By Nicole Speer
For the first time, the Boulder County Democratic Party has multiple Black and Latina women running for elected office. This ought to be a cause for celebration, but instead, it seems to be cause for concern.
As a Democrat, I am celebrating. Based on my experience collecting signatures for Jovita Schiffer (Colorado Senate District 18 candidate), Representative Junie Joseph (Colorado House District 10 candidate) and Commissioner Marta Loachamin (Boulder County Commissioner District 2 candidate), these three candidates are motivating Unaffiliated voters to register as Democrats and inspiring young people and first-time voters of all ages to get involved in electoral politics.
This is good news for the Democratic Party. These candidates are showing that fresh perspectives can overcome voter apathy and drive people to engage in our elections… exactly the skillset we need in November to avoid Trump 2.0.
Unfortunately, we seem to be getting in our own way.
This weekend is the Boulder County Democratic Party Assembly, where a couple hundred registered Democrats will decide which Democrats appear on the June 25 primary election ballot.
Although tens of thousands of voters will vote on June 25 to select the Democratic candidates for the November 2024 general election, who shows up on our primary ballots depends on the small fraction of registered Democrats who were selected to be delegates in the March 9 Boulder County Democratic Party caucus.
Delegates were selected from among Democratic voters who could arrange to give up three to four hours on a Saturday afternoon, and then also commit to giving up a whole Saturday on March 23, the first day of BVSD and CU Boulder’s spring break.
With time requirements like this to have your voice heard, it’s no surprise that of the roughly 500 possible delegates in Boulder County, only around 380 were selected. Many precincts will have no delegates to have a say in who is on our June 25 ballot.
To add insult to injury, in the lead-up to what should be a routine step for Boulder County Democrats to affirm that voters having a choice on their ballots is a good thing, some Democrats appear to be spreading misinformation and using fear tactics to try to keep these three Black and Latina women off the June 25 primary ballot.
At the March 9 caucus, many delegates were told that they could not find substitutes for the March 23 assembly if they became unable to attend, discouraging those whose schedules aren’t 100% predictable from attending the Assembly (e.g., parents or caregivers for whom care can fall through, workers who could be called in for an unexpected shift, anyone vulnerable to illness, etc.). But state rules allow for delegates to find proxies if they become unable to attend.
Delegates in one precinct — one that includes a lot of renters, workers, families with children, low-income residents and BIPOC voters — were told the wrong time for delegates to show up at the assembly (6 p.m. instead of 7:15 a.m.).
Last week, delegates were reporting that they had been told by Democratic Party members that they can’t talk to Democratic candidates and can’t vote for the candidates they think their precincts would support (they can). Instead, they reported being told that delegates have to follow straw polls from the caucus that reflect the feelings of a half dozen voters on March 9 toward candidates many had just met or heard about.
And now, some of my fellow Democrats are telling delegates that some of these strong Democratic candidates are lackeys for the Democratic Socialists of America, a statement that is as incoherent as it is incorrect. None of these candidates is a member of the DSA, despite the fact that Boulder County voters have overwhelmingly voted for DSA-backed candidates like Bernie Sanders in recent presidential primaries.
The implication that women of color who have overcome so many obstacles in their lives to become small business owners, community leaders and candidates for elected office are lackeys for any political group is deeply racist and misogynistic.
In the past decade, we’ve lost many things our Democratic Party predecessors fought for: women’s right to control their own bodies, affirmative action and the Voting Rights Act, just to name a few devastating losses. We shouldn’t be fighting so hard and so dirty to keep Democrats off the ballot. Especially when those Democrats are women of color who are attracting new voters to our elections. It’s unbecoming for members of a party that purports to care about democracy and racial equity, especially given the threat we are facing in November from another Trump presidency.
It’s time for Boulder County’s Democrats to decide who we want to be. Will we be the party whose members spread misinformation to voters and work to keep hard-working, well-qualified community leaders off the ballot? Or will we leave that undemocratic nonsense to other parties, and instead be the party that exemplifies Boulder County’s inclusive values?
This weekend, a couple hundred registered Democrats will decide. I hope they turn away from fear and misinformation and decide to give the tens of thousands of voters who don’t have a voice at the March 23 assembly a choice on our June 25 primary ballots.
Dr. Nicole Speer is Mayor Pro Tem for the City of Boulder and a Director of Research Services for the University of Colorado Boulder. She is writing in her personal capacity as a registered Democrat and Boulder County voter.
