On Sunday, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold returned to national TV to sound alarm bells for American democracy.

“The attacks on American confidence in elections, they’re getting worse,” Griswold declared in an interview with MSNBC’s Ali Velshi. “We’re seeing the setting of the stage so that the next time extreme election officials or extreme candidates don’t like the results, it’s going to be easier for them to successfully pull off a Jan. 6.”

Conspicuously absent from Griswold’s exaggerations were any grievances about fellow Democrat Joe Biden’s remarks questioning the legitimacy of the upcoming 2022 elections.

“Speaking of voting rights legislation, if this isn’t passed, do you still believe the upcoming election will be fairly conducted and its results will be legitimate?” a reporter asked Biden.

“Well,” the president began, “it all depends on whether or not we’re able to make the case to the American people that some of this is being set up to try and alter the outcome of the election.”

When asked again about the midterms, Biden got blunt: “The prospect of being illegitimate is in direct proportion to us not being able to get these reforms passed.”

Wow.

During the 2020 election cycle, then-President Trump planted seeds of a coming “rigged election.” Now, Biden is doing exactly the same thing, only with a “voting rights” spin to his fearmongering.

Thing is, this time Jena Griswold is in on the spin.

“(I)t’s so urgent that we do everything we can to fortify democracy, the right to vote and the future of the nation right now,” she insisted. Read: Passing the Democrats’ voting bills – which failed in the U.S. Senate last week – is necessary to evade a supposed existential crisis.

Griswold’s rhetoric is disingenuous at best. For starters, she knows these so-called “voting rights” bills are actually a disastrous attempt to federalize elections that would undercut the very things that make Colorado’s electoral system a model for other states.

Shouldn’t our elected SOS protect Colorado’s status as an elections leader – not fight for congressional legislation that would undermine it?

Griswold pointed to “attacks we are seeing on democracy,” including “the 30 voter suppression bills passed last year, the 300 being considered right now.”

She knows better. Good or not, many of the “300 bills” – almost all of which are in other states – have no chance of success. Some are backed by only one legislator.

Moreover, “voter suppression” is a highly debatable term. Among the 30 so-called “voter suppression bills passed last year” is Georgia’s new elections law. Last April, I debunked misinformation that it restricts mail ballots and early voting.

“In Georgia, no-excuse mail ballots are still legal. The time window for early voting is longer,” I wrote. “Voter ID requirements are now the same for mail ballots as in-person. Drop boxes are (now) required, giving voters more places to drop off ballots.”

In fact, Georgia offers more early-voting days and less-restrictive vote-by-mail than Democrat strongholds New York and Delaware (Biden’s home state).

So, is Griswold’s rhetoric simply disingenuous? More likely, it is intentional deception spewed by a hyper-partisan actor raising money for reelection.

As CoPo’s Eric Sondermann observed, “There is no doubt that (Griswold) sees her position as a springboard to higher office… She has a nose for divisive, polarizing issues and eagerly seizes upon them.”

“Put simply,” he added, “Jena Griswold is an intensely political secretary of State in an overly politicized time. Even when she makes the right call, her motives are suspect and her credibility is weak.”

Sondermann is right. This is a claim I’ve demonstrated and documented time and time and time again. However, Griswold isn’t the only Democrat playing political games with elections.

Last week, I highlighted divisive, partisan statements by Congressman Jason Crow and activist-school board member Tay Anderson as they demanded Congress federalize elections. State House Democrats led an “obtuse attempt to divide legislators and further politicize Colorado’s elections” with House Resolution 1004.

The public record proves that Colorado Democrats – and Griswold, especially – are almost universally incapable of ensuring open and secure elections with fairness and credibility.

This is striking given the murkiness among some Republicans. As Griswold alluded to on MSNBC, Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters faces a grand jury empaneled by district attorney Dan Rubenstein. This stems from SOS and FBI investigations into allegations that Peters committed an election security breach in violation of state and federal laws as well as election rules.

Two-thirds of State House Republicans voted last week for amendments to the aforementioned HR22-1004, in part questioning the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election and strangely supporting Peters as well as Americans (including Rep. Ron Hanks) who “peacefully protested” outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Unlike Democrats’ apparent agenda-driven unanimity, the Republican side is no monolith on elections. To their credit, several state representatives publicly admitted it was a mistake to vote for those amendments. Rubenstein is a Republican. House Republican leader Hugh McKean and GOP Chairwoman Kristi Burton Brown reaffirmed the 2020 election is “settled.” The GOP’s SOS front-runner, Pam Anderson, touts Colorado’s election system. I personally called for Peters’ resignation in August 2021. I could go on.

While Griswold’s Democrats pretend to be above-board on elections and voting rights, they have zero credibility. Coloradans are sick and tired of the partisan wrangling on elections. It’s time to drop the gamesmanship.

Jimmy Sengenberger is host of “The Jimmy Sengenberger Show” Saturdays from 6-9am on News/Talk 710 KNUS.  He also hosts “Jimmy at the Crossroads,” a webshow and podcast in partnership with The Washington Examiner.