March 10, 2012 05:59 PM UTC

There are Democrats in Mesa County

• 8 Comments
• by: Konola

Mesa County really does have some Democrats who are willing to run for office. To me the interesting thing about this is that they are all either retired or about to retire. That probably isn’t unusual, given the demographics of the county. During the last bust cycle the county decided to ask retirees to relocate here, and many of them did because of our good health care system and cheap houses.

Another other important factor, which keeps young people out of the arena, is a perception that being labeled a Democrat means you’ll never work in this city. Young people with families have that fear. Retired people don’t feel the same threat.

I’ve been involved in trying to recruit candidates for the past year, yet I can’t claim that any of the newly declared candidates have anything to do with my efforts. The potential candidate that I found most promising sent me a note recently indicating that he and his wife are getting divorced, and he is moving back to Iowa. I do know that there is one Democrat who is considering a run against Laura Bradford. I’m pretty sure that I had some influence on his deliberations, but until I see him make an announcement or file paperwork with the Secretary of State, I’m not claiming any credit.

This morning the two political reporters at the Sentinel were scooped by fellow reporter Mike Wiggins in reporting that there is a Democrat running for County Commissioner. He is seeking a seat currently held by Janet Rowland. (You may remember that Janet once ran for Lt. Gov. on the Republican ticket.) There are two Commissioner seats open this year, thanks to term limits. The race has a plethora of Republican candidates, a couple of independent candidates, and now one Democrat. If another stealth candidate is out there, Democrats just might have a full ticket this year.

So who are these candidates, and what are their chances?

Dan Robinson reported that he was running this past week. Most of what has been reported in the press came directly from the press release issued by the campaign. Friday’s issue of the Grand Junction Free Press did have some new information in an opinion piece written by Jim Hoffman.

In the way of disclosure, I did work with Robinson and took an active part in his campaign to unseat Meis. …

While losing the election, several of Mr. Robinson’s issues rebuffed during the campaign were embraced by the county shortly thereafter. These included conversion of county vehicles to natural gas (which Meis claimed was best left to private industry) and retaining ticket revenue generated by the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office. Meis indicated that he did not feel the sheriff’s department needed this additional funding. So, in some roundabout way, Robinson did win the election as programs he championed for the good of Mesa County did become reality.

Why Robinson has chosen to re-enter the electoral process after a decisive defeat is unknown; perhaps he has a thing with self-flagellation. He is considered by many as a man of integrity with solid ideas for the betterment of our local economy. While I am not privy to his platform in the coming election, I believe we will see a mix of “new energy economy” concepts to strengthen our base economies, and assisting in the growth of the local energy industry with an eye to protecting the resources so vital to our tourist trade.

Mr. Hoffman also pilloried both Ray Scott and Ryan Call:

You may recall an earlier column in which we discussed Rep. Ray Scott’s declaration of residence for his upcoming race in what is now House District 55. In that notarized document, Scott claimed to be living in Orchard Mesa. Subsequently, he claimed he had actually moved to the Redlands prior to that time.

The question was raised as to which was the truth. Had he lied earlier or was he unable to recall where he lived? Those appeared to be the only choices available. Guess now it does not make any difference as Ryan Call, the State Chairman of the Republican Party, declared Scott has satisfied that he had moved in sufficient time to qualify in the new established district. It is interesting that Rep. Scott’s lapse in memory and a sworn affidavit of candidacy were trumped by this decision.

Isn’t it even more interesting that the chairman of a political party gets to decide the facts? There certainly is no opportunity for bias or conflict of interest there. The outcome under those circumstances is predictable.

And exactly what were the facts that allowed Mr. Call to arrive at the unassailable opinion that Mr. Scott’s move had been timely? Sorry, we are not allowed to know. It appears as though Rep. Scott provided some unknown documentation which Mr. Call deemed it sufficient, and said Scott “meets all of the constitutional requirements” to seek election in House District 55. The State Republican Party declined to make that documentation public.

The candidate vying for county commissioner has been doing everything the hard way. He’s been trying to find Democrats in Mesa County to sign a petition in order to get on the ballot. That’s a lot like looking for a needle in a haystack. I had heard rumors that there was a Democrat who was in the commissioner race, but nobody seemed to know his name or anything about him.

Last Sunday I attended a meeting of Western Colorado Congress of Mesa County where one of the people circulating petitions on behalf of Dave Edwards approached me and asked for my signature. Since Western Colorado Congress is a not-for-profit, I threw the guy out of the meeting, but not before whispering to meet me outside.

His brochure is well framed, indicating that he is not a novice in the political arena. Mike Wiggins fleshed out the guy a little in his scoop.

Edwards, who moved to Palisade four years ago and is halfway through a four-year term on the Town Board, said he has a track record of solving problems with less money.

As evidence, he pointed to the fact that Palisade recently decided to ditch an $8.5 million project to build a new sewer line to Clifton in favor of a $1.25 million effort to upgrade its existing sewer lagoon system. The lower-cost alternative still allows the town to meet a federal mandate to reduce the amount of ammonia it releases into the Colorado River and avoid making payments on a $4 million loan. Instead, Edwards noted, the town can begin setting aside that money to build a new sewer plant in 10 years.

Edwards said he realizes he faces a challenge winning election in a county where Republicans outnumber Democrats two to one. But he said he clings to the ideas championed by Republicans of fiscal conservatism, of reluctancy to raise taxes or go into debt.

And, he said, “I’m credible. I’m intelligent. I’m stubborn.”

Edwards currently is unemployed. He is a certified public accountant, having worked most recently for Rocky Mountain Health Plans, and holds two law degrees.