Your November 2023 ballot is due Tuesday via mail or dropoff. Here’s a recap of the Gazette editorial board’s stands on candidates and ballot questions in Denver and Aurora.

Statewide

Vote ‘NO’ on Proposition HH. It’s a massive tax hike disguised as property tax relief. That’s why many Coloradans are calling it “bait and shaft.” It is in fact a ripoff for rank-and-file Colorado taxpayers. It could grab up to $42.4 billion in surplus revenue collected by the state that otherwise would have to be refunded to taxpayers over the next 20 years. That’s nearly double any temporary property-tax relief under this deceptive measure, and Colorado homeowners still will face skyrocketing property tax bills even if HH passes. The only real winner would be state government, which could spend the surplus revenue however it wants.

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Denver Public Schools

Denver’s dysfunctional school board is a disaster. It needs new members with a new outlook. Three seats will be filled in this election. We endorse:

JOHN YOUNGQUIST – for the at-large seat. Youngquist is a DPS graduate, parent, volunteer, former teacher – and longtime DPS principal who also served as an assistant superintendent. He’s a dad to two students at Denver’s East High School, where a shooting in March wounded two administrators. He believes DPS has dropped the ball on school safety, among other areas. His many endorsements include that of former Denver Mayor Federico Peña. Learn more at https://www.youngquist4dps.com/

KIMBERLEE SIA – District 1, southeast Denver. Sia, too, has spent her career in public education, first as a teacher, then as an elementary and K-8 school principal and eventually as a school district-level administrator. She served for over six years as the chief executive officer of the public charter school network KIPP Colorado Schools. Sia aims to prioritize student achievement as well as school safety. Learn more at https://www.siafordpsstudents.com/

MARLENE DE LA ROSA – District 5, west and northwest Denver. DPS parent-activist De La Rosa has worked for decades at the grassroots level – in contrast to current members, who have proven themselves to be out of touch with parents’ concerns. She calls herself a “uniter, not a divider” and “a doer, not a talker” – a dramatic change for a board that has spent four years talking in circles. Learn more at https://www.marlenefordps.com/

Aurora City Hall

Aurorans will select a mayor and five council members. We endorse:

MIKE COFFMAN for mayor. Incumbent Mayor Coffman is one of a kind and has earned reelection. It’s not just because of the lifelong Auroran’s resume: U.S. Marine Corps Reserve officer; longtime state legislator; Colorado state treasurer; Colorado secretary of state; five-term U.S. congressman. It’s also because he speaks his mind, does what he thinks is right and blazes his own trails – whether or not it’s popular with the press or the political class. That’s leadership. On crime, on homelessness, on economic development and a host of other issues, Coffman has embraced a winning formula to get Aurora back on track and keep it there.

We also endorse:

CURTIS GARDNER and JONO SCOTT for council at large.

STEPHANIE HANCOCK for Ward IV.

ANGELA LAWSON for Ward V.

FRANCOISE BERGAN for Ward VI.

All understand that Aurorans expect local government to focus on its core mission – things like maintaining public safety; checking homelessness; upgrading transportation; sustaining the local economy, and respecting neighborhood integrity.

It’s a back-to-basics mission, and Mike Coffman, Curtis Gardner, Jono Scott, Stephanie Hancock, Angela Lawson and Francoise Bergan will see it through.

Denver Gazette Editorial Board