Denver Dive never set out to be a news outlet or a political publication. Instead, our focus has been Denver’s culture — its food, music, fashion and above all else, community. But, these days more than ever, it’s evident that our community is shaped by politics.
The restaurants we love, the venues we pack into and the events we write about thrive only because of how we show up for the people in our community. Now, the time has come to show up at the ballot box for our friends and neighbors, too.
Even though reporting on elections was never Dive’s plan, being engaged in our community means we have a responsibility to be loud about the things that matter most. (That said, there are great news or political sources out there doing that work during hard times, so you’ll see links to those outlets and resources throughout this guide.)
Midterm years are when voters tend to stay home, but the decisions on the ballot still shape our daily lives. In Colorado this year, opting out is just not an option. This election season, Colorado has printed the longest voter guide in its history. (Shout out to USPS for getting a Blue Book into every box – you are truly heroes.)
At Dive, the best version of democracy looks like friends gathered around a table with the Blue Book, beers and your ballots, talking it through and filling them out together. We’ll share where we landed on each measure below, but we’re not telling you how to vote – we’re just asking that you do vote.
Not registered yet? Colorado lets you register and vote in person all the way through Election Day. You can check your registration and track your ballot at GoVoteColorado.gov.
Before we get into the details on the state-wide initiatives on your ballot, here’s a run down of some crucial information we think you need to know if you don’t already:
- Know your Amendments from your Propositions. Propositions (the 100s) change state law, and the Legislature can fix or tweak them later in session. Amendments (the 80s) change the state constitution, and once they’re in, only another statewide vote on a ballot can change them. (That’s why amendments need 55% of the vote to pass instead of a simple majority, a rule Colorado adopted in 2016) There are seven Amendments this year, so for each one, don’t just ask yourself if you agree — ask yourself if you think the Colorado Constitution is the right place for it.
- Ask who’s buying the drinks. Nearly half of this year’s citizen initiatives come from one group: Advance Colorado. Who’s paying for this? They’d rather not say. What we do know is that it’s been discussed that they put ballot measures before voters “who might not see through dumbed-down language or misleading campaigns”, and that this very detailed investigative report refers to them as a “right-wing dark money group which spends millions of dollars every two years to influence Colorado’s ballot initiative system”. Whether it’s Advance Colorado or any other group on either side of the isle, look into who is funding the initiatives to see if you align with their interests.
- Drop it off early. Ballots are due by 7 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, November 3. By the time you’re reading this, it’s too late to turn your ballot in by mail so find a drop box near you or make a plan to go in person. If you haven’t turned in your ballot yet and already know how you’re voting, turn it in the earliest chance you get. Once your ballot is in, campaigns and volunteers can see that you’ve voted and take you off their call lists. That frees up time and energy for the folks who are still deciding, or who really need a nudge to get their ballot turned in.
Statewide Ballot Measures: Where Dive Landed
Measures marked with an asterisk are measures that are funded by Advance Colorado.
NO ON AMENDMENT 81: Law Enforcement Communication with Federal Immigration Authorities*
This ballot measure will require local law enforcement to notify Homeland Security when someone is charged (as in charged, not convicted) of any crime and they cannot verify their immigration status. This is a waste of law enforcement time and resources. Also, fuck ICE.
NO ON AMENDMENT 82: Constitutional Right to Purchase and Sell Natural Gas*
For all of the money backing this, it sure is a short ballot question. That’s probably because this is intentionally vague and, if passed under the guise of “consumer choice”, creates grounds to remove a lot of environmental and public health regulations that are pretty damn important.
NO ON AMENDMENT 83: Constitutional Right to Hunt and Fish
First, hunting and fishing are currently legal and regulated under existing state law as well as Colorado Parks and Wildlife rules. We think Parks and Wildlife should continue to decide what the state’s wildlife conservation efforts should be, and that this should not be in the constitution.
In a recent article published by CPR: “Protect Colorado’s Constitution, argues putting a right to hunt in the state constitution would ‘prioritize the interests of one specific group’ above the rights of other Coloradans, ‘stripping voters of their voice in future wildlife management decisions.’”
NO ON AMENDMENT 84: Mail Ballot Voter Identification
Just this past August a federal judge struck down the Trump administration’s attempt to sue the Secretary of State for access to sensitive voter information. It’s not news to us in Colorado (or anywhere) that there’s been continued MAGA rhetoric about calling “election integrity” into question, especially when it comes to alleged non-citizen votes. Now, is there significant out-of-state funding for this amendment to the Colorado constitution that would effectively restrict voter rights? Hell no. Colorado elections are safe, secure and more prepared than ever.
NO ON AMENDMENT 85: Plain Language Ballot Question*
There is some irony in this ballot question being one of the most complex ballots we’ve seen to date, but the good news is that this issue has mostly been handled. The Colorado legislature passed House Bill 26-1320 this year that mandates “accessible language” on ballot titles for state-level citizen initiatives. This amendment to the Colorado state constitution creates a contradiction where the law would both be difficult to change later and would create a structure for particularly vague ballot measures without nuance — a strategy we now know that Advance Colorado favors.
NO ON AMENDMENT 86: Congressional Redistricting*
Dive is concerned about the intentions of any use of “redistricting” in a ballot measure funded by Advance Colorado and The American Revival PAC, which was founded by Republican House leader Mike Johnson. Let’s keep letting the Colorado Independent Redistricting Commission do their thing.
YES ON AMENDMENT 87: Graduated Income Tax
Amendment 87 would raise taxes for individuals or companies who make more than $500,000 of taxable income on the money earned above that amount, and those who make less than $500,000 will have a lower tax rate. It requires that additional money collected be spent on K-12 education, health care, and early childhood care and education.
YES ON PROP NN: TABOR Revenue Cap Increase for K-12 Education
This measure allows the state to retain tax money that it already collects for the purpose of funding K-12 Education, and even calls for an annual independent audit so voters can see how the money is spent. No taxes would be raised. To Dive, this is money well spent.
NO ON PROP 132: Penalties for Fentanyl Crimes*
We firmly believe that this one is a public health matter, not a criminal justice matter. The Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition published a projected impact report that predicts that passing this law would increase overdose deaths in our state, underscoring that this is not a solution to the current fentanyl crisis.
NO ON PROP 133: Penalties for Human Trafficking of a Minor
Prop 133 is opposed by a growing coalition of victim service organizations, advocates, and survivors, including the Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault – and Dive stands with them. They recently hosted a joint media briefing on their position. Simply put, “Prop 133 invests in prison over prevention, training, and victim services.”
NO ON PROP 134: Male and Female Participation in School Sports
Without question, Dive supports the trans community. In addition, we support girls kicking ass on the field without being subject to a creepy “gender check”.
NO ON PROP 135: Prohibit Certain Surgeries on Minors
This decision belongs with families – not voters.
NO ON PROP 136: Income Tax Rate Cap
This proposition competes with Amendment 87: Graduated Income Tax, which we are in support of.
NO ON PROP 137: Sporting Goods Sales Tax for Conservation
This fire season demonstrated that there is clear urgency around conservation and wildlife efforts in our state. If this proposition passed, the tax money would be pulled from the General Fund — the only discretionary budget that state lawmakers can adjust to meet needs. Individual voters must decide whether they’d rather fund a very specific cause or maintain a bit more flexibility in the state budget. We’re taking a queue from the Colorado League of Women Voters on this – they generally oppose “…earmarking of funds except when necessary and if used on a limited basis and with discretion.”
As you move through your ballot, here are some other helpful local resources that you should check out:
