Thanks so much for joining us here
on 9 News Plus I'm Chris Bianchi,
joined by 9 news politics Guy.
I think that's your official title.
Official title martial solinger.
Thanks so much for joining us here Marshall.
So coming up on Tuesday the 28th
of June we have our primaries here
in the state of Colorado a lot to
discuss here, but I guess top line.
What are the big racist watch for
pretty much anybody with with.
Someone they're running against,
not the unopposed races.
And if you've looked at your ballot
a lot of your races that show up at
home are unopposed because there's
just the one candidate running.
So importance factor, I'd say U.S.
Senate, that's the Ron Hanks versus Joe
Oday for Republican candidate for U.S.
Senate. You've got the governor's
race Congressional District 8 the
brand new Congressional District.
You've got 4 Republicans running
to be the Republican nominee,
Secretary of State.
No doubt where there's three candidates.
And then there's some.
I don't hate to call them minor,
but they're very isolated,
so you've got a house District 6.
Which kind of encompasses Congress Park,
Lowry hail?
I think some of Uptown she's been parks.
This is kind of a central part of Denver,
where you've got two Democratic candidates,
1 being much more liberal than the other,
and then that will dictate where
does the Democratic Party lie,
at least from a state standpoint,
and then one other race that
I'm concentrating on is house.
District 51, which is in Loveland.
You've got the House Minority Leader
Hugh McKean being primaried from within.
I mean he's the top Republican in the house,
and he faces a challenge,
two races that are not in really
our viewing area in terms of the
Denver Metro and the Mountains,
Congressional District 3 and Congressional
District 5 Congressional District 5
is Congressman Doug Lamborn facing a
primary if he's got three other opponents,
one is state Representative Dave Williams,
who probably has the best chance of anybody.
Who might knock off Lamborne,
but that's El Paso County, Colorado
Springs and Congressional District 3.
Everybody is familiar with
Congresswoman Lauren Bobert.
She's facing a primary from state Senator,
Don Coram.
That's on the far western slope.
And when I say it's not in our viewing area,
they have their own TV markets,
so that's probably why you're not
seeing political ads in those races.
But they are contentious races too.
I guess. Top line when it comes to the GOP
side on the gubernatorial and Senate race,
can you tell us a bit more about
those races and we expect to happen?
Let's start with the governor's race.
I don't know when you look
at Governor and Senate.
I might say the Senate is
probably going to be more.
I think governors more
attractive because you can.
You can touch like a state race.
Sometimes. I even wonder if I
can understand what goes on in
Washington DC in Congress and Senate.
So let's look at the governor's race course.
You've got Heidi Ganahl,
the last Republican to have
won a statewide race.
She's a CU Regent.
You've got Greg Lopez,
who we call former Parker mayor,
but this was a lifetime ago he was
Parker Mayor in the early 90s and
he was a Democrat at the time and
switched to Republican Wall Mayor.
He finished third running for governor
in as a Republican four years ago.
There's no polling that I've seen,
so I I don't know who you know
you could say is the front runner.
What I what I do know.
I interviewed Heidi Ganahl
immediately after she announced
her candidacy last September,
and that was the last interview
we did with her.
She tends to talk with conservative
talk radio for interviews.
I hear a lot of generalities.
I've seen some of her debates,
and some of these interviews.
They're themes, but no specifics about.
Here's here's what I want to see happen,
and here's how. I'm going to do it.
There's a lot of here's what I want.
I haven't seen the how Greg Lopez
is very clear about what he wants,
and we've heard some very
controversial things.
I know we broke the news about his
idea of changing the state's voting
system to an Electoral College type outcome,
so it really would take away one one person,
one vote and and say smaller
counties that have greater output,
greater voter turn out would
have a bigger say than,
let's say the Denver metro area,
which is a bigger area.
Maybe our voter turnout isn't
as from a percentage standpoint
as much as the smaller counties,
but Greg Lopez has said a number
of things that show his position,
but he hasn't defined again as governor.
How you can do things and I'll just
say I'll shut up for a moment as governor,
there's the executive order powers we
saw with Governor Polis during the pandemic,
but you really are limited in what
you can do because you need the
legislature to pass bills that show up
on your desk for you to enact new laws.
Executive orders are kind of.
Here's a here's something I
want to see happen.
Here's something I'm going to push us toward.
Accept in the pandemic, then.
That's where the governor had some more
like you're going to stop doing this.
We're going to close this.
That doesn't happen outside
of the emergency order, so.
I still,
when you're thinking of who
you're going to pick for governor,
I would challenge you to ask your candidate.
How are you going to do what
you say you're
going to do?
If we want to talk briefly about,
I'll try to be brief about the Senate.
You've got Ron Hanks,
who is very clear.
We know what he stands for,
that he is an election conspiracy theorist.
He thinks election should
change wholeheartedly.
He's not proven any election fraud,
but he talks a lot about election fraud.
I know he wants to change the
method of voting to paper that has.
Drawing a blank what's on the money, the
all the the thicker kind of paper. I know
thick paper and then it's
got the I. I feel like
I know I know I I haven't.
Someone's gonna shout it out in The Newsroom.
Ohh hologram type, so just that you can.
Things like that at which which he
has proposed at the state legislature.
It's never gone anywhere.
We know he his stance on abortion
is pro life with no exceptions.
His opponent, Joe O'Day, businessman,
is more toward the center on some
of the topics like abortion.
He is pro life.
Early in pregnancy he's OK with
an abortion and then later if
it's in defense of the mother.
If her life is at risk,
he has some exceptions,
but calls for a ban on late term abortions.
But we haven't heard from him.
Late term is not an actual medical
term so we haven't heard from him.
What does late term mean when you
say it like what month, what week?
What are we talking about there?
So again,
that's another question I would challenge
you to ask a candidate that you support,
but that again being one of 100,
you've got power in the Senate,
but I struggle to sometimes.
Figure out what one individual like.
Name me something that if
you like Michael Bennett.
What is Michael Bennett
done that you can be like?
This is why I vote for the guy like
this is the one thing that I remember.
I mean it's not like he hasn't
done stuff but I just struggle
to figure out like here's the one
thing that somebody stands for
after they've won the election.
Kind of position things a little bit
when it comes to the gubernatorial and
the Senate races on the Republican side.
Is it safe to say that Hanks is
further to the right of Oday and
that loop has would probably run?
Whether the right
on the surface, I say yes.
The thing is about general.
We don't. We don't clearly know.
I've done reporting where
I got tracker audio,
meaning someone who who opposes her
and and and works for the other side
sent me audio of an event that she
spoke at where she told the crowd
that you probably want to hear me
say more things about this topic
about election fraud, perhaps.
But what she said,
I'm paraphrasing that you're
going to hear me say things that
are more attractive to the.
Unaffiliated voters,
which says to me to win
the Republican primary,
you have to get the Republican base,
which currently many support the idea
that something was funny in 2020,
which again there's been no proof of.
So you have to walk this tightrope
of appeasing that type of voter on
the far fringes of your own party
to make it out of the primary.
But she's also not saying it publicly,
so that she doesn't have to walk it
back if she is the candidate facing a
Democratic Jared Polis in November.
That's that's the issue.
So I would say yes,
Lopez appears to be farther right to ganahl.
But since we haven't heard so
many specifics from Ganahl,
I can't say that for certain.
Definitely, for Ron Hanks,
farther right than Joe O'Day.
Which brings us to the ads you're seeing.
A lot of ads.
For Lopez and O'Day,
sorry for Lopez and Hanks saying that
they are too conservative for Colorado,
do not be fooled by these ends.
These ads are paid for by Colorado by
Democrats in and out of the state.
They want those candidates to be the
Republican nominee come November
because Democrats feel those types
of candidates who have that type
of position a far right position
would be easier to beat.
In a general election,
because primaries are only voted on
locally by that a member of that party.
So people voting in the Republican
primary are Republicans or unaffiliated
who choose to return the Republican ballot.
Democrats who are registered Democrats
cannot vote in the Republican primary.
So in the general election,
the thinking is when the Democrats
have a say in whether they're going to
choose that fringe candidate or not.
They're definitely not going to
pick that person.
So don't be fooled by these ads,
they are meddling by Democrats.
Trying to to. I'll call it a dog whistle.
It's trying to get people who are
super conservative to be like wait
a minute that that's my candidate.
If they're telling me he's too conservative,
that's the guy I want.
These are not paid for by the
person's opponent trying to be a
negative ad toward Hanks or Lopez
as it's not Joe O'Day saying Ron
Hanks is too conservative.
Vote for me.
It is Democrats saying Ron Hanks
is too conservative.
Hey, super conservatives pay
attention and vote for that guy.
And oh,
by the way,
he's going to be easier for my guy.
Beat in November.
Is that not a big roll of the
dice here by the Democrats?
Because then you get a potential you know
whether or not you like Warren Bobber.
But kind of more further to the
right candidate in the general.
Is it a roll of the dice?
Perhaps here's what I really think about it.
And let's do it. And I'm just kidding.
It's a dangerous game to play when you,
as a Democrat, are all against what
happened on January 6 when you are
against the idea that there was anything
funny in the 2020 election, which again,
there's been no proof that there was
anything funny in the 2020 election.
But for you to then support or try to
pseudo support that candidate thinking
it's going to give you a better chance,
you're giving that if your intent
is to give that candidate.
One extra step closer to the seat.
As though that's going to be an easier
method for your candidate to win,
that is not just dangerous, it's.
I don't have a good word for it.
But it's not cool reckless, perhaps?
Yeah, I'll go with that.
That's a good word, reckless.
Speaking of what we're
just talking about saying,
go in that third Congressional District,
former state Senator Don Coram,
running a pretty high profile
primary against Lauren Bobert,
is there any indication as to whether
or not he has a chance on seat her?
Again, no polling, I just off the cuff.
I would say I'm likely.
Lauren Bobert in her district seems
to be wildly popular, and if you think
by calling her too conservative,
I haven't seen these ads yet.
But if you think that's a method that's
going to get people to somehow vote
for Don Quorum or it's just not going
to like it appears that the people who
she represents agree with what she's doing.
Again, I will challenge even in that race,
what has your candidate done for you?
Ask that question,
and I I was doing some research.
I don't think.
Lauren bobert.
In the last two years,
has any any legislation passed like
one or two steps in the process?
Maybe that's not what the voters in
her district want or care about,
but when you're voting someone to
be your representative in Congress,
you would hope I would hope that
they're doing stuff that gets
legislation passed along the lines.
Granted,
she's in the minority since she's been there.
She's only been there two years.
I mean, you could look at previous.
Congress people in Colorado who
were the opposite party of the
president or who are the opposite
party of the party in charge,
and we could probably argue, yeah,
they didn't get stuff done either.
But I don't.
I don't think I would be surprised a
big storyline on election night would
be if Don Coram beat Lauren Barber and
I would be surprised if that happened.
Democratic side. Is there anything
to watch for there other than some
of those House races you mentioned?
I mean that house race.
You've got Congressional District 1,
which is Diana to get seat.
She's gotten a primary.
Once again, this is not.
One of the the high profile primaries
she's had a couple recently and
she she she fended them off the CU
Regent race that has a primary and
Congressional District 1 Johnny
Wynn and Wanda James I don't know
enough intelligently to give you the
short version of their candidacies,
but it's really that House District 6
the Democrats have managed to avoid
the infighting for many of the races,
but that House District 6 will
reveal its Katie March versus.
Want sorry versus Elizabeth Epps.
Katie March was worked in the
House Speaker's Office for the
last three house speakers.
Currently, Alec Garnett,
Elizabeth Epps, is social activist.
She helps she's most well known,
I think for raising funds to bail people
out of jail when it's like a $50 bail.
But they can't even afford.
This will indicate whoever wins.
I know it's just a small section of Denver,
but if Elizabeth Epps were to win,
that would add another.
Very far left name to the roster
of Democrats at the Statehouse,
where you could start to see why wild.
Wildly left ideas like hey,
we should start closing jails.
Hey, we should start limiting.
What a Police Department can do
like that type of legislation
whereas Katie March is more of
your traditional closer to the
center than where EPS is Democrat,
that's the one democratic race
that seems to be most watchable.
Polls close at what time on Tuesday?
Any details about when?
Also, we can expect some of
those results coming on Tuesday
7:00 o'clock on June 28th.
So Tuesday, June 28th you need
your ballot into the clerk,
so hand deliver it, drop it off.
By now it's too late to put it in the mail.
Don't trust that it will get there in
time if you put it in the mail now.
Nothing against the mail service,
but they always like to say give
it at least eight days before the
election and we're beyond that.
So hand deliver it.
Vote in person if you feel like
using a touch screen or fill out
your ballot and hand it right in.
So, so that's seven o'clock results.
I know many of these places where if you
vote early and and I encourage voting,
you know at least a day or two early so
that you know you got it out of the way.
But these counties are processing
ballots as they receive them,
they just haven't calculated them,
and so at 7:00 o'clock they hit a button.
And it's like all these ballots
received as of Monday,
we're going to count right now,
and so we'll get that first
batch of numbers right away.
Maybe a minute or two after seven,
and then it slows down after
a while because places like.
Denver only update every 90 minutes.
Other counties will update as as
they get it but but we'll have a
continuous continuous count on Tuesday
and we'll be also by the way,
cutting in on 9 news.
We'll have Marshall and we'll
be doing plenty of stuff
on 90s plus here as well,
so be sure to tune out into us
here on 9 News Plus on election
night on June the 28th and any
final thoughts about the primary,
what to look for?
I mean, our themes that we'll be looking
at Tuesday is which candidates are
leading and what does that mean for
what the electorate wants if you've got.
Tina Peters, running for
Secretary of State winning.
If you've got Ron Hanks winning
if you have Greg Lopez winning,
that suggests that the voters who are
voting in the primary are OK with that.
Way far thinking,
but if you're more traditional candidates,
win a Pam Anderson for Secretary
of State Joe O'Day for Senate and
and and Heidi Ganahl for governor.
And I know I'm leaving out Congressional
District 8 candidates in this.
But if those are your more
traditional candidates that win,
that says you've got more.
What you're used to races between
the Democrat and the Republican
versus a Democrat.
And like the conspiracy thought process.
All right, so plenty on the line
coming up here on Tuesday night.
Again, we'll have those results in
somewhere around 7:00 PM on Tuesday night,
so of course we'll have those latest
for you on 9 news and here on 9 News
Plus so be sure to tune on in Marshall.
Thanks so much for your time
here on News Plus sure.