One Democratic state senator was drawn into a district that now leans heavily in Republicans’ favor. A GOP House member, meanwhile, will run in a district that’s now solidly Democratic. And a handful of incumbents will have to decide whether to challenge their colleagues in an awkward primary or general election contest or quickly move […]
Tammy Story
Posted inBusiness, News, Outdoors, Outsider
Colorado ski areas aren’t talking about skier fatalities this season. So we asked coroners instead.
At least 11 skiers were killed in traumatic crashes at Colorado’s 26 ski areas this season. That is about the average number for a ski season — “about” because it’s difficult to learn when and how skiers and snowboarders die inbounds at the state’s ski areas. Ski areas are not required to share information about […]
Posted inBusiness, Health, News, Outdoors, Politics and Government
Colorado lawmakers reject effort to require ski areas to report injuries, publish safety plans
Colorado state lawmakers on Thursday killed a bill that would have required ski areas to publish ski injury statistics and safety plans. The Colorado Senate’s Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee heard from more than 40 witnesses over three hours Thursday, many pleading for the passage of Senate Bill 184. They also heard from ski industry […]
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
Split among Democrats on two major issues comes as Colorado’s legislative session heads into final sprint
Democrat-on-Democrat pushback on two of the party’s major pieces of legislation at the Colorado Capitol this year has delayed the measures ahead of the sprint toward the finish of the 2019 session. A priority bill that would create a state-run parental and family leave program impacting every Colorado employer and employee was temporarily shelved Tuesday […]
Posted inBusiness, Politics and Government
Dark money and disclosure gaps are priorities for new state election chief, Democrats
Political flyers with no mention of who paid for them. Mailers that mention candidates, but with no disclosure of the donors who covered the cost of the messages. Nonprofits donating millions of dollars to super PACs, with no ability for voters to learn where the money came from. And an enforcement system that relies on […]
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
Super PAC money dominated 2018 election and Democrats controlled the cash race
Super PAC money led Colorado to record-setting spending in the 2018 election, totaling $74 million in all state-level races and exceeding the sums expended by candidates. The total spent in the two-year election cycle surpassed $219 million, according to a Colorado Sun analysis. The amount is a rough estimate that includes publicly disclosed candidate and […]
Posted in2018 Voter Guide, News, Politics and Government
Spending 5 times higher on state Senate races this year than in 2016
Candidates and committees still are scooping up political TV ad time with only eight days until the election comes to a close, adding nearly $2.5 million in spending last week. That brings total election-year spending to $66.9 million, $52.1 million of that on the general election alone. Many of the ads airing focus on the […]
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
The nastiest Colorado campaign attacks filling your mailbox — and the truth behind them
The images are scary, the text is frightening. The flyers filling Coloradans’ mailboxes are often the political version of a horror movie. Many of them stretch the truth. Some of them are outright wrong. Others are cookie-cutter templates with different candidate photos pasted in. They rarely mention whether a candidate is a Republican or Democrat. […]
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
In the battle for the Colorado Senate, Dem candidates raise more money, but cash from outside groups gives GOP the edge
Republican state Sen. Beth Martinez Humenik and her Democratic challenger, state Rep. Faith Winter, are hustling — ringing doorbells and hoping to win votes — in a race that may determine the balance of power in Colorado. But they’re not the only ones knocking on doors or sending mailers. Outside groups are spending heavily in […]
Posted inEnergy, News, Politics and Government
Colorado business leaders are behind dark-money political group spending big on state Senate races
A nonprofit with large donors from the oil and gas industry is spending big on cable TV ads to help Republicans in four state Senate contests. The Colorado Economic Leadership Fund is spending $621,370 on ads, according to cable TV contracts filed last week with the Federal Communications Commission. The ads began airing Aug. 22 and are set to […]