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February 28, 2022 10:42 AM UTC

It Is To Laugh: Recall Polis 4.0 (Maybe) Collecting Signatures

  • 11 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols
The sad end of “Recall Polis 1.0.”

Practically from the moment Gov. Jared Polis was elected in 2018, Republicans in the state have been trying to recall him. Immediately following the 2019 legislative session, the first Recall Polis campaign–actually several competing and mutually distrustful campaigns of which one eventually emerged to collect signatures–launched their 60-day window to collect the over 630,000 valid Colorado voters signatures required to qualify a recall question for the statewide ballot. That campaign never turned in their petitions to verify the signatures but only claimed to have gathered around 300,000–less than half what was required, even without the “padding” necessary to withstand validity checks.

The Recall Polis movement should have ended there, but it didn’t. In 2020, the “Recall Polis 2.0” (or Recall Polis 2020) campaign tried again and failed by an unverifiable but presumably even greater margin, lacking even the meager resources that the first attempt had. An unsuccessful court battle to extend their signature gathering time led to promises throughout most of 2021 of an imminent “Recall Polis 3.0” campaign, now expanded to two petitions calling for the recall of Gov. Polis as well as Secretary of State Jena Griswold. Given that the group hasn’t raised enough money to cover even printing petitions for one race, it wasn’t surprising that no campaign to collect signatures ever kicked off.

Until last week, gentle readers!

Over at the Recall Polis/Griswold 2022 website, the fundraising page to collect those welfare checks from patriotic invalids is live. The countdown for their 60-day window to collect a total of over 1.2 million valid Colorado voter signatures kicked off last Thursday, so it’s all hands on deck!

Back in 2019, there was a argument that although having zero chance of success, a petition drive to recall Gov. Polis could be a useful activity to keep the conservative base organized ahead of Polis’ next election. Instead, the humiliating failure of every single one of these campaigns helped discredit not just Polis’ opponents but the misuse of recall power in general that has plagued Colorado politics for almost a decade. In 2022, the year Polis is actually up for election, the “Recall Polis 4.0” petition drive is a laughably counterproductive diversion of resources away from what Republicans should always have been focused on: winning this November.

For the next 60 days, get ready for fake news about signatures the recall campaign isn’t really gathering, increasing tension as the realization of futility sets in, concluding in a sad little press conference that absolutely, positively refuses to accept defeat. No voters will be won over by this sloppy exercise, which will serve as a metaphor going into November for failure by Republicans to lay a glove on our state’s popular incumbent governor.

Democrats can only say thanks again.

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11 thoughts on “It Is To Laugh: Recall Polis 4.0 (Maybe) Collecting Signatures”

  4. R-E-C-A-L-L is just how the GOP spells GOTV.  It whips up their base, and I take comfort in the fact that everytime they do this the base seems just a little bit smaller.

    1. Why not? I think it's a great idea.

      Attention Colorado Republicans:  Do not waste your money contributing to Hiedi Heidi Ganahl or Pam Anderson or Tina Peters or Eli Bremmer or Ron Hanks or Q-bert or any of the screwballs running in new CD 8.

      Give generously to the Polis/Griswold Recall Committee.

  6. Petitions due April 25.

    Validation by Sec. of State's election division, which I think is a 2 week period, or May 9.

    Protest period — 5 days.  If there is a protest, the clock stops while dispute is resolved..  May 14.

    Once held to be valid, election called for more than 30 and less than 60 days later.  So, would seem like it could be held simultaneously with the primary on June 28. Savings!!! 

    It would make for an interesting campaign … a recall election with a ballot asking for an out or not decision on Polis and Griswald and an election for replacements in case the recall succeeds.  Polis and Griswald cannot compete in that election. 

    A Republican primary ballot for Republicans and Unaffiliated to determine the candidate for the November general election.   A Democratic primary ballot for Democrats and Unaffiliated to determine the candidate for the November general — and Polis and Griswald would be eligible to be on that ballot.

    Ballots must be in by June 28 … but the process includes extensions for overseas voters, cures and ascertainment of provisional ballots.  And the election results may not be certified until 20-July, which would be the day the recall would actually take effect.  It would be entirely possible that the winner of the recall election would NOT be the Republican or Democrat chosen for the general election. 

    Of course, the general election has a greater voter participation.  It initially seems likely Polis will win again in November, and take office (again) on 10-January. — 174 days.

    I'm delighted the Republicans are dividing their attention in this way.

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