A judge Friday moved to block plans for a Colorado GOP meeting where critics of embattled state Chairman Dave Williams intended to vote on his ouster.
Arapahoe County District Court Judge Thomas W. Henderson issued a temporary restraining order barring a meeting scheduled for Saturday morning at a church in Brighton from taking place.
Henderson said in his ruling “the leadership of the Colorado Republican Party would be called into question, leaving the party in disarray roughly 100 days before election day on Nov. 5, 2024.”
Organizers of the meeting say they’ll still meet, but for a rally and an opportunity for candidates to replace Williams to address other Republicans.
“Make no mistake, we will repair and heal our state party…together,” wrote Todd Watkins, one of the organizers and a defendant in the lawsuit in an email. “We will respect the judge’s order and not risk entangling any of you by conducting a meeting.”
The ruling came as six of the state’s Republican congressional candidates said Williams should step down as party leader, and as U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert suggested in a Facebook post that Williams should go.
The letter and Facebook post were the strongest show of support yet for the attempts to remove Williams 16 months into his controversial tenure.
“We urge you to resign from your chairmanship, today. If you elect not to resign, we implore the members of the State Central Committee to remove you tomorrow, July 27, 2024,” said a letter from six congressional candidates and Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen.
Boebert suggested national Republicans would also like Williams to exit.
Boebert wrote: “I stand ready to publicly help and provide support to Republicans up and down the ballot, regardless of whether or not I agree with them on every issue. If Chairman Williams can’t do the same and refuses to show candidates he will, Republicans in Colorado and nationally will look in a different direction for leadership over the final 100 days.”
At least four candidates were poised to seek the party chairmanship at Saturday’s meeting in Brighton.
Also signing the letter seeking Williams’ removal were Jeff Crank, who defeated Williams in the 5th Congressional District primary; State Rep. Gabe Evans, running in the 8th Congressional District; Jeff Hurd, running in the 3rd District; Valdamar Archuleta in the 1st District; Marshall Dawson in the 2nd District; and John Fabbricatore in the 6th District. Only 7th District GOP candidate Sergei Matveyuk didn’t sign the letter.
Boebert’s Facebook post decried the GOP infighting over Williams.
“The past month of public dissension and infighting in the Colorado Republican Party has been embarrassing to watch as we have a golden opportunity this November to flip seats at every level of government,” she wrote. “This isn’t about competing policies or ideologies; this is about a failure from Chairman Williams to lead after our primary election and simply reach out to candidates and organizations throughout Colorado and beyond to offer support, mend bridges, and present a clear gameplan of how we can win together in November.”
Williams came under fire initially for his lackluster fundraising and because he worked as a full-time aide to a state lawmaker while leading the state Republican party. The criticism only intensified as he mounted an unsuccessful run for Congress.
When U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado Springs, announced in January that he would step aside, Williams used the state party email to announce that he would run for the 5th Congressional District seat in El Paso County.
Williams has rejected calls to step down as party chairman, and spent party money in late February to criticize his opponent, conservative commentator and activist Jeff Crank, among others. In April, Williams had a Colorado Sun reporter tossed out of the state party assembly.
For the first time in recent memory, if not ever, the Colorado GOP endorsed candidates in competitive primary elections, drawing anger from many in the party. Of the 18 candidates endorsed by the party, only four won their contests.
The party also spent $58,000 in late May and early June sending three mailers urging voters to support Williams and criticizing Crank. Williams donated $60,000 to the party from his campaign account in June, but some questioned if the mailers violated federal postal regulations.
Williams’ actions resulted in federal super PACs spending $2.7 million to defeat him in the June 25 primary.
And two June anti-LGBTQ emails from the party — along with a social media post calling for the burning of pride flags — drew heavy criticism, including from many Republicans.
Crank defeated Williams by 30 percentage points, and is likely to win the general election in the highly Republican district. He faces Democratic science educator River Gassen in November.
After Williams’ loss, El Paso County GOP Vice Chairman Todd Watkins called for a special state central committee meeting Saturday to remove Williams as state party chairman.
In response, the state GOP executive committee “sanctioned” Watkins as well as Jefferson County GOP chairperson Nancy Pallozzi, who had earlier called for Williams to step down.
Williams called the meeting in Brighton on Saturday “fraudulent.” Party leaders scheduled a rival GOP committee meeting in Bayfield on July 19, led by Vice Chairwoman Hope Scheppelman. The Bayfield meeting was held under a bridge, and drew just a handful of people. The group took no action except to adjourn until a previously scheduled central committee meeting in August.
Williams filed a lawsuit in state district court July 18 trying to stop Saturday’s meeting. The Arapahoe County District Court judge on Thursday night originally refused Williams’ request for an injunction against the meeting.
Williams and his supporters urged Republicans not to attend the meeting in Brighton, which had been scheduled for 9 a.m. at Harvest Fellowship Church.
The Republican in-fighting in Colorado comes after Michigan Republicans removed their party chairwoman in January, a move that was upheld by the Republican National Committee.
Those who have said they will run for GOP chair if Williams is removed include:
- State Rep. Richard Holtorf, one of five people Boebert defeated in the 4th Congressional District
- Eli Bremer, a former El Paso County chairman who has a slate of officers running with him
- Douglas County GOP Chairman Steve Peck, who is supported by past GOP Chairwoman Kristi Burton Brown
- Former Routt County Treasurer Brita Horn