July 21, 2015 03:12 PM UTC

Perry Haney is Everywhere, and Nowhere

• 3 Comments
• by: Colorado Pols

Late last week, a Pols commenter wrote a post titled, “Who’s Perry Haney, Again?” The question is particular valid because you’d have to be a super-seasoned Colorado politico to recognize the name “Perry Haney.”

But to truly understand Perry Haney, you need to ask a second question: Where is Perry Haney?

Before we get to the “WHERE,” let’s tackle the “WHO.” Perry Haney is a wealthy chiropractor/doctor who earned some media recognition last week when he decided to run for Congress as a Democrat in CD-6, joining state Senator Morgan Carroll on the Democratic ballot. The real reason he got any attention at all is because Haney put his marker down with a $1 million loan to his campaign. The seven-figure campaign loan certainly raised eyebrows in Colorado and Washington D.C.; for those familiar with Haney, the news generated more eye-rolling than anything else.

Why would anyone roll their eyes at a candidate announcing a run for office with a $1 million loan? That question, dear readers, leads us back to “WHERE.” Here’s an excerpt from a Colorado Pols post in July 2011 (almost four years to the day, in fact) titled, “And That’s Why I’m Running for Congress…Somewhere in Colorado“:

One of the quirks that come in a redistricting year is that the Federal Election Commission is a bit lax on requiring candidates seeking a Congressional office to actually state which office they plan to run for. Take, for example, the case of Democrat Perry Haney, a wealthy Greenwood Village chiropractor who wants to run for Congress…somewhere.

Haney has been meeting with Democrats in Colorado and in Washington D.C., telling them that he plans to run for Congress, but he won’t say where he plans to kickoff his campaign. Is it against Republican Rep. Mike Coffman (and Democratic challenger Joe Miklosi) in CD-6? Is it to take on Republican Rep. Scott Tipton in CD-3, where Democrat Sal Pace has been running full-steam ahead for months?

Haney is not shy about the fact that he would like to be elected to Congress, no matter the district. We’re talking about a guy who once explored running for Congress in CD-3 and CD-6 at essentially the same time. In 2012, Haney was briefly an official candidate in CD-6 — he also loaned his campaign several hundred thousand dollars — before he pulled out of the race under a campaign finance challenge from Republicans.

Unlike election laws for offices such as State House and State Senate, candidates for the U.S. House don’t actually need to live within the boundaries of their targeted district — or even maintain an address in-district — which would allow Haney to run for any Colorado Congressional seat without getting off the couch (in 2002, Republican Bob Beauprez was elected in the newly-formed CD-7, which stretched from Jefferson County to northern Adams County, despite the fact that he never moved out of his home in Louisville).

Unlike Beauprez, Haney wants to keep up appearances, so he has always made sure to adjust his voter registration to reflect his current Congressional interest (see chart below).

So, is Perry Haney a serious candidate for Congress in CD-6? As serious as someone could be when they change their voter registration every few years. Perhaps he should wait to run for Secretary of State since he is so familiar with the voter registration process.