Few choices on ballots for primary election
EAGLE COUNTY — Colorado voters will solidify the November ballot June 28. There isn’t much for Democrats to do.
The state’s political parties held their first precinct caucuses March 1 — along with no small amount of grumbling about the lack of a presidential preference process. That was the start of a process that led to county conventions, state conventions and, finally, a primary election for candidates for state and local offices.
DEMOCRATS
Democrats in Eagle County have already selected their candidates for county and state races. In Michael Bennet and Jared Polis, that party has incumbents in the U.S. Senate and the Second Congressional District, respectively. The party also quickly rallied around former State Senator Gail Schwartz as a challenger to Third Congressional District incumbent Scott Tipton. The county is in both congressional districts.
District Attorney Bruce Brown is running for a second term.
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The party also has incumbent Diane Mitsch Bush in the Colorado House of Representatives, as well as both county commissioner seats up for election this year — that would be Jill Ryan and Kathy Chandler Henry. Also at the county level, current Eagle County Clerk and Recorder Teak Simonton is running for Eagle County Treasurer.
In short, there isn’t anything for Democrats to vote on in this election.
REPUBLICANS
Things are a bit different on the Republican side.
At the top of the ballot is a five-way race to pick a challenger to Bennet this fall. Candidates are Darryl Glenn, Ryan Frazier, Robert Blaha, Jack Graham and Jon Keyser.
The other contested races are in the Third Congressional District, where Garfield County resident Alexander Beinstein is running against Tipson, and in the race for the Third District seat on the Colorado Board of Education. Joyce Rankin and Anita Stapleton are seeking their party’s nomination for that seat.
The party has but one incumbent in this year’s race, County Treasurer Mari Renzelman, who was appointed to the position last year after the retirement of longtime treasuer Karen Sheaffer.
In other races, Michael Dunahay is running against Ryan in the District 1 commissioner race, while Rick Beveridge is running against Chandler-Henry. Longtime local attorney Bruce Carey is running for District Attorney, and another longtime resident, Michael Cacioppo, is running against Mitsch Bush.
Given the relative dearth of contested seats, Simonton said she only expects between 2,500 and 3,000 votes to be cast in the mail-ballot election. In contrast, Simonton expects to count roughly 25,000 votes in the Nov. 8 general election.
Vail Daily Business Editor Scott Miller can be reached at 970-748-2930, smiller@vaildaily.com and @scottnmiller.
