During the 40 years I’ve been active in Colorado politics, Republicans have evidenced a propensity for dismissing Democratic victories, however decisive, as instances of devious candidates duping innocent voters. This article of conservative faith has not been shaken by the party’s record of abject failure in top of the ticket races. Should Jared Polis win reelection in 2022, Colorado will have gone half a century with but a single Republican governor, Bill Owens. Although Cory Gardner provided partisans with a momentary thrill of goose bumps following his 2014 U. S. Senate win, Gardner now appears to be the proverbial “…dead man walking” as 2020 approaches. And, what were once overwhelming Republican majorities in the Colorado Legislature have been reduced since 2004 to the occasional, paper-thin dominance of a single chamber.

Following the 2020 census when redistricting will move another handful of legislative seats to the increasingly periwinkle blue suburbs along the Front Range, Republican majorities may drift entirely out of reach for another decade. Consequently, we are beginning to hear rumors and whispers at the Capitol about recall elections next summer. Caterwauling complaints of overreach and wails of socialist leadership moving too far, too fast are ratcheting up as the troika of Democratic majorities and a new Governor adopt the legislation they promised during last November’s campaign. The horror of politicians keeping their word seems to have Republicans flummoxed. Democratic legislators appear committed to their agendas at the alleged risk of incumbency, or so the whiners would have us believe.

It’s doubtful, however, that the successful Senate recalls of 2013, organized in retaliation for gun control measures including universal background checks that were approved by Democrats along party lines in response to the Aurora Theater shooting, can be replicated in 2019. Tom Sullivan, father of one of the victims, now sits in the Colorado House and he is co-sponsoring the red flag bill that will soon reach the Governor’s desk. Democrats won’t let themselves be ambushed this time around. Recalls are a tricky business. The chance of dumping an incumbent on his or her head appeals to the renegade in all of us. It’s not like politicians are popular. This means Republican legislators skate on the same thin ice as Democrats.

Recall provisions in Colorado protect newly elected legislators for six months, so an incumbent can’t be replaced simply because their election was close. Many of our county commissioners, who have been merrily adopting Second Amendment Sanctuary resolutions, however, were elected two years ago. Voters can jerk them out of their chairs immediately. It seems likely that Douglas County’s exurban residents share the national opinion that securing the weapons of those who are a threat to themselves or others is a good idea. Polls find majorities of Republicans, as well as NRA members, support this protection. Gun control advocates may launch a Douglas County recall, not necessarily to elect a Democrat, but to replace a firearms zealot with a dose of sanity. Their success would throw the fear of God into Republicans long before they have a chance to circulate recall petitions next July.

The claim that Colorado’s proposed red flag bill is unconstitutional is utter nonsense. If that were true, the dozen states that have already adopted similar measures, in several cases as many as twenty years ago, would have long since been overturned by the Supreme Court. Emergency restraining orders fall well within the boundaries of the reasonable firearms restrictions that Antonin Scalia indicated were fully appropriate under the Second Amendment. If Colorado Sheriffs in self-proclaimed sanctuary counties refuse to enforce this provision of the law, they should and likely will be summarily removed. Failing that, they are sure to face recalls. Law enforcement is not a buffet. Sheriffs take an oath to enforce the law – all of it – not just the parts they like.

If Democrats still find themselves facing recalls next summer, they could adopt a one-for-one strategy, targeting Republicans in suburban districts where red flag legislation is indisputably popular. No better place to start than gun rights tribune Patrick Neville, the House minority leader. Would that prove messy? You bet it would. But it should take our minds off the 2020 presidential race for a few months.

Miller Hudson is a public affairs consultant and a former state legislator. He can be reached at mnhwriter@msn.com.