Editor,

I really enjoyed your “Yesteryear” column on 6-11-15.

The 1965 quote by Democratic State Senator Roy Romer of Denver saying Republican U.S. Senator Gordon Allott was “inadequate” and would be “rejected” for reelection because Allott supported Barrry Goldwater for president in 1964 is very interesting and ironic given what did happen in the 1966 election.As it turned out, Romer was the Democratic candidate against Allott in 1966.  Allott easily won a third term by a whopping margin of 58 percent to 42 percent (368,307 to 266,198) over Romer. 

Interestingly, Romer and Allott both had deep roots in Prowers County.  Romer was raised in Holly, while Allott, a Pueblo native, practiced law for several years in Lamar before being elected lieutenant governor and finally to the U.S. Senate. In the battle between these two southeastern Colorado heavyweights, Allott defeated Romer 3,051 to 1,921 in Prowers County.  Allott even beat Romer in Denver County, 87,763 to 81,035, despite Romer being a state senator from Denver.

Romer returned to his business interests after his 1966 defeat and essentially disappeared from the political scene until Governor Dick Lamm appointed Romer to be Colorado State Treasurer in 1977 after Sam Brown resigned to join the Carter Administration in Washington, a position Romer was subsequently elected to in 1978 and 1982.  When Lamm chose not to run for a fourth term in 1986–term limits on state elected officials was not passed until 1990–Romer was elected governor and served three terms after being reelected in 1990 and 1994. 

Roy Romer would become one of the few elected officials in Colorado political history to be elected to major statewide office after losing such an election.  While not entirely comparable, U.S. Senator Bill Armstrong lost a Republican primary for lieutenant governor in 1970 before being elected to Congress in 1972 and to the Senate in 1978.  Likewise, U.S. Senator Hank Brown was the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor in 1978 on the ticket with Ted Strickland, who lost to Dick Lamm, before being elected to Congress in 1980 and to the Senate in 1990.

It would have been difficult to imagine in 1966 that Roy Romer would emerge from that overwhelming Senate defeat to become such a dominant political figure as state treasurer from 1977 to 1987 and as governor from 1987 to 1999.

Dick WadhamsLittleton