DENVER | One Denver District Court judge ordered former state Rep. Jon Keyser back on the GOP primary ballot, and another Denver judge ordered more time for two others tossed off the ballot to argue why they should be included.
The judge ordered the Colorado Secretary of State hold off finalizing the Republican ballot for U.S. Senate contenders until Wednesday.
Campaigns for Colorado Springs businessman Robert Blaha and former Aurora City Councilman Ryan Frazier asked the court to require Secretary of State Wayne Williams to hold off on finalizing the primary ballot for the Senate race until their respective campaigns can double check rejected petition signatures and prepare further legal actions. Petition signatures for both Blaha and Frazuer were both deemed insufficient on Thursday, and Williams said they would not be included on the ballot.
The crowded GOP field to take on incumbent Democrat Sen. Michael Bennett started at 13 earlier this year and looked like there would be five or six trying to win the nomination in June. But that list of hopefuls was narrowed quickly when only one candidate survived the state caucus process, and others trying to petition their way onto the ballot apparently failed.
The last minute conundrum created a stir across the state. Under state law, the Secretary of State is required to solidify primary ballots by April 29. With the stay issued by Chief Judge Michael Martinez, the deadline has been extended to Wednesday, May 4.
The Secretary of State’s office announced April 28 that both Blaha and Frazier submitted an insufficient number of valid petition signatures to earn sport on the June 28 Republican primary ballot. Senate candidates seeking to make the primary ballot were required to obtain 1,500 signatures from registered Republican voters in each of the state’s seven congressional districts.
According to the Secretary of State’s office, Blaha failed to hit the the necessary signature threshold in the 1st, 3rd and 6th congressional districts. Frazier came up short in CD1, CD2, CD3 and CD6.
Campaign staffers for both candidates have been working throughout the day to double check thousands of submitted signatures, according to Secretary of State Spokeswoman Lynn Bartels.
In court, Blaha is represented by Michael Francisco of MRD Law, according to a release posted on the Blaha campaign’s Facebook page.
“I feel confident that this step will lead us to a positive outcome for our campaigns and for Colorado voters,” Blaha said in a statement. “The thousands of individuals that desire to see us on the ballot should be recognized and affirmed. I look forward to the real race once the ballot is set.”
Frazier is represented by Geoff Blue and former Secretary of State Scott Gessler.
“By taking this action today, I’m standing up for the thousands of voters that signed our petitions because their voice should count too,” Frazier said in a statement. “We are requesting the Secretary of State give our respective teams the time, allowed under law, to correct their action. I do so because we are confident we have more than enough validated signatures from real Colorado voters who want to have a choice in June.”
The request for more time comes hours after Denver District Court Judge Elizabeth Starrs sided in favor of a petition submitted earlier this week by another candidate for U.S. Senate, former state Rep. Jon Keyser. Keyser argued that Colorado’s top elections official erroneously rejected voter signatures he needed to make the primary. Starrs agreed.
Blaha and Frazier are vying to join Keyser, former CSU Athletic Director Jack Graham and El Paso County Commissioner Darryl Glenn on the primary ballot.
Each of the prospective senators is vying to dethrone incumbent Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet. Bennet won the Colorado Democratic Party’s uncontested nomination at a party assembly earlier this month.