1

COLORADO
INCUMBENT: SCOTT GESSLER (R)RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR

Colorado Secretary of State: At-a-Glance
2014 Joe Neguse (D) Wayne Williams (R)
Status Declared Candidate Declared Candidate
Raised
(Dec. 3, 2010 July 26, 2014)
$325,159 $130,907
Cash on Hand
(As of July 26, 2014)
$209,377 $83,715
Latest Poll (July 22, 2014) 27% 35%
2010 Bernie Buescher (D)* Scott Gessler (R)
Results 755,522 43.90% 852,818 49.50%
Total Raised $354,329 $280,654
*Incumbent
Sources: TRACER, and Official Results General Election, Colorado Secretary of State, accessed August 18, 2014. National
Institute on Money in State Politics, accessed January 8, 2014.

Colorado Media Markets
Market
2012 Q4 Political
CPP Persons 25+
2010 Buescher
Performance
2010 SOS
Vote Share
Denver $330 46.3% 77.5%
Colorado Springs-Pueblo $85 33.7% 16.8%
Grand Junction-Montrose $38 40.7% 4.1%
Albuquerque-Santa Fe $144 43.2% 1.7%
Statewide Total $597 43.9% 100.0%
Sources: Official Results General Election, Colorado Secretary of State, accessed December 12,
2013 and Television Planning Guide, MSR, 2012.


POWERS RELATED TO ELECTIONS & VOTING
The office of Colorados secretary of state has broad authority over elections and voting. Officially,
the Secretary of State oversees and administers:
Colorado election code
Voter registration law
Campaign finance laws
Lobbyist regulation
2
The Colorado Charitable Solicitations Act
1

Aside from administering rules and laws related to elections, voting, and political/charitable giving,
additional duties of the office include:
Supervising elections
Maintaining a statewide voter registration file
Verifying initiative petition signatures
2

Chairing the Title Board,
3
which has approval powers over proposed ballot measures and
sets ballot titles
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SCOTT GESSLER (R) RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR
Current Secretary of State Scott Gessler has fully exercised the considerable powers of his office,
becoming one of the most closely-watched elected officials in the nation. Since he was elected in
2010, Gessler has weakened Colorados strict campaign finance
laws, tried to stop county clerks from mailing ballots to inactive
voters on the permanent absentee list,
5
and embarked on an
aggressive voter purge effort aimed at alleged non-citizen
registrants.
6
In 2012, Gessler supported the Republican push to
require people to show a photo ID in order to vote, though the
measure eventually failed to pass the legislature.
7,8
He also
claimed that over 16,000 non-citizens were registered to vote in
Colorado in 2011 and that 5,000 had voted in 2010. After an
investigation, Gessler sent a list of just 155 names to district
attorneys across the state for prosecution of voter fraud, but an
inquiry by The Daily Sentinel revealed that none of those people
had been prosecuted, and the majority of allegedly registered non-
citizens were, in fact, US citizens.
9
While efforts to raise the
financial disclosure threshold for political committees from $200 to
$5,000 fell to a suit from progressive organizations,
10
the majority of
the changes made when he re-wrote the states campaign finance
laws in 2011 stand.
11

Prior to the 2012 election, Gesslers office mailed letters to thousands of Latino voters questioning
their citizenship.
12
This action raised concerns about potential voter disenfranchisement as well as
suppressed turnout among Latino voters in the state heading into the election.
13


1
Office Overview, Colorado Secretary of State, accessed March 5, 2013.
2
Office Overview, Colorado Secretary of State, accessed March 5, 2013.
3
Office Overview, Colorado Secretary of State, accessed March 5, 2013.
4
How to file Placing an initiated proposition on the statewide ballot, Colorado Legislative Council, accessed March 5, 2013.
5
Robert Barnes, Scott Gessler, Colorados honey badger, may be closest-watched election official, Washington Post, September
20, 2012.
6
Sam Levin, Scott Gessler pushes new bill that would allow him to remove non-citizen voters from the rolls, Denver Westword,
January 11, 2013.
7
Brunett, Sara, Colorado Senate panel rejects bill on Photo IDs for voters, The Denver Post, April 5, 2012.
8
Lofholm, Nancy, Colorado rebuffed voter ID laws like those struck down in Arizona, The Denver Post, June 17, 2013.
9
Ashby, Charles, The Gessler 155: Zero prosecutions of people secretary of state says voted illegally, The Daily Sentinel, Nov. 16,
2013.
10
Colorado Common Cause and Colorado Ethics Watch v. Scott Gessler, Colorado Secretary of State, 2012 COA 147, Colorado
Court of Appeals, accessed January 15, 2013.
11
Sara Burnett, Secretary of State Scott Gessler rewrites Colorado campaign finance rules, Denver Post, February 23, 2012.
12
Tim Hoover, Noncitizen voters IDs fraction of those first alleged by Gessler, Denver Post, September 16, 2012.
13
Most Suspected Ineligible Voters US Citizens, CBS Denver, August 29, 2012.
Colorado Secretary of
State Scott Gessler (R)
3
Gesslers prohibitions on mailing ballots to inactive voters led to a protracted fight, which was
partially resolved by a district court in favor of the county clerks who wished to continue mailing
ballots.
14
In May, 2013, Governor John Hickenlooper signed into law a bill that would restructure
Colorados voting system by allowing for same-day registration and ensuring that all registered
voters receive a ballot through the mail.
15
Gessler opposed the bill citing the possibility of voter
fraud.
16
Following passage of the bill, the secretary of states office released a new rule directing
election officials to determine if potential voters plan to live permanently in Colorado. Under the rule,
both students and military families could be considered nonresidents.
17
Republicans also introduced
legislation to delay last years reforms by 22 months. Some Republicans have called for repealing it
entirely. In response, Democrats passed a bill clarifying the residency requirements and setting a
universal standard for statewide and municipal elections.
18,19,20

Gessler was also the subject of civil and criminal investigations by the Colorado Independent Ethics
Commission and the Denver County District Attorney respectively, stemming from allegations that he
improperly used state funds for political purposes by traveling to Florida for the Republican National
Convention as well as a meeting about election law.
21
He has since repaid the state $1,278 for the
trip, though he insists that he committed no wrongdoing.
22
A Denver grand jury ruled that Gessler
did not break any laws, though they stated that his use of state funds was not prudent.
23

Earlier this year, the Secretary of States Office approved a request by the state Republican Party to
form its own Super PAC. Formation of the PAC would allow the party to accept unlimited donations,
whereas before it could only accept $3,400 per calendar year from individuals.
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Republicans have
filed a lawsuit seeking court approval for the PAC.
25
Government
accountability groups such as Common Cause and Colorado Ethics
Watch have disputed Gesslers authority to issue these types of
rules, arguing that he has used them to rewrite election law. In
another example, Gessler attempted to change the financial
reporting rules for issue committees that work to put initiatives on
the ballot. Gesslers rule would have allowed committees to not
report the first $5,000 raised and exempt groups that raise less
than $5,000 from any and all campaign finance reports. District
and appellate courts found that Gessler overstepped his authority in
issuing the rule, though he has appealed the decision.
26

2014
In September 2013, Gessler announced that he will challenge
Democratic Governor John Hickenlooper instead of running for
reelection.
27
On June 25, Democrat and attorney Joe Neguse, a

14
Kurtis Lee, Colorado judge denies Scott Gessler on inactive voters lawsuit, Denver Post, January 21, 2013.
15
Hickenlooper signs Colorado election rules overhaul, Denver Post, May 10, 2013.
16
Bunch, Joey, Colorado bill offers more ballots, Election-Day registration, Denver Post, April 10, 2013.
17
Bunch, Joey, Gessler voter residency rule draws Democratic critics, Denver Post, August 20, 2013.
18
Marucs, Peter, Election bill likely to get swift signing, The Colorado Statesman, Feb. 17, 2014.
19
Bartels, Lynn, Colorado Senate passes elections bill over stiff GOP opposition, The Denver Post, Feb. 2, 2014.
20
HB 14-1164, Open:States, Accessed June 13, 2014.
21
Tim Hoover, Ethics commission agrees to seek outside investigator in Gessler case, Denver Post, March 5, 2013.
22
Riccardi, Nicholas, Secretary of State Gessler Repays Colorado For Trip To RNC, CBS Denver, May 23, 2013.
23
Hendrick, Thomas, Denver DA: No charges against Sec. of State Gessler, KWGN Colorado, June 19, 2013.
24
Lee, Kurtis, Colorado Secretary of State offers opinion on parties independent expenditures, The Denver Post, Feb. 6, 2014.
25
Stokols, Eli, Colorado GOP files suit to form fundraising PAC, Fox 31 Denver, May 8, 2013.
26
Cheek, Tessa, Scott Gessler aint gonna quit, The Colorado Independent, May 22, 2014.
27
Valerie Richardson, Gessler Enters Governors Race, Takes Aim at Hick, The Colorado Observer, September 18, 2013.
Secretary of State
Candidate Joe Neguse (D)
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University of Colorado Regent, announced that he will be running for the Secretary of States office
in 2014.
28
He is the first African American CU regent since 1988,
29
and he currently serves on the
Board of Directors of the Colorado Black Caucus.
30
Neguse has been endorsed by the Colorado
AFL-CIO,
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Gov. John Hickenlooper, Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet, US Representatives
Diane DeGette, Ed Perlmutter, Jared Polis and former Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, among
many other Colorado Democrats.
32
Neguse is a second generation American, whose family
emigrated from Eritrea in eastern Africa,
33
and in 2010, as one of the states youngest elected
Democratic officials, he was awarded the Colorado Democratic Partys Rising Star Award.
34
Neguse
was co-founder and former Board Chair of New Era Colorado, an organization that engages young
people in voter registration and civic engagement.
35
In 2011, as CU Regent, he authored a
resolution to make voter registration more accessible to students by allowing them to register over
the online student portal where students sign up for classes, as well as paving the way for adding
more polling places to CU campuses in Denver and Colorado Springs.
36,37

El Paso County Clerk and Recorder Wayne Williams is the Republican candidate.
38
Unlike the
majority of Colorados county clerks, including many Republicans, Williams spoke out against the
election reforms passed in 2013 allowing same-day registration and guaranteeing that all voters
receive a ballot through the mail, saying it eliminated neighborhood voting locations and increased
the likelihood of fake residents voting.
39
Williams has also criticized the added expense of the
reforms,
40
and, like Gessler, he supports voter ID legislation.
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Republicans plan to target this race
and in January 2014, the conservative PAC SOS for SoS
announced it will spend money in Colorado.
42
Both Neguse and
Williams ran unopposed in their respective primary elections on
June 24, 2014.
43

There will be three initiatives on the ballot this November
including a constitutional amendment that would define an
unborn fetus as a person, thereby outlawing abortion in the
state.
44,45
Signatures were also being collected for multiple anti-
fracking measures, but after an agreement was struck between
Gov. Hickenlooper and Republicans and Democrats in the
legislature, all were suspended.
46

However, voters in Broomfield, Colorado (15 miles north of
Denver), narrowly approved a five-year moratorium on fracking in
their community. Gessler criticized Broomfields handling of the
states voter registration law. The initial election count showed

28
Marcus, Peter, Democrat Joe Neguse files for SoS, The Colorado Statesman, June 27, 2013
29
Regents most diverse board in history, Coloradan Magazine, Accessed March 3, 2014.
30
Board of Directors, Colorado Black Caucus, Accessed March 3, 2014.
31
AFL-CIO backing Dems, The Pueblo Chieftain, April 10, 2014.
32
Endorsements, Joe Neguse for Secretary of State, Accessed Feb. 24, 2014.
33
Stokols, Eli, Democratic Establishment cheers Joe Neguses political launch, Fox 31 Denver, June 25, 2013.
34
About Joe, Joe Neguse for Secretary of State, Accessed March 3, 2014.
35
Joseph Neguse, University of Colorado Board of Regents, Accessed March 3, 2014.
36
Anas, Brittany CU to add voter registration to student portal, but move criticized as hand-holding, The Daily Camera, Nov. 2011.
37
About Joe, Joe Neguse for Secretary of State, Accessed March 3, 2014.
38
Marcus, Peter, Republican Doty wont run for Secretary of State, The Colorado Statesman, Dec. 26, 2013.
39
Ashby, Charles, Republican contender emerges in secretary of state races, The Daily Sentinel, Oct. 7, 2013.
40
Wells, Garrison, El Paso County clerk says Colorados new election law will likely be costly, The Gazette, May 22, 2013.
41
Ashby, Charles, Republican contender emerges in secretary of state races, The Daily Sentinel, Oct. 7, 2013.
42
Tal Kopan, PAC Targets State Secretary Races, Politico, January 21, 2014.
43
Colorado Primary Election Results, New York Times, Accessed July 15, 2014.
44
Definition of Person and Child ballot measure deemed sufficient, Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler, Oct. 14, 2013.
45
Crockett, Emily, Colorado Fetal Personhood Amendment Will Be on 2014 Ballot, RH Reality Check, Oct. 18, 2013.
46
Moreno, Ivan, Colorado Democrats avoid fracking fight after deal prompts groups to drop dueling proposals, U.S. News & World
Report, Aug. 5, 2014.
Secretary of State Candidate
Wayne Williams (R)
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the measure failing by 13 votes. After military, overseas and other ballots were included, the tally
showed the measure passing by 17 votes; close enough to trigger a recount. Gessler said the city
counted ballots from people who were ineligible to vote and rejected ballots from legitimate voters.
47

Voters in three of Broomfields neighboring communitiesBoulder, Lafayette and Fort Collinsalso
succeeded in passing five-year moratoriums or outright bans.
48





47
Broomfield Begins Fracking Recount Amid Criticism from Gessler, The Coloradoan, December 2, 2013.
48
Aguilar, John, Anti-fracking measures win in Lafayette, Boulder, Fort Collins, The Daily Camera, Nov. 5, 2013.