One word describes 2023: doozie. That same word may end up describing 2024. The national scene had lots of doozies in 2023, and Colorado also had its fair share.

For anyone whose life spans Richard Nixon’s near impeachment and Donald Trump’s multiple impeachments and indictments, which disasters have been worse for democracy? We know how Nixon’s administration turned out for all that president’s men. Everyone prosecuted landed behind bars except for the lead guy, Nixon himself. Most recently, Nixon’s secretary of state and chief Vietnam advisor, Henry Kissinger, died, wrapping up those meltdowns.

We know how the Trump impeachments turned out, but except for one rape civil trial, we’re awaiting results on Trump’s tax evasion and election rejection court cases. Tax evasion and dirty dealings in real estate may put the former president out of work in New York, but they won’t necessarily put him out of work at the nation’s capitol. Though some of his induced capitol invaders have gone into the corrections department, our man Trump and his aides still roam free.

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According to the semi-academic journal The Conversation, a majority of Americans from both political parties believe a strong leader is necessary to solve the nation’s problems. This concept may or may not translate into a dictator, but “strong leader,” in fact, the strongest leader the world has ever seen, is Trump’s calling card.

To reveal how this “strong leader” idea might affect democratic life in America, the pollsters at the Allegheny College Center for Political Participation asked for a response to this statement: “to protect the interests of people like you, political leaders must sometimes bend the rules to get things done.” Thirty-six percent of strong Democrats agreed or strongly agreed. Forty-nine percent of strong Republicans agreed or strongly agreed. We have a bipartisan majority here.

One other tidbit from this study toted up 90% of Republicans supporting leaders who “crack down on groups that undermine American values.” A majority of Democrats think the same for another bipartisan agreement. These affirmations are why Trump has a reasonable chance of taking the White House back in 2024.

If Trump wins the Republican nomination for president, the most likely national doozie in 2024 will be the reboot of the 2020 election between Trump and President Joe Biden. Practically no one wants this re-do. Only one of these presidents’ wives is rooting for victory. As for the rest of us Americans in November 2024, we will be collectively awaiting a dismal result either way. This inevitability already casts a pall over the nation’s spirits.

As to Colorado’s fate in the political arena, Republicans suffered a doozie of repudiation in 2022 that whacked them in their heads in 2023. With both chambers of the state legislature firmly in Democratic hands, Republican initiatives, such as they were, bit the dust. So did any common sense when Dave Williams, the rightest of the right wing of the party (and by rightest, no one means most accurate as he is also an elector rejector) took over as party chair.

As of now, Williams is working to dump his party’s primary in favor of caucuses. If there is a party primary, he doesn’t want any Trump opponents on the ballot. This idea may bite him if Trump is not allowed on the ballot because the Colorado Supreme Court, in a unique act of pro-democracy reasoning, declared Trump’s election rejection was treasonous according to the Constitution’s 14th Amendment.

This Colorado Supreme Court decision may be overturned by the doozie of a U.S. Supreme Court that not only threw out the Roe v. Wade precedent but also tolerated numerous conflicts of interest and money grifting by justices, most particularly Justice Clarence Thomas. He’s never seen a wealthy Republican whom he wouldn’t take money or gifts from. He might take a gift or money from wealthy Democrats too, but he’s never gone out with one so he hasn’t been tested in that manner.

Back to Colorado, the road wasn’t all smooth riding for Democrats either. Gov. Jared Polis was roundly roasted over the firepit of taxes and TABOR, burned once at the state House and then again at the ballot box regarding his property tax relief ideas. He finished the year by pleading with local governments to lax the tax, but to no avail. His failure to navigate what should have been an Aaron Gordon slam dunk on tax reduction is a doozie of a mess, especially since property owners will receive their tax bills in mid-January. They can spend the rest of 2024 ruminating over why they repealed the Gallagher Amendment.

The other state doozies expected in 2024 have to do with the governor’s talk, but not enough walk, on climate change and pollution. His two agencies overseeing oil and gas extraction and air pollution are writing rules that will likely put a thumb in the red eyes of citizens living close to major polluters. The Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission and the Air Quality Control Commission are doing their best to limit how much they will regulate air, water and land resources to protect the health and welfare of the people and the environment. If eyes aren’t forced shut because they’re burning from smog, this area of the governor’s policy-making needs close watching.

Maybe all will turn out well in 2024 despite the 2023 doozie trends. Fingers crossed.

Paula Noonan owns Colorado Capitol Watch, the state’s premier legislature tracking platform.