The Command Post
2004 US Presidential Election
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November 03, 2004
Colorado | Democratic Wave Of A Purple State

The electoral news on the national front is obscuring the results, on the local level, in Colorado.

Before the election, Republicans held the state senate by a slim 18-17 margin. It’s not too suprising to hear that the Democrats took one seat and regained the state senate. What is suprising is that house Republicans started yesterday with a 37-28 advantage and now they are a 34-31 minority (depending on final counts).

This Red State has a Blue Legislature…and two ‘Blue’ senators.

Colorado might be better described as ‘Purple’, not ‘Red’.

So how did this happen in a state with more registered Republicans (37%)than Democrats (31%)? The two primary reasons are the independant nature of the Colorado Voter and poor management by the Republican party.

Colorado is independent. In 1992, Ross Perot got 23% of the vote. In 1996, Dole won but over 140,000 votes went for third-party candidates. In 2000, almost 100,000 voters went for Ralph Nader. This state is used to voting “outside the party lines”.

But ultimately it was bad management by the Republican party. Coors was the only Republican to lose a close senatorial election. Nationally, the other close races broke toward the Republicans. In Colorado Bush won with a margin twice that of his margin nationally. The Republican governor is very popular.

Yet, the state house moves from a 9-point Republican advantage to a 3-point Democratic advantage. That can’t happen without mismanagement.

Who’s to blame in the Republican party? I don’t know.

One person who could pay the price is the Governor - Bill Owens. He’s on the mythical short-list of Republicans who might run for President in 2008. Some in the party might blame him for the losses within the state. But, now he faces a hostile legislature which will force him to issue more vetos and make more unpopular decisions.

One thing I can tell you…the Colorado media has missed the story of the resurging Democratic party and the problems in the state Republican party. There are many stories here and they aren’t being told.



Posted by Dave Bowdish at November 3, 2004 08:49 PM | TrackBack
Comments

Allard is a Republican, so 1 blue and 1 red senator, for now. But the last time Colorado elected a blue senator, he switch affiliation.

Posted by: Adam [TypeKey Profile Page] at November 4, 2004 01:13 AM

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