the past six years, (Hickenlooper) has not met that moment in responding to (voters’ economic) pain — versus my track record, where I have shown up, done the work, advanced progressive and durable policy that has made concrete impacts on people’s lives.”

Hickenlooper, in contrast, repeatedly spoke of his candidacy — and his desired return to office — as laser-focused on responding to President Donald Trump. In a phone call last week, he didn’t acknowledge Gonzales and sidestepped a question about anti-incumbency feelings among Democratic voters.

He said his campaign was about “fighting back” against the president and responding to healthcare cuts and the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. He highlighted his own extensive experience as mayor and governor, and his work in helping to pass the

“Right now, with Trump in office, that����ap what we need,” said Hickenlooper, who raised $40.7 million in 2020 on his way to defeating Republican U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner. “We need that experience of being focused on his lawlessness and combating his reckless attacks on our traditions, on the American way.”

The primary election is June 30, and mail ballots will be sent to voters beginning Monday. Both Democratic and unaffiliated voters can weigh in on the race.

The winner of the Democratic contest will face off in November against state Sen. Mark Baisley, of Woodland Park, who is running unopposed in the Republican primary.

In a nod to the progressive messaging adopted by both Hickenlooper and Gonzales’ campaigns, Baisley said they appeared to be trying to “out-liberal the other person.” He, too, was hoping to harness voter dissatisfaction — albeit in a far more conservative direction — to fuel what would be an upset win in November.

“There has been such a long run of single-party control in Colorado that everyone’s realizing that their freedoms have been curtailed in an enormous way,” he said.

Hickenlooper seeks a final term

Now age 74, Hickenlooper’s potential second term would end a month before his 81st birthday. He has already said he wouldn’t run for a third term, and he told The Denver Post that he would serve the entirety of his second term, should he be reelected.

“We’re going to have to rebuild better,” he said of his plans for a second term, echoing a slogan from the early years of Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration. He has called for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to be overhauled, and he’s backed broad reforms to the agency’s practices. “That����ap part of what I’m committing to, in my six years — I think we cannot just build back what we had, but build back in a much better form from what we should’ve had.”

Gonzales has served in the legislature since her election in 2018. A Yale University graduate, she was an organizer and worked for a prominent immigration law firm in Denver.

She said she would support “Medicare For All,” a proposal that typically means single-payer health insurance coverage for all Americans in a program run by the government. To achieve its passage and other reforms, she would advocate for ending the Senate’s filibuster, the rule that requires at least 60 senators to agree to end debate and move to a vote. She supports expanding the U.S. Supreme Court and instituting term limits for both justices and federal lawmakers.

She said she would not support U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York to continue on as the Democratic leader. She also said she would not support sending any military aid to Israel.

“I’m not only going to talk about standing up to Trump,” she said. “I also want to share the vision where all Coloradans can thrive.”

Hickenlooper said he supported giving Americans “universal (health insurance) coverage” but did not commit to supporting Medicare for All specifically. He highlighted to increase healthcare pricing transparency.

He said he was open to court reforms that would include term limits and a set number of appointments per presidential administration. Asked about Schumer, he said that he didn’t think the New York senator wanted to continue as minority leader and that other, younger lawmakers were interested.

He noted that the filibuster had prevented some Republican priorities from passing under the Trump administration, but he said he wasn’t “ruling out addressing the filibuster.” In 2021, he said he wanted to “change the filibuster” to pass voting rights legislation.

Hickenlooper recently voted against sending bulldozers and some munitions to Israel. Campaign spokesman Jess Cohen said Hickenlooper “would continue to vote against weapons that fuel the war,” which Cohen said included the conflicts in Iran, the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

Scant polling has been released about the race. showed Hickenlooper with a 32-point lead — 45% to 13% — over Gonzales, with his other challengers in the low single digits. Thirty-seven percent of respondents were unsure.

But the race tightened significantly after the respondents — 739 likely Democratic primary voters — were read “neutral-to-positive” biographies of the candidates. Those biographies were not included in the poll release. The results had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Gonzales faces name ID disparity

When it comes to fundraising, meanwhile, Hickenlooper has been dominant.

, the most recent reporting deadline, he had raised $5.7 million in total contributions and had more than $4 million in the bank. Gonzales, who entered the race in December, had raised $443,000 by March 31 and had just over $114,000 on hand, .

The fundraising disparity will make it harder for Gonzales to increase her name recognition across the state, already at a deficit against a well-known figure like Hickenlooper. Hickenlooper is taking the race seriously enough that he’s running ads to support his campaign, Masket noted. But the strength of his name recognition alone presents a formidable challenge.

“That’s hard, particularly against someone like Hickenlooper, who’s been in public life in Denver and Colorado for several decades now, and he was a popular governor, a popular mayor,” he said. “That’s very hard to overcome.”

Gonzales has criticized Hickenlooper’s support for several Trump cabinet nominees; , the third-most among Democratic senators.

He voted against 13 cabinet nominees last year, according to Ballotpedia, and Hickenlooper said he’d voted against 96% of Trump’s appointments overall. He said he wouldn’t vote again for any of the nominees he did support.

“I thought they would push back on the president,” he said. “I thought that a good executive — even a bad executive — if they get a senior staff that challenges them and pushes back, they make better decisions. … And yet this group of appointees, not one of them have come outside their shell and pushed back.”

To offset the fundraising disparity in the campaign, Gonzales has launched a statewide tour, and she earned her place on the ballot at the party’s statewide assembly earlier this spring. (Hickenlooper initially participated before withdrawing from the assembly process, instead filing petitions to make the ballot.)

Last month, Gonzales appeared , a leftist personality who has backed progressive Democratic candidates in other states. On Wednesday, Gonzales’ campaign announced that she and Melat Kiros, who is hoping to ride a similar upset wave and unseat longtime incumbent U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette of Denver, would participate in a Denver rally with Piker on June 14.

Platner is a political dumpster fire and the epitome of their moral hypocrisy.

Platner had a tattoo resembling the Nazi Totenkopf symbol, associated with the SS and concentration-camp guards during World War II, on his chest, which has been exacerbated by his rhetoric. He has also been tied to a long list of inflammatory Reddit posts and comments: remarks questioning why Black restaurant patrons tip less; comments interpreted as blaming sexual assault victims for drinking; attacks on rural white Americans as stupid; statements advocating political violence; calling all police officers bastards; and, even mocking a wounded Purple Heart recipient as someone who “didn’t deserve to live.”

Platner’s history shows a documented pattern of offensive and vulgar conduct.

Despite these concerns, Democrats looked the other way while jumping on the Platner bandwagon.

Why? Because Platner has been leading in the polls and offers the party a chance to beat Sen. Susan Collins and win control of the Senate. Collins has served in the Senate for 29 years and is one of the Republicans’ more moderate senators. Democratic Party leaders rationalized Platner’s history, dismissed it as old news, and insisted he was a changed man. The moral outrage was swept under the rug in the name of political power at any cost.

Then another bomb dropped. Platner recently exchanged sexually explicit text messages with multiple women shortly after getting married and during the early stages of his senate campaign.

Democrats would be incensed if the shoe were on the other foot and Platner was the Republican candidate. They would be on every talk show and flooding social media, arguing that he was unfit for office and demanding his immediate withdrawal from the race. Progressive activists’ talking points would call Platner a Nazi and brand him as the face of the Republican Party.

Despite these recent developments, Platner has continued to receive silence, excuses, and outright support from prominent Democrats. Key Democratic leaders like Senator Bernie Sanders, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Representative Ro Khanna, and other progressive figures .

Sen. Sanders has spent years arguing that character, rhetoric, and personal conduct matter when evaluating Republican candidates. From chastising President Trump, to calling on Roy Moore to step down during the Alabama Senate race, to criticizing figures such as Herschel Walker and George Santos, moral standards and decency used to matter to Sanders. Not so much, apparently, when the candidate has a “D” by his name and his opinions align with Sanders’ socialist views. Then, the interests of the working class somehow become a permission slip for a moral and political train wreck.

Democrats should demand that Platner step aside before the next bomb drops. Gov. Janet Mills, who recently suspended her campaign, should be the Democratic nominee in this critical race if there is to do so.

The larger issue goes far beyond Maine.

Democrats now have two dramatic examples of losing their voice when it matters. Consider their lost-in-the-wilderness posture toward President Joe Biden when it was clear he was not competent to run for re-election. They either defended Biden as fit or remained silent.  And, the lack of moral clarity was disturbing, particularly from Jill Biden, who now concedes she thought her husband was having a stroke during his disastrous debate performance.

Even more concerning is the direction of the party. Democrats constantly describe themselves as the party of the “big tent” — a coalition supposedly broad enough to welcome different viewpoints, backgrounds, and perspectives. Increasingly, however, that tent seems to have room for radicals and ideological extremists while pushing out Democrats who think independently.

Take Democratic Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, for example. Fetterman is a progressive Democrat who has never abandoned Democratic priorities on issues such as labor, health care, and affordability. However, he refuses to march in lockstep with Democrats on every issue, particularly when it comes to Israel and public safety. His independent views on Israel have drawn not-so-friendly fire from the activist left. For that independence, he is increasingly treated as a disloyal outcast by members of his own party, who continue trying to push him out of the tent.

As my son Wes aptly said, the moral of the story is that some democrats seem okay with Nazi symbolism but not a Jewish state.

The modern Democratic “big tent” appears large enough to embrace candidates accused of extremism and deeply disturbing behavior, but not large enough to tolerate free thinkers willing to challenge progressive orthodoxy.

A party desperate for national leadership and a cohesive message that resonates with Americans cannot have it both ways. And, it can’t credibly cry moral outrage with Republican candidates and elected officials while accepting and explaining away the outrageous behavior and conduct of its own candidates.

Platner is a national stain on the Democratic Party in 2026, and Republicans will use him across the country as midterm fodder unless Democrats find their voice — and their standards — while there is still time.

Doug Friednash is a partner with the law firm Brownstein, Hyatt, Farber and Schreck, who grew up in Denver and writes occassional columns for The Denver Post.

To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail.

Re: “Governor censured for Peters clemency,” May 21 news story

The base of the Democratic Party is outraged over the governor’s decision to commute the sentence of Tina Peters. Peters, of course, is a non-violent 70-year-old offender, and the chances of her repeating the behavior are probably minimal.

Why was there so little concern expressed about his decision to commute the sentences for violent and repeat offenders? Where was the unified outrage when Gov. Jared Polis vetoed labor law reform, environmental legislation and wage theft legislation? And that is a short list of what was once considered the core values of the Democratic Party.

I understand the governor’s reasoning on all the , but calling the Peters case his “legacy” tells us a lot about the state of our politics. Public policy decisions always need to strive for middle ground, and those leadership decisions often referred to as arrogant can just as easily be called principled leadership. Let me remind your readers that most offenders serve their time in community corrections, not jails or prisons. Most inmates are released to community corrections from prisons. Their response to supervision is a critical factor. Many offenders even choose incarceration over community supervision requirements.

The primary purpose of long prison sentences is to protect the public, but the preservation of power and revenge dominated this controversy. Both parties have weaponized the justice system. Let’s de-escalate tribalism.

And remember, there are four sides to every story. My side, your side, the truth and politics.

Timothy D. Allport, Arvada

Re: “Here’s why Polis is right to reduce Peters’ sentence,” May 16 editorial

I worked for Gov. Jared Polis for six years. Though he always either mispronounced my name, I just shrugged it off as the eccentricities of his personality or his casual enthusiasm for his minions. He was supportive of the energy my agency put into reducing crime and helping Coloradans, so that was my primary interest.

But when I read his statement rationalizing his commutation of Tina Peters’ sentence, I was so saddened. In that moment I understood that he doesn’t understand how the criminal justice system actually works. And the people who advise him are similarly naive.

The Common Law principles that shape sentencing are about accountability for the lawbreaker’s actions. That is first and foremost. But there are also many collateral goals.

Besides “just deserts,” there is the concept of deterrence–both specific deterrence, intended to discourage the offender from committing similar crimes in the future, and general deterrence, intended to send a message to the public and others considering similar acts.

It is also intended to support rehabilitation, repairing harm to the community and those directly impacted by the offender’s action, and reinforcing community norms and values.

All of these values were ignored by the governor.

Clemency should be reserved for those who are subject to unfair sentencing laws. Not those who have been sentenced appropriately and with the concept of justice foremost.

I strongly disagree with the opinion of The Post. It presents as under-informed about the purpose of the judicial process and is deeply disappointing.

When the people you think share your values actually ignore them, for whatever reason or personal gain they pursue, it is a heart-wrenching reminder that politicians are in it for themselves and not the people they profess to protect.

Joe Thome, Westminster

Editor’s note: Thome served as director of the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice.

To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail.

But first, he ate a carrot.

Polis, speaking at the signing event for to support healthy eating and food access, chewed on the carrot for nearly 15 seconds before answering a question about whether he’d wear the censure from his party like a badge of honor. Wednesday night’s unusual action against a governor of the same party included a ban on the Colorado Democratic Party hosting Polis as a featured speaker, as an officially recognized participant or as an honored guest at party functions.

“Marlon and the kids were thrilled because they thought it meant I’d be home earlier because, instead of going to three events a night, they thought I’d be going to two a night,” Polis joked, referring to his husband, first gentleman Marlon Reis.

Polis, who is term-limited from running again this year, granted commutation to Peters on Friday, halving the former Mesa County clerk’s original sentence of nine years and ordering her release on parole June 1.

He faced immediate, intense backlash from a raft of fellow Democrats, who accused him of buckling to President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign, making light of an existential threat to American democracy and sidestepping two coequal branches of government.

Polis countered that he felt Peters, 70, was being unduly punished for protected free speech — even if he vehemently disagreed with her conspiracy theories about Colorado’s elections. He has maintained that he didn’t consider outside political pressure in granting Peters clemency.

On Thursday, Polis said he hadn’t spoken to Trump or anyone in the president����ap administration since commuting Peters’ sentence late last week.

He also invoked the 50-year-old landmark legal ruling in , in which a Jewish lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union successfully defended the First Amendment rights of a Nazi group to demonstrate in the northern Chicago suburb.

“We’d very much be sacrificing who we are if we suppress the free speech of any individuals,” Polis said. “… I think it����ap very important that we protect people in this moment of time, and in every moment of time, as we fight against the overreach of the Trump administration.”

Clemency application released

On Thursday, Peters posted a copy of the clemency application she’d filed with the governor’s office on her website. Separately, the governor’s office on Thursday denied The Denver Post’s request to release the document.

In the application, former Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler argued on her behalf that Peters faced “an extremely harsh and unusual sentence” based on her “sincere belief that she was helping, not harming, the election process in Colorado.”

Peters was of several felonies related to using another person’s security badge to give a third party access to state election systems following the 2020 election. That person, who was affiliated with noted election denier Mike Lindell, then made images of the election system’s hard drive.

Besides three counts of attempting to influence a public servant, Peters was convicted of a count of conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation, first-degree official misconduct, violation of duty and failing to comply with the secretary of state.

Peters did not harm anyone, damage any property, deny any votes or otherwise affect the election, wrote Gessler, a Republican. He called it “highly unlikely” that Peters would ever again be in a position to commit those types of crimes since she was no longer the elected clerk and recorder.

Gessler instead emphasized public comments made by people who pressed for “maximum incarceration,” and which he characterized as motivated by Peters’ “views on election integrity.”

“Although covered by a thin veneer of public safety concerns, these arguments seek to keep Mrs. Peters incarcerated so that her views will be muffled and so that she will be prevented from advocating for her preferred policies,” Gessler wrote. “Bluntly stated, they want to keep her in prison, to stifle her ideas and stifle her speech.”

Many in Polis’ party and those involved in the criminal prosecution of Peters — including the Republican Mesa County district attorney — have rejected the governor’s free speech-related characterizations of her sentence. They argue that Peters’ lack of remorse for her crimes and the threat she posed to election integrity demanded a harsh sentence.

But Polis has cited part of a recent Colorado Court of Appeals decision that ordered her resentencing, in part out of concern that her comments were held against her by the judge. That resentencing was still pending when Polis acted.

Party: Coloradans ‘expect us to defend’ values

Nearly 90% of the state Democratic Party Central Committee voted Wednesday night to condemn Polis “for conduct inconsistent with the Colorado Democratic Party’s commitment to democratic institutions, election integrity and public accountability.” The central committee has hundreds of members, though it����ap not clear how many voted.

“Colorado Democrats will continue standing up for the rule of law, secure elections and the democratic values Coloradans expect us to defend,” party Chair Shad Murib said in a statement after the vote. “That����ap the difference between us and the cult of Donald Trump that is the Republican Party, and we look forward to doing our part to take our country back this November.”

More than 700 people signed on to the complaint before the committee voted on the issue, including several state senators and representatives. U.S. Rep. Jason Crow issued a statement supporting the censure shortly before the vote, making him the highest-ranking elected Democrat to support the action.

“The Democratic Party must fight for democracy and the rule of law,” Crow said. “We must be consistent, courageous, resolute, and willing to call out our own when they fall short.”

Phil Chen, an associate professor of political science at the University of Denver, said he didn’t expect much in terms of long-term political consequences for Polis.

The governor is term-limited and, short of a special session, the legislature isn’t expected to meet again during his tenure. But Chen noted that there could be nonpolitical consequences for the decision, particularly if Peters’ commutation emboldens other election conspiracists to meddle with voting systems.

The decision does highlight the ongoing “anxiety and anger” in the Democratic Party about false claims of election security, Chen said. The censure further shows that rank-and-file members see the clemency as “a betrayal of a core issue” among Democrats.

But he said Polis’ conviction that clemency was the right decision and the party’s anger about it aren’t necessarily in opposition, either.

“It can be both things. He thought it was the right thing to do, and the censure from the Colorado Democratic Party was what it thought was the right thing to do,” Chen said.

Polis didn’t fight the party’s decision in his comments Thursday, but he used the occasion to draw a contrast with the state Republican Party. The GOP to close its primary election to unaffiliated voters, even as that voting bloc has grown to include more than half of Colorado’s voters.

“I’m really proud to be a Democrat because, when I see the Republican central committee trying to abolish (open) primaries, I’d much rather be in a party that����ap talking about who can speak at different events and how they’re treated,” Polis said.

Tell us what you think about this story

Re: “Trump IRS lawsuit settlement: U.S. agrees to drop tax claims,” May 20 news story

This blatant, shameful, corrupt and illegal agreement is simply President Trump taking $1.776 billion of taxpayer money to benefit himself and his rightfully convicted supporters, with the addition of a get-out-of-jail-free card for himself and his family for probable tax shenanigans in their businesses. It avoids the question of whether or not he can pardon himself for crimes committed while in office.

David Schroeder, Golden

President Trump established a $1.8 billion fund to compensate people who feel they were harmed by former President Biden’s Democratic policies. That is exactly what reparations are.

Trump accidentally made the case that when the government’s policies cause harm, reparations should be paid by the government to make those who were wronged whole again, or that they should be compensated in some way.

Democrats need to seize on this in two ways. First, they need to call it what it is. Secondly, they need to make sure that this farcical version of reparations is clawed back and given to immigrants currently being harmed by this administration’s policies.

Nate Craig, Boulder

As a conservative Republican, I appreciated the “drain the swamp” idea pitched by Republicans several years ago. The problem is that after the most recent announcements from Washington, D.C. I even more fervently believe this is necessary. Unfortunately, it’s the Republican administration that has to go.

The Trump proposal of giving almost two billion dollars of taxpayers’ money to his allies is obscene. He doesn’t even rule out giving funds to Jan. 6 rioters who were convicted of felonies. He then has the nerve to have his IRS agree not to audit him, his family, or his businesses! What the heck is this? Are we now a third-world nation where one person just runs the place as a family business?

This administration personifies “the swamp.” I hate saying it, but I’m voting Democrat in the midterms in the hope of bringing balance and control back to our government.

Michael Scanlan, Arvada

Re: “AG doesn’t rule out payments for Jan. 6 rioters,” May 20 news story

Wow, you can break into the Watergate Hotel and go to prison, but if you break into the Capitol and hurt people, you can get money for it! Let this be a lesson to all you crooks out there: Crime really does pay!

Peggy Caughlan, Windsor

Gov. Polis should face consequences for Peters clemency

Re: “Polis faces possible rebuke by party,” May 20 news story

I find it an outrage that Gov. Jared Polis commuted the sentence of a convicted felon who showed no remorse whatsoever. I support any and all actions the Democratic Party of Colorado takes in sanctioning Polis.

Walter Pummill Jr., Littleton

Cherry Creek school board showed poor judgment

Re: “Cherry Creek Schools: Officials’ travel raises questions,” May 17 news story

Can someone please ask the Cherry Creek school board why they thought it was a good idea to have the district superintendent be married to the district human resources director? That does not pass the red face test for poor judgment. The entire board should be dismissed. The citizens of the district should have no confidence in that dismal leadership group.

Scott Bridgford, Highlands Ranch

To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail.

The prohibition is part of a formal condemnation of the governor and censure “for conduct inconsistent with the Colorado Democratic Party’s commitment to democratic institutions, election integrity and public accountability.”

Nearly 90% of central committee members voted in favor of condemning Polis for granting clemency to Peters.  The former Mesa County clerk — and icon among election conspiracy theorists — was convicted of several felonies for granting unauthorized access to county voting systems. The central committee is comprised of hundreds of members, though it wasn’t immediately clear how many voted Wednesday night.

Only one central committee member, a criminal defense attorney, spoke against the censure ahead of a vote. More than a dozen spoke in favor before a party official called the question.

“I’m really proud to be a Democrat right now if this is how we’re going to react when someone in power in our party behaves the way he just did,” former state Rep. Steph Vigil, a Colorado Springs Democrat seeking a return to office, said ahead of the vote.

Polis has faced intense backlash since commuting Peters’ sentence last week. Democrats blasted him for stepping into the judicial process while the felon still faced resentencing; for easing the sentence of one of the nation’s most prominent election deniers despite her showing no contrition; and for appearing to bend to President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign to free Peters.

Polis, who is term limited, said he worried Peters was being unfairly punished for her protected free speech concerning election conspiracies. He cut her original nine-year prison sentence in half and ordered her released on parole June 1.

Over the weekend, began circulating in Democratic circles accusing Polis of “conduct detrimental to the institutional interests, credibility, and stated democratic mission of the Colorado Democratic Party.” By Wednesday morning, more than 700 people had signed onto the complaint.

The complaint requested a formal censure and condemnation of Polis’ clemency decision and revocation of guest of honor and similar privileges.

In a statement, Polis spokesperson Eric Maruyama wrote “the Governor made this decision based on the facts of the case and what he believed was the right thing to do. Sometimes the right thing isn’t the popular thing with everybody. Democracy is strongest when disagreement is met with debate and dialogue, not censorship.”

Peters, a former Mesa County clerk, was found guilty in of multiple felonies related to letting an unauthorized person use someone else’s security badge to make images of the election system’s hard drive following the 2020 election. She was then deceptive about that person’s identity.

Peters has since become an unapologetic face of election conspiracies. Trump has held her up as a political prisoner and repeatedly lashed out at Colorado officials to demand her release.

Polis said he did not consider outside pressure in issuing clemency for Peters but considered it the right thing to do. He cited an appeals court decision ordering her to be resentenced that said protected free speech may have played a role in Peters’ her original punishment.

Polis said Peters had shown remorse in her clemency application, though his office has not made that application public. Peters’ lawyer, Peter Ticktin, said Tuesday that she was not showing contrition. When sentencing Peters, District Judge Matthew Barrett called her “as defiant as any defendant this court has ever seen” and “a charlatan.”

Tell us what you think about this story

Hundreds of Democratic elected officials, volunteers and voters have asked the state party to formally censure Polis, alleging that his commutation decision is “incompatible” with the party’s values. , which was released Monday, asks party officials to condemn Polis’ decision to have Peters released on June 1 and find that it amounts to “conduct detrimental to the interests of the Colorado Democratic Party.”

Besides a censure, the complaint asks that the party limit Polis’ appearances at state party events like early June’s DemFest, including not allowing him to speak at or attend them.

The committee could then vote on whether to reprimand Polis or take other actions sought in the complaint.

“Given the urgency of the issue and the remedies being sought, (Murib) believes the most productive path forward is for the (central committee) to consider the matter directly,” Nicla wrote. Murib was among the Democrats who criticized Polis’ decision after it was announced on Friday.

The potential rebuke is the latest in a wave of scathing criticism from Democrats against Polis after he announced that he was reducing Peters’ original sentence of nearly nine years by roughly half for convictions related to an election data-breach scheme. The former Mesa County clerk and ally of President Donald Trump will end up serving about 20 months in jail and prison, with her release now coming roughly 30 months earlier than her prior parole eligibility date.

“The Colorado Democratic Party has consistently defended election workers, election administration, and public confidence in democratic processes,” the complaint’s authors wrote. “Granting clemency to one of the nation’s most prominent election denial figures directly undermines those efforts and weakens the Party’s credibility on issues of democracy and election integrity.”

In a statement Tuesday, Polis spokesman Eric Maruyama said Polis understood that other Democrats disagreed and were disappointed, but the governor “made the decision he felt was right, not popular.”

Ian Coggins, an official with the Denver Democrats, drafted the complaint letter over the weekend. Of the hundreds of people he sent the letter to, none has said they felt it was inappropriate, he said in an interview.

Coggins said the commutation was “icing on the cake” after a series of recent rifts between Polis and the broader party. That has included the governor’s efforts to comply with an immigration subpoena and his veto of a pro-union measure last year.

Coggins said the official party complaint seemed to be the strongest venue available to condemn Polis’ actions, especially since a special legislative session — with the goal of a censure by the General Assembly — seemed out of reach.

“(Polis) is the highest elected state official of the party in the state,” Coggins said, likening the situation to when people demanded the GOP condemn Trump if he didn’t represent that party’s values. “… We have to do the same thing, too, and say as a party, ‘This does not represent us.’ ”

Nearly 600 people have signed complaint

The complaint had attracted nearly 600 signatories by Tuesday afternoon, though that total included unaffiliated voters.

A dozen Democratic lawmakers had signed on, as had a number of candidates and local officials. They included elected leaders from Denver, Thornton, Superior, Westminster, Edgewater, Adams County, Lakewood and elsewhere.

State Sen. Lisa Cutter, a Jefferson County Democrat and early signatory to the complaint, said Peters’ commutation sent “a really bad message, at a really bad time.”

Democrats, aside from Polis, lined up early to oppose any kind of clemency for Peters, including in a letter signed by every Democrat in the legislature in March. The former clerk had become the face of election conspiracies and attempts to undermine voting systems, Cutter said. Cutter also noted that the judicial process still had not finished playing out for Peters.

She said that “every single Dem I’ve spoken to is mad about this.”

“There are certain things where (Polis) feels like he needs to override the will of the legislature, override the will of the party, override the judge that sentenced her,” Cutter said, while stressing that she didn’t personally dislike Polis and praising good things he’d done. “There’s a lot of hubris that is shocking.”

In the governor’s office statement Tuesday, Maruyama said Polis agreed with a recent Colorado Court of Appeals decision that found Peters’ speech had influenced the length of her initial sentence.

“One of the great things about the Democratic Party is that we are a big tent, and there is space to debate and disagree. No clemency decision should be granted only on whether it will be popular,” Maruyama wrote.

Still, by cutting out the judicial branch and waiting until after the legislature had adjourned its session, Polis was “just ignoring” the other two coequal branches of government, said Sen. Chris Kolker, a Centennial Democrat and another signatory.

“This was a pointed message to a lame duck governor, saying we don’t agree with this,” Kolker said.

The complaint, which was first reported by , came days after Polis announced that he was commuting Peters’ sentence and that she would be released on parole early next month.

Peters’ attorneys plan further appeal

The former clerk has become a cause célèbre among right-wing Trump allies and election conspiracists, and the president had repeatedly pressured Polis to release her, including by taking actions against Colorado.

The two men also spoke about her sentence during a phone call last year, .

Peters still plans to appeal the underlying convictions, her attorney Peter Ticktin said in an interview Tuesday. The deadline for her to file an appeal to the state Supreme Court is later this week.

Though Peters released a statement last week saying she was sorry, Ticktin said she wasn’t contrite.

“I don’t think that she was showing contrition for what happened,” Ticktin said. “I think she realizes that it was a mistake and things could’ve been handled in a better way.”

Peters may also be eligible for payment from the Trump administration, Vice President JD Vance suggested Tuesday.

He indicated that Peters should receive “some compensation” from that seeks to provide settlements for people who suffered what the department described as “weaponization and lawfare.”

“Tina Peters is a person who’s about to get out of prison, thanks in large part to the president’s good work in Colorado,” . “This is a woman who, at worst … committed misdemeanor trespassing, and someone threw the book at her.”

Peters, who as clerk sought to give an outside party access to secure voting equipment, was convicted of multiple felonies, including three counts of attempting to influence a public servant. A jury also found her guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation, first-degree official misconduct, violation of duty and failing to comply with the secretary of state.

Peters’ case was brought by state prosecutors, not by the Biden administration, which pursued prosecutions against people involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol following Trump’s 2020 election loss.

Asked about Peters’ eligibility for a settlement, the White House referred comment to the Justice Department. Representatives for DOJ did not return messages seeking comment Tuesday.

Ticktin said he still needed to examine whether Peters was eligible for the settlement, as she wasn’t prosecuted by the Biden administration but rather, in his characterization, by a “globalist judge” in a “captured state.”

Polis had mulled pardoning Peters for months before the appellate decision came down. Starting last fall, other elected officials in the state came to believe that he would soon take action on her sentence, and the governor later repeatedly mused that her sentence was too harsh.

As required by law, his office consulted in January with the judge who sentenced Peters. In March, to assuage angry lawmakers, the governor’s office privately said he would wait out the appeals court before making a decision on Peters’ sentence.

Ultimately, that decision came two days after the legislature adjourned for the year, effectively neutering Democratic lawmakers’ ability to formally respond to him — as they had privately discussed doing earlier in the year.

Two Democratic candidates in the spring primaries, congressional hopeful Melat Kiros and attorney general candidate David Seligman, have since called on the legislature to reconvene to take action against Polis. The day after Polis’ announcement, someone also launched a website calling for his impeachment and directing people to call lawmakers.

But a special session is not likely, given the hurdle.

Short of a governor’s call, the legislature can gather for a special session only if two-thirds of both the House and Senate support it. Reaching that threshold would require every Democrat in the Capitol to get on board, plus at least one Republican in each chamber.

Senate President James Coleman and House Speaker Julie McCluskie both declined to comment on the party complaint Tuesday. They earlier issued a statement opposing Polis’ commutation.

Still, lawmakers have made no secret of their displeasure with Polis, with many signing on to the complaint or releasing statements criticizing the governor last week. Some, like progressive Democratic Reps. Javier Mabrey and Jenny Willford, said Tuesday they wouldn’t attend bill-signing ceremonies with the governor in the coming weeks.

“The overwhelming public outcry we’ve seen is a testament to how poorly the governor has handled this,” Rep. Steven Woodrow, a Denver Democrat who signed the complaint, said in a text message. For his part, he said he would attend bill-signings with the governor.

“When our republic came under assault from a corrupt administration, he quickly folded,” Woodrow said. “People are justifiably outraged.”

Tell us what you think about this story

Where art thou, city services? Last November, my first Tuesday street sweeping was skipped in the Congress Park neighborhood. I reported this via 311 and was told that the service would not be rescheduled and that my street would be prioritized “next time.” I spoke with my city councilmember’s office (District 10), which confirmed that they received the same information.

The next time my address was scheduled for street sweeping — the first Tuesday in April — service was skipped. I reported this to 311 and District 10 and was informed that due to “limited equipment availability,” the service would not be made up, but that my street would be prioritized “next time.”

My recycling pickup was also skipped in April. One of the Solid Waste service truck drivers told me that due to a lack of personnel, my route doesn’t have an assigned driver. Whoever finishes their scheduled route first tries to get to my street by the end of the day.

My May street sweeping was just missed again. No doubt I will be a priority “next time.”

Why is this happening? Poor allocation of city resources? Layoffs? Does Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure control too many city services for it to execute its duties efficiently?

Clearly, citizens have no recourse. What are we supposed to do? We pay our property taxes every year and expect certain contracted services in return. Maybe it����ap time to skip a few payments. We can make it a priority “next time.”

Stephanie Subramanian, Denver

The Constitution gives the government power to regulate arms

Re: “On gun-control legislation, it should be all about the Constitution,” May 6 letter to the editor

The reader who reminded legislators that the right to bear arms is about the Constitution is correct — but only partially. It is about all of the Constitution. The very same clause calls for a well-regulated militia. Beyond that, the original Constitution gives Congress the power to organize and arm militias, and assigns the government a clear role in regulating them.

Gordon Johnson, Denver

Let’s get the name of the Democratic Party correct

Every time I read a letter in The Denver Post that uses the term “Democrat Party,” I know immediately it was written by a Donald Trump supporter. The proper name is the Democratic Party. It is always called the “Democrat Party” as a pejorative. It was never called the “Democrat” Party until the advent of Trump and his ilk. Perhaps we should start calling the Republican Party the Trump Party. In the current political climate, it would at least have the virtue of accuracy.

Martin M. Berliner, Greenwood Village

Money’s undue influence in how we are governed

To me, it seems pathetic that we read more about how much money a candidate raises than how they plan to govern. Each election cycle makes it more obvious that we are an oligarchy. We need shorter campaign seasons, and we need corporations and dark money out of politics.

Nancy Litwack-Strong, Lakewood

Rubio offers a reasoned response regarding an unreasonable foe

Re: “Iran: Effort to guide vessels paused,” May 6 news story

Marco Rubio attended a press conference Tuesday and, for the first time by any member of the current cabinet, articulately and clearly laid out the status of the Iran conflict. He answered questions succinctly and didn’t insult the questioner. He addressed the situation and alternatives that exist now, not the fumbling missteps that got us here, so that is what I will address.

Iran is governed by religious fanatics, who for at least four decades have declared death to the “Great Satan.” That’s us, the USA. So, you tell me, what would Iran do, immediately, with nuclear weapons — to our allies, and to any of us it could reach? That is a no-brainer. So the reality is, we must end that threat now.

It is no longer a political dilemma — we can deal with that at the polls — but we have no choice but to prevent Iran’s potential for developing nuclear weapons now, no matter how haphazardly it began. And it must be done with the approval and guidance of Congress.

David King, Erie

$1 billion? It is time we voters correct our mistakes

Re: “Trump ballroom: GOP wants $1B for security funding,” May 6 news story

Wednesday morning’s Denver Post front page carried the story that Republicans in the U.S. Senate have inserted $1 billion for security enhancements to the proposed White House East Wing ballroom into the bill to fund immigration reform, with the intent to rush this package through Congress this month!

Have they gone completely insane? We elected these guys and gals, but it is obvious that we made a mistake.

Think about it: If you had $1 million in your bank account, and you recruited each of your neighbors who had similar resources, it would take 1,000 of you in your city to come up with that much cash.

Think how many schools you could build, how many children you could feed or how many Colorado families you could provide with health care for that amount.

As GOP voters, we elected these people. It is obvious we made a mistake. Now we must elect each of them out of office.

Where are Mitt Romney, Mike Pence and Liz Cheney when you need them?

Rich Crawford, Arvada

Regulation of age discrimination should start with lawmakers

Re: “AI ended my career, but it doesn’t have to be this way,” May 3 commentary

The opinion piece perfectly illustrates the rampant lack of understanding of AI within our legislature and the potential harms to Colorado’s standing as a tech- and business-friendly environment.

The AI that the author and Derek Mobley encountered did exactly what the companies that employed the AI wanted it to do – screen out older and likely more expensive applicants in favor of younger and cheaper resources. This is not the fault of the AI tool – it did what it was trained to do.

Attempting to “regulate AI” to prevent this result is a fool’s errand, a never-ending game of whack-a-mole.

I experienced the same situation as they did, except it was 30 years ago, long before the availability of AI. Lawmakers need to be focused on tightening up the rules around age and other forms of discrimination and the companies that want that result. The natural effect would then be to tune the resources companies use, whether AI or human, to avoid discrimination. But trying to use uninformed legislative lawyers to design software will only result in more employment for more lawyers and more tech businesses leaving the state.

John Fechenbach, Highlands Ranch

To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail.

Re: “Vet found stability building home; now city wants land,” May 3 news story, and “Denver Water to drain Antero Reservoir,” April 21 news story

Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman can’t feel good that his city is about to ruin the life of Josh Kimbrough, who suffered brain injuries and trauma during his Army deployment. But he now needs to step up and change the narrative.

To help heal, Josh needs peace of mind, and he’s found it on the land he purchased in South Park, where he’s built a cabin for his family of four. But Aurora needs water, and has targeted his land for a large new reservoir. The city initially had another site, but believed this one is better because it will have one, not three, dams and be easier to operate.

Not good enough, Mr. Mayor. Better to incur a little more financial pain and spread it among all your water customers than stay the course and focus immeasurable physical pain and mental anguish on an injured veteran you would normally step up to protect.

Jeffrey Stroh, Denver

Aurora proposes flooding a large area of South Park for its planned Wild Horse Reservoir, while Denver Water drains Antero Reservoir because it does not have enough water in its system to keep it full during this drought.

Take a look at a map of South Park. The planned Wild Horse Reservoir is within spitting distance of Antero. The irony is delicious while also sad. I know Denver and Aurora have different water agencies, rights and responsibilities. Couldn’t something be negotiated so that yet another parcel of wonderful Colorado landscape is not inundated with water that might soon not be flowing if this drought continues?

I am not an expert on water law and the like, nor am I a fan of AI. But it couldn’t hurt Denver and Aurora to just ask their respective AIs: “Isn’t there an alternative to more dams and flooding in South Park?” Just ask for alternatives, please.

Martin Linnet, Golden

So let me get this straight. Aurora Water wants to spend $1 billion to create a new large, shallow reservoir — just a few miles as the crow flies — from Antero Reservoir, another large, shallow reservoir that is about to be drained, to avoid the massive evaporation that occurs with large, shallow reservoirs. This proposal seems laughable and lacking anything resembling science or research.

Wouldn’t it be more effective if Aurora eliminated all of the thirsty grasses and lawn areas that are merely ornamental? We need parks and similar shared recreation areas with grass, but I’ve seen plenty of subdivisions with lush grassy areas (like those between streets and sidewalks) that serve only an aesthetic purpose.

Randy Thompson, Salida

Did the Supreme Court decision gut the Voting Rights Act?

Re: “SCOTUS just neutered the Voting Rights Act,” May 3 commentary

Americans don’t like gerrymandering. Period. Irrespective of whether it’s a racial or political rationale.

Sunday’s opinion piece from Noah Feldman on the Supreme Court’s recent decision regarding Louisiana v. Callais, while predictably liberal, is surprisingly loud and histrionic given his usual pragmatism. While he probably didn’t write the headline, the decision hardly “neuters” the Voters Rights Act from 1965. Nor does it “gut” it, as Chuck Schumer babbled after the 2013 SCOTUS ruling on Shelby County v. Holder. Feldman claims the ruling serves to “eliminate Black Democratic members of Congress.” It does no such thing.

Since Shelby, both houses of Congress, mirroring the rest of society, have become far more racially mixed, with about versus only 45 in the 2011-13.

The VRA was neither neutered nor gutted. Nor were Black members “eliminated.” Rather, Black representation ballooned.

The recent decision merely reaffirms and restates that carving up districts based on race is illegal. Jim Crow died a too slow death, but most assuredly remains deceased today.

Employing the “the sky is falling” strategy when making an argument doesn’t make it more credible. It merely signals resignation.

Jon Pitt, Golden

I read with great interest Noah Feldman’s column in the Perspective section. He echoed every point I have been thinking about this with this new 6-3 conservative Supreme Court.

First, they started with overturning Roe vs. Wade after all three new justices agreed during their confirmation hearings that it was settled law. Then they gutted the Voting Rights Act, which was one of the cornerstones of our democracy.

We are returning to the Jim Crow era in this country as the rest of the democracies around the world continue moving forward, and we continue moving backward.

Shame on the Supreme Court. It is no wonder their approval ratings are at an all-time low.

It is a sad day for our country and one more step towards Christian Nationalism. Hungary sent the world a message, but apparently our country wasn’t listening.

David Shaw, Highlands Ranch

CHSAA needs to address youth sports loophole

Re: “CHSAA cracks down on high school recruiting,” May 3 editorial

I have coached youth football for 25 seasons and have witnessed multiple high school coaches directly ask middle school-aged players to “come play for them.” When I step in to protect my player, I’m often asked: “Why do you care?” My response is that it’s the student who usually pays the price for recruiting violations.

I agree that these two rule modifications are a good first step. But the middle school issue isn’t so cut and dry. When teams age out of youth football (8th grade), it’s the parents who start the conversation about which school their son should attend. They weigh factors like team success, playing time, the possibility of making varsity, the position they are likely to play, and whether the school will prepare them for college football.

As I understand the rules, an incoming freshman is not subject to “athletically motivated transfers.” High school coaches are aware of this and do what they can to try to influence students to attend their school. They do this through camps and by being involved in youth sports, either directly or by hiring youth coaches as assistants.

In the winter after his 8th-grade season, my nephew was invited to play for a “Colorado All-Star” team in a tournament where coaches from four different high schools were on staff. I witnessed two of them tell my nephew to come to their school, saying, “I have a spot for you.”

It used to be that high school coaches were prohibited from coaching youth sports. CHSAA should close this loophole by either reinstating the youth sports prohibition or acknowledging that they are OK with it.

Larry A Gombos, Littleton

Insurance companies could serve us better by cutting advertising

Every year, the top insurance companies spend billions on advertising and marketing. For example, , Progressive spent nearly $3.5B, State Farm $1.11B, Geico nearly $1.4B, and Allstate $1.87B. That����ap nearly $7.8 billion, not counting Liberty Mutual, USAA, Farmers, American Family, Nationwide, Travelers and others?

With global warming, devastating fires are burning up our forests, farmlands, the plains, and even parts of cities. In December 2021, the devastated Boulder County, laying waste to more than 6,000 acres and incinerating more than 1,000 homes and seven commercial buildings at a projected cost of $1 billion, making it Colorado’s most destructive fire in terms of property loss.

If the insurance companies used just 1% to buy firefighting aircraft instead of making millionaire celebrities even richer, how many planes could be bought to protect our homes? How many homes could have been saved, thus saving the insurance company millions? More planes in the air, less destruction, and the insurance companies save money. They could then pass the savings on to you.

Imagine seeing a plane flying over to save you and your loved one’s property with the logo of the insurance company on the side. Would you switch to that company? I would!

Randy Moyle, Westminster

To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail.

Martin, who is from Minnesota, gave brief comments during a news conference at Ball Arena, the only part of the three-day visit open to members of the media. The visit started Tuesday.

“The mayor has been working tirelessly to get this convention here,” he said of Mayor Mike Johnston. “They have rolled out the blue carpet, as I say, and it����ap been terrific.”

Denver is the third of five cities that Martin and the DNC team will visit on scouting trips before they decide which will host the 2028 convention. The other contenders are Atlanta, Boston, Philadelphia and Chicago. The winner will host the four-day convention in August 2028, bringing in tens of thousands of visitors and giving the city a national stage to show off its attractions.

Martin hinted that his team may also choose a host city for the 2032 convention.

“While we are here to tour and discuss the various logistical and administrative requirements for hosting the Democratic National Convention, we also seek a city that tells a story, that shares our values and will be a true partner with us,” he said.

Johnston led the press event, which also included comments from Gov. Jared Polis and Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib.

“This is a state (where) we’re successfully showing not only (that) Democrats win and continue to win, but we’re governing effectively,” Polis said. “We’re happy to share that with our colleagues … and many others from across the entire nation to make sure that more of the country can really look west for the future.”

Denver and Colorado officials have focused on highlighting the city’s transportation and logistical advantages during their pitch. They’ve also pointed to Democratic policy wins locally, including free kindergarten and preschool, decreases in street homelessness and improved public safety.

Johnston shared some details of the visit so far, including taking the DNC officials to the Colorado Avalanche’s playoff game Tuesday night — the team beat Martin’s home-state Minnesota Wild 5-2 — and singing karaoke at the Capitol Hill bar Charlie Brown’s.

During what he jokingly called his “closing argument” Wednesday, he called back to the last time Denver hosted the Democrats’ convention. That was in 2008, when then-Sen. Barack Obama accepted his nomination for president.

“This city and the ’08 convention made famous the idea of hope and change,” he said. “As we think about this coming convention, it is true that often hope inspires change. But it is more profoundly true that change drives hope.”

The DNC visit coincided with a heavy spring snowstorm that left several inches of snow over the city. The storm didn’t majorly impact the planned tour, though. City officials did have to pivot away from their plan to bring Martin and the rest of the team to a concert at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, a spokesman said.

One of the key factors in the decision will be whether Denver bid leaders are able to sufficiently fundraise for the event. Johnston said the city has built out a “detailed financial plan” to raise the resources but that the process wouldn’t fully kick off until the city is actually named as the host.

The mayor also said the city hasn’t used any of its own resources in trying to bring the convention to the city. Instead, bid leaders have worked with a nonprofit that serves as the city’s tourism sales and marketing agency. It receives both private dollars and some tax dollars from the city’s lodging tax.