We wrote last week about the tremendous turnover in the ranks of elected officials in arch-conservative El Paso County, the result of a combination of upward ambition and what far right organizing group FEC United claims is a sweeping takeover of the slate from below. In southeast Colorado Springs’ House District 21, incumbent Republican Rep. Mary Bradfield was unexpectedly knocked off the June 28th ballot by newcomer opponent Karl Dent. Dent along with a third candidate held Rep. Bradfield below the 30% threshold needed to gain a spot on the ballot, and Bradfield didn’t submit petition signatures as insurance.
It doesn’t seem to have troubled HD-21 assembly delegates that Dent has a criminal record featuring such endearing offenses as felony trespassing and violating protective orders filed by a woman Dent allegedly threatened to kill. HD-21 is not considered competitive, so unless something unexpected happens Dent is in all likelihood headed for an awkward rendezvous with lawmakers at the Capitol in January. There is even the possibility that fellow lawmakers might refuse to seat Dent, and at the very least he represents a serious optics problem for the “party of law and order.”
Which is why it’s not surprising that 9NEWS’ Marshall Zelinger reports today:
TL/DR Lawsuit: The delegate errors were known ahead of the March 19 assembly. They were supposed to be fixed, but were not.
This appears to be an issue among House District 21 Republican leadership and the El Paso County Republican credentials committee. #copolitics
— Marshall Zelinger (@Marshall9News) March 30, 2022
The ubiquitous Scott Gessler, who has become the go-to representative for Republicans in controversy Donald Trump’s fruitless lawsuits to overturn the 2020 election to Tina Peters in Mesa County to Douglas County’s backroom-dealing school board, is suing to undo the results of the HD-21 assembly. Zelinger reports that Gessler is asking for a vacancy committee to appoint a candidate for HD-21 or a do-over of the assembly–either of which would likely result in Rep. Bradfield being allowed on to the June 28th primary ballot. There was some reported confusion at the El Paso County GOP assembly regarding delegate credentials, but whether this one crucial vote that kept Bradfield off the ballot was properly cast is a question we have to take the party’s word on.
Back in 2020, readers will recall, a remarkably similar situation turned into a prolonged political nightmare for then-GOP party chairman Ken Buck when he pressured the GOP chairman for Senate District 10, Eli Bremer, to falsely certify a result that fudged one of the candidates in that race above 30% and on to the ballot. This time around, it’s a court fight to “round off” a close but undesired result. This is about saving the party from further embarrassment, and not allowing a safe GOP seat to come into play due to a disastrous mistake made by the rank-and-file.
However the judge rules in this case, respecting democracy has nothing to do with it.
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Finally common cause with Honey Badger. At least they’re trying to clean this mess up?
If Dent does get elected the House better Lebsock his ass before he even gets in the door.