Face The State Staff Report
With 1.1 million Colorado voters now expected to vote early by mail, campaigns and candidates are struggling to keep up. Jefferson County alone is sending out more than 200,000 ballots this week, signaling the start of a 28-day long election for the state.
The number of mail-in ballots, formerly known as absentee ballots, requested has increased 64 percent since 2004, when only 668,324 were requested, according to data released by the Secretary of State. In 2006, that number was up slightly to 681,934. Typically, according to multiple Face The State sources, 85 to 90 percent of mail-in ballots are returned.
House Assistant Minority Leader David Balmer, who is running for re-election in House District 56, says the increased demand for mail-in ballots forces candidates to campaign toward two distinct "election days", one assumed to be at the end of this week, when thousands of voters will fill out and return their ballots. After an initial burst in interest, many voters will sit on their ballots, instead filling them out and returning them in late October or early November, during the waning last few days of the election season.
Libby Szabo, the Republican running in Senate District 19, will target voters extensively from now until the Nov. 4 election. As a candidate in Jefferson County, where 70 percent of active voters have already requested mail-in ballots, Szabo is stepping up her campaign this week and will spend the $87,660 she has in the bank within the month. One big focus: mail. She says so far all the mail in her race has originated from a third party, but she plans to change that by adding her own mailers to the mix this week. “This is the first time in the campaign that I’m going to have the opportunity to put my message out,” she said.
Balmer also predicts that some competitive districts are also going to see an increase in negative campaign ads by third parties.
“The normal rule is you don’t attack your opponent if their name identification is less than yours,” said Balmer. “Incumbents usually have the lead; therefore, challengers are usually the first to attack.”
Balmer added that he won’t be doing any attacking and is running a clean race. He points out, however, that he’s seen underhanded campaign tactics being used against him. He's already had 200 campaign signs stolen from supporters’ yards. With about 2,000 pro-Balmer signs located throughout the district, Balmer alleges that an organized effort is targeting entire precincts, taking several signs at a time. As the incumbent and one of the state's top fundraisers, with $81,164 in cash on hand as of the last reporting period, Balmer has the advantage over his Democrat opponent Mollie Cullom. Collum's campaign committee trails with just $593 in the bank.
Meanwhile, the Republican state party is making its own push to voters who requested mail-in ballots. According to Randy Hildreth, the GOP's communications director, the party is organizing precinct walks and sending out educational mail. “We’re working very closely with all the legislative candidates and especially the highly targeted races,” said Hildreth. “We want to keep our targeted seats and pick up a few in the process.”
Hildreth also says the party’s local counterparts have also been making outreach efforts. The Arapahoe County GOP, for example, is hitting every mailbox in the county with a voter guide to the 18 ballot measures.