Election Recap

In case you missed it ...
Amendment 46, the anti-equal opportunity ballot measure, was
opposed by Citizens Project and rejected by Colorado voters
Amendment 48, the egg-as-a-person ballot measure, was
opposed by Citizens Project and rejected by Colorado voters
Thank you to volunteers who donated countless hours to
ensure the defeat of Amendments 46 and 48, and thanks to you, Colorado voters, for
making your voices heard!
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Upcoming Events
The Laramie Project A stage exploration of the Matthew Shepard story Thurs., November 20 through Sat., November 22 Wasson High School Auditorium, 2115 Afton Way, Colorado Springs For more information, call 719-328-2029
Educating Children of Color Sat., January 10, 2009 8am - 4:30pm Harrison High School 2755 Janitell Road, Colorado Springs For registration information, call 719-444-5722 or email dianaschulz@elpaso.com www.educatingchildrenofcolor.org Pikes Peak Progressive Events Calendar |
Articles of Interest
Federal Court OKs Prayer at County Meetings Atlanta Journal-Constitution, October 28, 2008
Gay Marriage is a Question of Love MSNBC, November 10, 2008
Misguided Views Colorado Springs Gazette, November 12, 2008
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Voters Disenfranchised in Colorado?
By Elizabeth Payne
A series of disturbing events leading up to the presidential
election this year caused many voters to question exactly how important
democracy really is to some elected officials in the state of Colorado. That some instances originated
directly from the El Paso County Clerk and Recorder's office is especially
disturbing to Citizens Project supporters. Adding to these concerns is evidence
indicating that many of Colorado's
election laws disenfranchise poor or minority voters. Further, Colorado was frequently
seen in national headlines as one of several states poorly prepared to handle
the 2008 presidential election.
El Paso County
Clerk's Office Raises Concerns
In March, County Clerk Bob Balink sent an email to Colorado College containing inaccurate
information about students' voter eligibility. The email stated that students
whose parents had out-of-state residency were ineligible to vote. This
inaccurate information was passed on to students, and Balink did not release a
statement correcting his error until late September.
In spite of his retraction, Balink continued to post a letter
on the Clerk and Recorder's Web site written by Zakhem Atherton, a law firm with
strong conservative ties, which stated ramifications of student voting "could
result in criminal penalties" and "could end up costing the parents well over $1,000 in income tax."
Balink's actions likely had political consequences, since survey results
indicate that college students favor Democratic candidates. A survey conducted
by the Panetta Institute found that an "overwhelming majority [of students were]
supporting the candidacy of Senator Barack Obama of Illinois." Balink, in contrast, was an
outspoken supporter of John McCain and was a delegate to the Republican
National Convention.
As the time for early voting approached, Balink's office
made the decision to provide only three locations for early voting in El Paso County, although this election promised
a very high voter turn-out. Past elections generally had double this number of early
voting locations. Locations used in the past that were not offered for the 2008
election were located in low-income areas. Obama held a 2 to 1 edge over John
McCain with low-income voters, according to an August poll conducted by the
Washington Post. This suggests that the removal of early-voting locations in
these areas had political consequences.
Further, replacement mail-in ballots generated from the
clerk's office were marked with the voter's party affiliation. Several people
who wrote letters to The Independent about this issue were concerned
that this could lead to ballot tampering. Another issue with mail-in ballots
was the failure to indicate that the postage required to mail the ballot was 59
cents; the ballots themselves simply said "sufficient postage required." These
actions by the Clerk's office can disenfranchise voters and influence election
results.
The Clerk's office came under further scrutiny when it was
revealed that John Gardner, the office's information systems manager, had
falsely asserted that he was a college graduate. Gardner's position places him in charge of
testing electronic voting machines. Along with secretary of state Mike Coffman,
Gardner decided to implement Diebold voting
machines in El Paso
County, machines which
are prone to viruses and vulnerable to tampering.
Colorado Election Laws Disenfranchise Voters
In late October, several civic organizations joined together
to file a lawsuit against secretary of state Coffman for two types of voter
purging. Coffman's office purged 1,136 voters between July 21 and October 9
after non-forwardable mailings sent to the voters were returned to Coffman's
office. This process is known as voter caging, which Project Vote, an
organization whose mission includes working to "engage low-income and minority
voters in the civic process," describes as "a controversial political tactic
that typically targets minority voters to deny their right to vote or suppress
their vote by intimidation." The process of purging voters through
non-forwardable mailings and database matching is "used almost exclusively by
officials or members of the Republican Party, local and national." The lawsuit
claims that Coffman's actions are a violation of the National Voting Rights Act
(NVRA).
The NVRA also bans voter purging within ninety days of an
election; however, Coffman has admitted to purging at least 12,000 voters after
the ninety day deadline, and there is evidence that over 20,000 Colorado voters may have
been purged. This excessive illegal purging is reminiscent of the 2000
presidential election when 54,000 Florida
voters were illegally purged. According to Spencer Overton of the George Washington
University Law
School, "90 percent of
the voters [in 2000] who were purged were legal and should have been left on."
Colorado is currently one of seventeen states that
requires some form of identification in order to vote. A study by the Task
Force on the Federal Election System showed that six to ten percent of American
voters lack any form of state ID. According to Project Vote, ID requirements "disproportionately
impact the elderly, students, women, people with disabilities, low income
people and people of color." Statistics indicate that minority voters are more likely to vote
Democratic. CNN exit polls report that
Black voters favored Obama 96 percent to 3 percent McCain; Latinos, 67 percent
Obama to 30 percent McCain; and Asians, 63 percent Obama to 34 percent McCain.
Colorado also disenfranchises convicted felons. Colorado is one of five
states which permits felons to vote only if they are on probation or after
probation has ended. Parolees and convicts are denied the right to vote.
According to statistics from the Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics,
the lifetime chance for a person going to prison are higher for blacks (18.6%)
and Hispanics (10%) than for whites (3.4%). Further, imprisonment in 2001 was
higher for black males (16.6%) and Hispanic males (7.7%) than for white males
(2.6%). The disenfranchisement of convicted felons has political consequences,
since minorities are statistically more likely to favor Democratic and minority
candidates.
Colorado Poorly Prepared
for Voters
At the state level, on October 16 the Brennan Center
for Justice published a report which highlighted Colorado as one of ten states least prepared
for the upcoming election. Colorado was one of
two states listed, along with Virginia,
which was considered a swing state in the election, meaning that the decision
of voters could prove crucial to the election's outcome. The report listed Colorado's needed
improvement in two areas: availability of emergency paper ballots and
procedures to address voter machine failure.
In spite of all the
forces working against them, Colorado
voters were able to overcome attempts at disenfranchisement. While it cannot be
determined to what extent voter disenfranchisement affected the election
results, voters successfully thwarted ballot proposals which attempted to
stagnate equality and infringe on the rights of citizens.
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Colors of Courage
The Pikes Peak Gay and Lesbian Community Center recently released an anthology of real life stories from LGBT and allied authors in Colorado Springs. Colors of Courage: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Life in Colorado Springs explores the history and culture of our local LGBT community, along with the hardships often faced by LGBT individuals and their families and friends. For more information, email Ryan Acker, Ryan@YourPrideCenter.org.
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Job Opening
Colorado C3 Roundtable Seeks Executive Director
The Colorado C3 Roundtable is a coalition of Colorado's progressive 501(c)3 organizations dedicated to building an inclusive, engaged and equitable state for all Coloradans. Job Summary: In close coordination with member organizations, the Executive Director (ED) is responsible for crafting and implementing a multi-year nonpartisan strategic plan coordinating civic engagement and other activities of Roundtable members. The ED will work to utilize the resources of member organizations and facilitate member involvement, action, and communication. As the first ED, there will be a unique opportunity to help build and shape the organization.
To Apply: Please email a cover letter and resume describing how your skills and experience are a good fit for the position to Resume@coloradoc3.org. Email inquiries only.
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