Politics of Colorado - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Until the election of Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

, the people of Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

had voted Republican in every U.S. Presidential Election since 1964, with the exception of 1992 when a plurality voted for Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton

William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...

, (possibly due to the effect of Ross Perot

Ross Perot

Henry Ross Perot is a U.S. businessman best known for running for President of the United States in 1992 and 1996. Perot founded Electronic Data Systems in 1962, sold the company to General Motors in 1984, and founded Perot Systems in 1988...

's candidacy.) Conversely, Colorado has held a Democratic governor for 22 of the past 30 years.

Colorado has a history of voter initiatives which severely restrict the power of state government. Some of these initiatives include Term Limits on Legislators (1990), TABOR

Tábor

Tábor is a city of the Czech Republic, in the South Bohemian Region. It is named after Mount Tabor, which is believed by many to be the place of the Transfiguration of Christ; however, the name became popular and nowadays translates to "camp" or "encampment" in the Czech language.The town was...

(Tax Payer's Bill of Rights) (1992), and Amendment 23, passed in 2000, which set a fixed percentage of the budget for K-12 education. Voters passed Referendum C in 2005, amending some restrictions of TABOR and Amendment 23.

Colorado supported George W. Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

in both 2000 and 2004, by a margin of less than 5%. Republicans have generally held control of state-wide offices and the state legislature since the 1960s. In 2004, while Bush won the state's electors, Democrat, Ken Salazar

Ken Salazar

Kenneth Lee "Ken" Salazar is the current United States Secretary of the Interior, in the administration of President Barack Obama. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a United States Senator from Colorado from 2005 to 2009. He and Mel Martinez were the first Hispanic U.S...

won a U.S. Senate seat and his brother John Salazar

John Salazar

John Tony Salazar is the former Congressman for , serving from 2005 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Following his service in Congress, he was appointed as Commissioner of the Colorado Department of Agriculture in the Cabinet of Governor John Hickenlooper in 2011.-Early life,...

won a seat in the U.S. House, while the Democrats captured both chambers of the state legislature. Most recently, in 2006, Democrat Bill Ritter won the governorship by a 16-point margin while the Democrats expanded their majorities in both chambers of the state legislature and Democrat Ed Perlmutter

Ed Perlmutter

Edwin George "Ed" Perlmutter is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic Party.- Early life, education and career:...

captured another U.S. House seat. In 2010, however, Republicans made big gains in the state. They won the statewide races of Attorney General, Secretary of State and Treasurer. Republicans also defeated two incumbent Democratic House members to hold a 4-3 majority in the state's House delegation. Furthermore, Republicans took control of the Colorado House of Representatives. This occurred even as Democrat John Hickenlooper

John Hickenlooper

John Wright Hickenlooper is an American politician and current Governor of Colorado. A Democrat, he was previously the Mayor of Denver, Colorado from 2003 to 2011.-Early life, education and career:...

won the governorship, albeit over weak and divided opposition, and Democratic Senator Michael Bennet

Michael Bennet

Michael Farrand Bennet is an American businessman, lawyer, and politician. He is currently the junior United States Senator from Colorado, and a member of the Democratic Party...

was re-elected. Also as a result of the 2010 gubernatorial election the Constitution Party gained major party status as it passed the 10% popular vote threshold, putting it in an equal legal position with the Democratic and Republican parties in terms of rights under state election law.

Colorado was a battleground state in the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election between Senator John McCain

John McCain

John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....

and Senator Barack Obama

Barack Obama

. Obama won Colorado, by a margin of 8%, with 53% of the vote to McCain's 45%.

State Senate and State House of Representatives

As of the 2010 election, the State Senate is controlled by Democrats with 20 seats, and 15 seats to the Republicans.
In the Colorado House of Representatives, the Republican Party holds 33 seats to the Democratic Party's 32.

Congressional representation

Democrats Mark Udall

Mark Udall

Mark Emery Udall is the senior United States Senator from Colorado and a member of the Democratic Party. From 1999 to 2009, Udall served in the United States House of Representatives, representing . He also served a term in the Colorado House of Representatives.Born in Tucson, Arizona, he is the...

and Michael Bennet

Michael Bennet

Michael Farrand Bennet is an American businessman, lawyer, and politician. He is currently the junior United States Senator from Colorado, and a member of the Democratic Party...

are Colorado's senior and junior United States senators

United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

, respectively. Udall was elected in 2008, and Bennet was appointed by Governor Bill Ritter in January 2009 to succeed Ken Salazar

Ken Salazar

, who resigned following his confirmation by the Senate as United States Secretary of the Interior

United States Secretary of the Interior

The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior.The US Department of the Interior should not be confused with the concept of Ministries of the Interior as used in other countries...

in the Barack Obama

Barack Obama

administration. , Colorado's Senate delegation had the least average seniority of any state's, with Udall 87th in terms of seniority and Bennet 98th.

Colorado has 7 seats in the United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

, four held by Republicans and three by Democrats.

Sovereignty of the people

Article II of the Constitution of Colorado enacted August 1, 1876, the Bill of Rights

Bill of rights

A bill of rights is a list of the most important rights of the citizens of a country. The purpose of these bills is to protect those rights against infringement. The term "bill of rights" originates from England, where it referred to the Bill of Rights 1689. Bills of rights may be entrenched or...

provides:

Section 1. Vestment of political power. All political power is vested in and derived from the people; all government, of right, originates from the people, is founded upon their will only, and is instituted solely for the good of the whole.

Section 2. People may alter or abolish form of government − proviso. The people of this state have the sole and exclusive right of governing themselves, as a free, sovereign and independent state; and to alter and abolish their constitution and form of government whenever they may deem it necessary to their safety and happiness, provided, such change be not repugnant to the constitution of the United States.

Initiative, Referendum, and recall

In addition to providing for voting

Voting

Voting is a method for a group such as a meeting or an electorate to make a decision or express an opinion—often following discussions, debates, or election campaigns. It is often found in democracies and republics.- Reasons for voting :...

the people of Colorado have reserved initiative

Initiative

In political science, an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote...

of laws and referendum

Referendum

A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...

of laws enacted by the legislature to themselves

...the people reserve to themselves the power to propose laws and amendments to the constitution and to enact or reject the same at the polls independent of the general assembly and also reserve power at their own option to approve or reject at the polls any act or item, section, or part of any act of the general assembly.

and provided for recall

Recall election

A recall election is a procedure by which voters can remove an elected official from office through a direct vote before his or her term has ended...

of office holders.

Initiatives and referred laws are considered by the electorate at every general election in Colorado. Many are housekeeping measures or lack substantial public support, but matters of great public concern are also considered such as TABOR, the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, enacted in 1992, which amended

Constitutional amendment

A constitutional amendment is a formal change to the text of the written constitution of a nation or state.Most constitutions require that amendments cannot be enacted unless they have passed a special procedure that is more stringent than that required of ordinary legislation...

Article X of the Colorado Constitution to the effect that any tax

Tax

To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...

increase resulting in the increase of government

Government

Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...

al revenues at a rate faster than the combined rate of population increase and inflation

Inflation

In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...

as measured by either the cost of living index

Cost of living index

A cost-of-living index is a theoretical price index that measures relative cost of living over time or regions. It is an index that measures differences in the price of goods and services, and allows for substitutions to other items as prices vary....

at the state level, or growth in property values at the local level, would be subjected to a popular vote in a referendum

Referendum

.

Issues to be considered in 2010 include proposition 101 which would repeal unpopular increases in car registration fees as well as phone and, possibly, income taxes. Amendment 60 would cut property taxes and Amendment 61 would prohibit state and limit local borrowing. Many Colorado officeholders oppose these measures which they fear have substantial public support.

Regional differences

The state is very pluralistic politically, the Democrats are strong in the college towns of Fort Collins

Fort Collins, Colorado

Fort Collins is a Home Rule Municipality situated on the Cache La Poudre River along the Colorado Front Range, and is the county seat and most populous city of Larimer County, Colorado, United States. Fort Collins is located north of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. With a 2010 census...

and Boulder

Boulder, Colorado

Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...

, the cities of Denver

Denver, Colorado

The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...

and Pueblo

Pueblo, Colorado

Pueblo is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The population was 106,595 in 2010 census, making it the 246th most populous city in the United States....

, the San Luis Valley

San Luis Valley

The San Luis Valley is an extensive alpine valley in the U.S. states of Colorado and New Mexico covering approximately and sitting at an average elevation of above sea level. The valley sits atop the Rio Grande Rift and is drained to the south by the Rio Grande River, which rises in the San Juan...

and other areas in southern Colorado with a substantial Hispanic population and also in the wealthy ski-resort towns in the mountainous center of the state; places like Aspen

Aspen, Colorado

The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 5,804 in 2005...

and Telluride

Telluride, Colorado

The town of Telluride is the county seat and most populous town of San Miguel County in the southwestern portion of the U.S. state of Colorado. The town is a former silver mining camp on the San Miguel River in the western San Juan Mountains...

. The Republicans are strong in rural parts of the state outside of the San Luis Valley and other rural areas with a substantial Hispanic population and are also strong in the cities of Greeley

Greeley, Colorado

The City of Greeley is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Weld County, Colorado, United States. Greeley is located in the region known as Northern Colorado. Greeley is situated north-northeast of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. According to the...

, Grand Junction

Grand Junction, Colorado

The City of Grand Junction is the largest city in western Colorado. It is a city with a council–manager government form that is the county seat and the most populous city of Mesa County, Colorado, United States. Grand Junction is situated west-southwest of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. As...

, Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs, Colorado

Colorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. Colorado Springs is located in South-Central Colorado, in the southern portion of the state. It is situated on Fountain Creek and is located south of the Colorado...

and the suburbs southwest of Denver. The fastest growing parts of the state in Douglas

Douglas County, Colorado

Douglas County is the eighth most populous of the 64 counties of the state of Colorado, in the United States. The county is located midway between Colorado's two largest cities: Denver and Colorado Springs...

, Jefferson

Jefferson County, Colorado

Jefferson County , whose slogan is the "Gateway to the Rocky Mountains", is the fourth most populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. Located along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, Jefferson County is adjacent to the west side of the state capital, Denver....

and El Paso

El Paso County, Colorado

El Paso County is the most populous of the 64 counties of the state of Colorado of the United States, now more populous than Denver County. The United States Census Bureau concluded that the county population was 622,371 in 2010. In recent years, the population had come closer to that of Denver...

counties are traditionally Republican, although the effects of new growth on the politics of these regions is unknown.

External links

Elections in Colorado on U.S. Election Atlas website

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

State Senate and State House of Representatives

Congressional representation

Sovereignty of the people

Initiative, Referendum, and recall

Regional differences

See also

External links