"Romanoff had to run a campaign," Gardner said. Romanoff, in the race since last February, raised $2.24 million through the same period and had $808,000 on hand, according to the most recent Federal Election Commission filings. A new poll released Wednesday by national Democratic-aligned groups shows former Colorado Gov. Gardner is one of just two Republican senators running for reelection this year in states won by Hillary Clinton, and polling has shown he’s no more popular in Colorado than President Donald Trump, who is upside down with voters in a state that has been trending increasingly to the left in recent elections. “When I was governor, we faced natural disasters, mass shootings, the Great Recession, and by coming together and working together, we always made things better than they were before.". That’s despite the two ethics committee violations, despite the contempt citing, despite Romanoff, Gardner and GOP dark money all running ads reminding voters of these facts. Gardner alleged that in the "bromance" days, "I remember John Hickenlooper calling me up saying he liked the idea. Since he ended his failing presidential campaign last summer and joined the crowded Senate primary, Hickenlooper, the popular former two-term mayor of Denver and two-term governor, has been the prohibitive front-runner, outraising his primary rivals many times over and holding commanding leads in public and private polling. Those candidates were former state Sen. Mike Johnston, former U.S. attorney for Colorado John Walsh, former ambassador Dan Baer, former state House Majority Leader Alice Madden and state Sen. Angela Williams, with Walsh and Baer endorsing Hickenlooper. "We're going to talk about what I've done for Colorado, and what I'll continue to do for Colorado for jobs and opportunities for Colorado," he said, before rattling off a list from his Great American Outdoors Act to support public lands to moving the Bureau of Land Management headquarters to Colorado and the Space Command to Colorado Springs. Our website features subscriber-only news stories daily, designed for public policy arena professionals. I have previously worked for MSNBC and Chronogram Magazine. Hickenlooper, a former petroleum geologist who has drawn fire from Democrats for boosting the fossil fuel industry when he was governor, says the two are on the same page about the climate crisis but support different approaches to solving it. The poll, released by Montana State University on Tuesday, has Hickenlooper leading Gardner by 17 points, 48% to 31%, in a race that will be pivotal in … Threats of harming another As you may recall, a recent internal poll released by Romanoff had him down 12 points, which seemed more reasonable than 30 points. Romanoff lost in the Democratic U.S. Senate primary in 2010 against Michael Bennet and against incumbent Republican Mike Coffman in the Sixth Congressional District in 2014. But to hear him tell it, on the night his Democratic opponent was being seated, we're going to find out who the real John Hickenlooper is. I have previously worked for MSNBC and Chronogram Magazine. However, he has had to answer for several gaffes in recent weeks and been fined by the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission for two ethics violations as Colorado governor. Romanoff, on the other hand, has failed to take advantage of the playbook Sanders handed him after winning Colorado and “take the big swings it was going to take to beat” Hickenlooper’s apathetic campaign, Fortney said — virtually guaranteeing Hickenlooper will win the nomination by default. The two Democrats will compete in a primary election June 30 to determine who will take on Gardner… The Times headline says something like Trump is dragging down Republicans in Senate races. John Hickenlooper and former state House Speaker Andrew Romanoff met for their first debate last Tuesday, the day after ballots went out for the June 30 primary. Now we find out just how good a politician Cory Gardner really is. Here’s the scary news for Gardner: In a new poll of swing-state Senate races, Democrats are leading in each one. “Reasonable Republicans are running out of places to go,” he said. But Gardner did tell the Hill last August that it’s “the court’s decision,” but also said, “If the Democrats want to stand for an unconstitutional law, I guess that’s their choice.”. Many are anticipating which Democrat w…, A new poll released Wednesday by national Democratic-aligned groups shows former Colorado Gov. And if Gardner is similarly dragged down in November — and remember, it’s a long way from now to then — he can’t possibly beat whoever wins the Democratic primary. It’s only been a little over a month since the most crowded U.S. Senate primary in Colorado history — with as many as 21 Democrats throwing their hats in the ring over the last year and a half — narrowed to a one-on-one battle between Hickenlooper and Romanoff. The winnowing started last fall after Hickenlooper joined the field and then dragged on through the winter, eventually winding up in April and May as the assembly and petition processes reached their conclusion. Why have models of Colorado’s coronavirus trajectory been off? Secure your subscription to Colorado’s premier political news journal, in continuous publication since 1898. John Hickenlooper leading Republican U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner by 11 percentage points — and the Democratic challenger holds a 19-point lead over the incumbent among self-described independent voters. The Ohio native is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati. Published on Jun 28, 2020 3:09AM MDT Opinion Columns Primary category in which blog post is published Opinion Don't knowingly lie about anyone Tweet: 2 replies, 1075 views. We'd love to hear eyewitness It’s possible they will come to believe their path to maintaining their Senate majority lies in trying to hold other states like Maine, North Carolina and Arizona and perhaps trying to capture more competitive swing states like Michigan and New Hampshire. And it’s also, it seems to me, a huge political mistake — a ready-made ad for Biden and other Democrats. Former Colorado Gov. The candidates fall along similar lines over the Green New Deal, a sweeping package meant to remake the economy while addressing climate change, with trillions of dollars in spending on clean energy and infrastructure. Subscribe to Colorado Politics today! Bennet, however, prevailed on election night by about 8 percentage points. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, Thread info Bookmark this thread Trash this thread. In two short but tumultuous years, Jena Griswold has transformed Colorado’s typically low-key secretary of state position into something of a national spectacle. © 2020 Forbes Media LLC. He has covered Dr. J, four presidential inaugurations, six national conventions and countless brain-numbing speeches in the New Hampshire and Iowa snow. Supporters and opponents of Colorado’s statewide ballot measures have pumped $41.7 million just this year toward swaying public opinion on issues that could have far-reaching implications if passed in November. For us political junkies, there are few things worse than a home-stretch poll showing one of the candidates leading by 30 points. “This is no time for timidity,” Romanoff said in the virtual debate, punctuating an attack on his rival's health care proposal. By continuing to use the site, you accept our, according to a poll released by Colorado Politics, fined by the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission. Near record high temperatures. If polls continue to show such large margins for the Democrats, and election handicappers begin to shift the race to likely or even safe Democratic, Republicans may start asking whether Colorado is worth contesting. Be Proactive. CLICK HERE TO TURN ON NOTIFICATIONS. Colorado voters are negative on Trump’s coronavirus response, with 54% saying they disapprove and just 34% approving, compared to 64% approval and 23% disapproval for Democratic Gov. The poll, released by Montana State University on Tuesday, has Hickenlooper leading Gardner by 17 points, 48% to 31%, in a race that will be pivotal in determining control of the Senate. Like said, candidate John Hickenlooper doesn't know Gov. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. The latest breaking news, delivered straight to your email! Want the real scoop? All Rights Reserved, This is a BETA experience. A May poll … He has been criticized by some in the party for attacking a fellow Democrat. Support local journalism around the state.Become a member of The Colorado Sun today! Andrew Romanoff is closing the gap after John Hickenlooper’s stumbles, poll indicates. Pool Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post Former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, left, and former Gov. While the moderate Hickenlooper presents himself as the folksy former barkeep who somehow found himself with a political career — he was a founder of Colorado's brewpub industry in the 1980s before a successful run for Denver mayor in 2003 — Romanoff is running from the left as a pugnacious outsider, unwilling to settle for a polite approach to politics. Romanoff is a longtime friend of Bill Clinton, endorsed by the former president in his 2010 Senate run. John Hickenlooper he used to call me a lot and say 'thank you for the work you're doing on health care. As Gov. Another Clinton friend, Hickenlooper failed to gain much traction during his six-month run for the White House, but he carved out a niche for himself as the candidate who most vocally criticized key Sanders proposals, including the Green New Deal and Medicare for All, as socialism — and poison for Democrats at the polls. Hickenlooper easily qualified for the primary ballot by petition in March. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images). “Well there’s no denying these are hard times, from coronavirus to racial injustice, there’s a lot of work to do. each comment to let us know of abusive posts. The SurveyUSA poll — the first in the head-to-head match-up — showed Hickenlooper’s support at 58% and Andrew Romanoff’s at 28%. This will not surprise you. As I write this on Friday, the answer is that no one is quite sure. Of course, Hickenlooper has far more money, is running far more ads, and there is a dark-money group that has been attacking Romanoff with ads on the anti-immigrant law passed in a 2006 special session when Romanoff was speaker. "I'm standing up to my own party right now by running, despite all the efforts on the part of the national political establishment to sabotage our campaign and stifle this contest,” Romanoff said in an online forum last month, referring to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee’s endorsement of Hickenlooper after the group recruited their pick into the primary.