Colorado joins multi-state call to keep ICE away from polling locations
Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold announced Monday that the state has formally requested written confirmation from the Department of Homeland Security that ICE agents will not be stationed at polling locations during the 2026 election cycle, according to a news release.
The letter comes a week after Kristi Noem, the former Secretary of Homeland Security, said, “There are no plans to have ICE officers at our polling locations.’
Noem has since been fired by President Donald Trump, who nominated Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin to replace her. Noem was fired not long after testifying before Congress regarding tactics used over the last year to crack down on immigrants living in the United States illegally.
Griswold joined eight other states in calling on Mullin to confirm in writing that ICE will have no presence at polling locations. Colorado has a primary election in June, followed by the November general election.
The letter to Mullin states, “We have heard concerns from many of our constituents about potential voter intimidation that would arise from an armed law enforcement presence at polling locations.”
Griswold, who is running for Attorney General, contends that the Trump administration has used ICE to “terrorize and intimidate Americans.”
The eight other states that joined Colorado in signing the letter are Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington.
DeGette challenger Melat Kiros trounces 15-term Democratic incumbent in Denver delegate vote
Ernest Luning
ernest.luning@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 2 days ago
The 28-year-old, first-time candidate challenging Democratic U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette in this year’s primary soundly defeated the 15-term incumbent in a delegate preference poll conducted Saturday at a county party assembly in Denver. Melat Kiros, the daughter of Ethiopian immigrants...
Army veterans Jessica Killin, Joe Reagan qualify for Democratic primary ballot in Colorado’s 5th CD
Ernest Luning
ernest.luning@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 2 days ago
Democratic congressional candidates Jessica Killin and Joe Reagan secured spots Saturday in Colorado’s June primary to decide who will run against Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank in a district that’s only ever sent GOP lawmakers to Congress. The two Democrats,...
Boebert challenger Eileen Laubacher joins lawsuit aimed at blocking her from Democratic assembly
Ernest Luning
ernest.luning@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 3 days ago
A Denver District Court judge on Thursday permitted Democratic congressional candidate Eileen Laubacher to join a lawsuit filed by one of her primary opponents seeking to prevent Laubacher from participating in the party’s assembly process in a bid to qualify...
Colorado GOP chair Brita Horn says she’ll resign next month, points to ‘divide within our party’
Ernest Luning
ernest.luning@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 4 days ago
Colorado Republican Party Chair Brita Horn said Thursday that she will resign her position next month following the GOP’s state assembly, citing what she described as an “enduring divide” within the party “marked by vitriol and hostility.” Horn’s announcement came...
Senate committee moves forward with Colorado ballot measure to redirect TABOR refunds to schools
Marianne Goodland
marianne.goodland@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 3 days ago
A Senate panel on Thursday voted along party lines to move forward with a bill that would ask voters for permission to eliminate Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights refunds and redirect those dollars to K-12 public education. The 6-3 vote in...
Colorado committee recommends rejecting alcohol, marijuana tax hike to fund mental health care
Marissa Ventrelli
marissa.ventrelli@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 10 hours ago
In a rare move, Colorado’s Capital Development Committee unanimously recommended that another legislative committee reject a bill asking voters to approve higher excise taxes on alcohol and marijuana to fund a new mental health hospital in Aurora. Sponsored by Rep....
Republican Jeff Crank, Democrat Jessica Killin qualify by petition for Colorado’s 5th CD primary
Ernest Luning
ernest.luning@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 5 days ago
Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank and Jessica Killin, one of the Democrats challenging the first-term incumbent, have both qualified for the primary ballot in Colorado’s 5th Congressional District after turning in a sufficient number of petition signatures, state election officials...
Split vote by Colorado Title Board stops ballot push to privatize Pinnacol Assurance
Marianne Goodland
marianne.goodland@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 2 days ago
The Colorado Title Board, a three-member panel that sets the language for ballot measures, recently reversed a prior decision and blocked a proposal to privatize Pinnacol Assurance from moving forward. The main issue decided by the title board is whether...
Can deliberation save democracy? | Vince Bzdek
Vince Bzdek
vince.bzdek@gazette.com
Updated 1 week ago
In September 2019, 523 Americans traveled to Dallas for an experiment called “America in One Room.” The gathering was designed to test a theory: Could representative citizens deliberate productively even in an era of intense polarization? The event focused on...
Redistricting scheme would give Colorado Democrats seven House members, split El Paso County | Bob Loevy
Bob Loevy
bob-loevy@coloradopolitics.com
Updated 1 week ago
A proposed redistricting plan, which could give Colorado seven Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives and only one Republican, would split El Paso County into two parts and thereby weaken the county’s influence in Congress. El Paso County,...
PREV
PREVIOUS
Colorado prostitution decriminalization bill shelved after sponsor says it lacks votes
A bill that would have decriminalized prostitution in Colorado will not move forward this year after its sponsor said it lacks the votes to pass its first committee. Sen. Nick Hinrichsen, a Pueblo Democrat, said he will ask to postpone Senate Bill 97 until after the legislative session ends, rather than advance it to a […]
Colorado Supreme Court blocks ballot initiative defining 'fees'
The Colorado Supreme Court blocked a proposed ballot initiative on Monday that would have required voter approval for new fees above a certain threshold, while also enshrining a definition of “fee” into the state constitution for the first time. Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez wrote in the March 9 opinion that a ballot measure could […]