“Giddy up!” was a favorite charge of former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper. He referred to it in a book title, and the catchphrase was applied to his now-deceased presidential campaign PAC.

But as a tyke in Boulder, it was current Gov. Jared Polis who might have used it as a tagline to “trick or treat,” dressed as a rootin’ tootin’ man of the Old West for Halloween many moons ago.

The self-made tech millionaire and former member of Congress wasn’t a fan of the treats, but he also wasn’t one to pass on a good capitalistic opportunity.

“I didn’t like candy, so I would sell my candy for $5 each year to a friend,” he tells Colorado Politics.

Our staff of ghouls and goblins went creeping around for old photos, through the cobwebs of the imagination to find out what has haunted the dreams of the state’s spookiest politicos, from Halloweens past to today’s realities.

Here are the terrors we unburied. (Click through the photo gallery above to see each respondent’s childhood costume.)

GOV. JARED POLIS

What were you afraid of as a kid?

“Nuclear war.”

What are you afraid of now?

“High health care costs that hold families back from saving their hard-earned money and that can plunge them into debt, but we’re making great progress. Sky-high prescription drug prices that force people to choose between paying for life-saving drugs or putting food on the table.”

MICHAEL FIELDS, executive director of Colorado Rising Action

Young conservative Michael Fields haunts the dreams of those who might spend government resources with liberal abandon and strike down the liberties guaranteed by the founding fathers.

The head of the advocacy group Colorado Rising Action, and a former leader with Americans for Prosperity, has had his eye on Election Day, not a free-candy holiday, for weeks, debating for the defeat of Proposition CC.

But things were different in the Halloweens of his youth. He was all about the sweet stuff, photographic evidence suggests.

What were you afraid of as a kid?

“When I was a kid, I was afraid of lightning and that one Little League pitcher, Angel, who hit like half of the batters with the ball.”

What are you afraid of now?

“Now, I’m afraid that my kids might end up with less opportunity than I’ve had. And I’m worried that political polarization might prevent us from doing big, important things in the future.”

U.S. SEN. CORY GARDNER

The fifth-generation Coloradan grew up in Yuma, the tiny town on the Eastern Plains where his family has owned a farm equipment dealership since the early 1900s. At age 7, Gardner went trick-or-treating as a robot in a homemade costume made up of dryer ducts and old flashbulbs.

What were you afraid of as a kid?

“At age 7, I was afraid of Raiders fans.”

What are you afraid of now?

“Now it’s people who take candy from one trick-or-treater and redistribute it to everyone else, also known as socialists.”

DAN BAER, former diplomat

The former Obama-era ambassador and former head of Colorado’s Department of Higher Education ended his campaign for the U.S. Senate last month and threw his support behind Hickenlooper, who is one of eight Democrats seeking the nomination to challenge Gardner.

What were you afraid of as a kid?

“As a kid, just scared that my homemade costume wouldn’t stack up.”

What are you afraid of now?

“I should have been more scared as a kid (there were tough times waiting), but I probably should be less scared now. Now I am scared about the end of pluralistic liberal democracy mostly.”

CANDI CdeBACA, Denver City Councilwoman

The progressive first-time officeholder in Denver City Council has deep roots in the state as a fifth-generation Coloradan raised in an extended family with her grandparents and the matriarch of the house, her great grandmother, also known as “Nana.” CdeBaca credits her great grandmother, with whom she shares a birthday, for passing on her sharp tongue, love of reading and fearlessness – with maybe one exception.

What are you afraid of as a kid?

“I had only one fear growing up and it was being the spanked by my nana! She was tiny and frail, but she was fierce with her broom or fly swatter! I stayed on her good side so I wouldn’t be spanked, and it turned out to be the best preparation for living a fearless, purpose-driven life.”

What are you afraid of now?

“My only fear is of being inconsequential. The fear of being spanked by my nana rooted itself in my being in a way that made me fear failing to honor her life and the lives of our ancestors. My life is an opportunity to build on every loss and victory that they had before me, and I carry that weight of purpose in all that I do.”

SKYLER McKINLEY, spokesman for AAA Colorado

McKinley, who haunted the streets of Pueblo as a youth before becoming Colorado’s first deputy pot czar and a press secretary to the governor, recalls that he was “VERY into Halloween as a kid” – and has plenty of photographs to prove it.

This year, he’s warning motorists and costumed kids alike to keep Halloween from turning into a literal nightmare by exercising extra caution. AAA points to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data showing the holiday is the single deadliest day of the year for child pedestrians, who are three times more likely to be killed by an automobile than any other day of the year.

“Parents should take the time to make their children’s costumes highly visible to drivers,” McKinley says. “Motorists, for their part, must slow down and watch for children. And don’t plan on drinking at a Halloween celebration unless you have a designated driver or safe ride home.”

What were you afraid of as a kid?

“What scared me the most as a kid back then was whatever the monster of the week was that week on the “X-Files” episode I was almost certainly too young to be watching.”

What are you afraid of now?

“What frightens me the most these days is the realization that I probably won’t age even half as well as David Duchovny.”

State REP. LESLIE HEROD

She’s known at the Capitol for her smooth political moves and devastating arguments, but when she was in the second grade, Herod was a karate kid.

Taekwondo, actually. That, not coincidentally, was the year she signed up for classes. Back then she was living in Korea, as her mother was on active duty in the military.

The young Democrat from Denver, who chairs the Black Democratic Legislative Caucus of Colorado, is a rising star in the Legislature who might fight her way into statewide office or perhaps the halls of Congress.

What were you afraid of as a kid?

“Not much, except fire ants. Those little suckers were terrifying and left a mark!”

What are you afraid of now?

“Not doing enough. I want to make my mark – but not the way those little suckers did. Now I’m less worried about the ants and more terrified of what this White House is doing to our country and 45’s willingness to send our country to war – over Twitter battles.”

MONICA OWENS BEAUPREZ, Partner at Westbrooke Group

Anyone who wanted to go dressed as a powerful, well-connected Republican woman might model their look after Beauprez.

The daughter of former Colorado Gov. Bill Owens, daughter-in-law of former Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez and the former staff member of Vice President Dick Cheney is a partner with the Westbrooke Group, a Denver-based consulting firm that specializes in fundraising, event planning and public affairs for corporate, non-profit and political candidates.

What were you afraid of as a kid?

“When I was a child, I feared the dark and spiders.”

What are you afraid of now?

“Now that I’m an adult, I fear the dark and spiders. Gee, I guess nothing has changed.”

JERROD DOBKIN, communications director for Gardner 2020 campaign

It can be frightening business working with the hordes of journalists who cover Colorado politics, but  Dobkin doesn’t appear to mind. He held the same position on Republican gubernatorial candidate Walker Stapleton’s campaign last year, and in between he worked as press secretary for Gardner’s Senate office in Washington, D.C.

What were you afraid of as a kid?

When I was 7 I was afraid of Chuck-E-Cheese. 

What are you afraid of now?

“And now… well, come to think of it, I’m even more terrified of that giant rat now.”

State SEN. JEFF BRIDGES 

The first-term senator from Greenwood Village has had a busy summer, between watching to see if he would be targeted for a recall (he was on the short list, but it never happened) and working on interim committees dealing with water and school finance. 

What were you afraid of as a kid?

“Clowns! As a kid I was afraid of clowns. Terrified!”

What are you afraid of now?

“I’m still afraid of clowns, but more afraid that our under-funding of schools is hurting Colorado kids. Vote yes on CC!” 

SAGE NAUMANN, Colorado Senate GOP spokesman

For a slightly different – and more recent take, on Halloween – we’re looking to Naumann, whose day job is as spox for the Colorado Senate GOP. By night (and weekends, too) he researches Colorado history, especially that which is tied to the Capitol, and makes everyone – well, almost everyone – laugh with his humorous takes on life inside the Capitol.

Naumann joked he will be trick-or-treating this year with Sen. Owen Hill of Colorado Springs. Naumann said, “I’m dressing as a legislative bill and [Hill will] just follow me around yelling ‘Read him at length!’ ” (That’s a nod to the reading of a 2,023-page bill during the 2019 session that led to a lawsuit filed against Senate Democrats by Senate Republicans.)

What are you afraid of now?

“I’m afraid of bomb cyclones, tax increases, and Senator Jeff Bridges. Don’t ask me why, but I keep having this recurring nightmare of him telling me that God has officially endorsed the FAMLI Act, and it really gives me a fright.”