"It was always our intent to encourage those voters to vote," Boulder County Clerk Hillary Hall said Friday.
Scott Gessler in The Newsballot initiatives,
campaign finance,
conflict of interest,
dunk tank,
election,
expanding government,
fear mongering,
glitches,
inactive voters,
lawsuit,
minority voters,
moonlighting,
partisan,
reimbursement,
self-payment,
special interest influence,
theft,
vote suppression
Judge denies request to halt investigation of Scott Gessler's spendingFebruary 07, 2013 - Denver Post Amid questions over the very meaning of the word "ethics," a Denver judge on Thursday rejected Secretary of State Scott Gessler's request to block the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission from investigating his spending of office funds. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: lawsuit, partisan, reimbursement, self-payment, theft Scott Gessler improperly takes piles of Westwords...so he can autograph their covers?February 06, 2013 - Westword As if Scott Gessler didn't have enough trouble. The Secretary of State is already being investigated by the Independent Ethics Commission to determine whether he violated the law by using office funds on a trip to Florida. (Gessler has sued the commission; a hearing is set for Thursday). Meanwhile, the Denver District Attorney's Office is still looking into whether Gessler misappropriated taxpayer dollars. And now come suggestions that Colorado's Secretary of State might have violated another state law.Yes, the Honey Badger has allegedly been flaunting this state's newspaper-theft statute -- by taking more copies of Westword than he is entitled to. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: campaign finance, partisan, theft Reader: Scott Gessler's partisan actions disqualify him from officeJanuary 24, 2013 - Westword As a citizen, voter and taxpayer, I was offended by Secretary of State Scott Gessler's implication that being concerned about making a living necessarily makes you a "conservative." Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: conflict of interest, partisan, vote suppression Colorado judge denies Scott Gessler on "inactive voters" lawsuitJanuary 21, 2013 - Denver Post A Colorado state district court judge on Monday ruled that state law allows county clerks the authority to send ballots to "inactive failed to vote" voters in mail-in-only elections...Scott Gessler sued Denver County Clerk and Recorder Debra Johnson in 2011 for sending mail ballots to such so-called "inactive" voters. District Court Judge Edward D. Bronfin ruled against Gessler — an election-law attorney — saying that Johnson's interpretation of the law is correct Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: election, inactive voters, lawsuit, vote suppression Suthers backs Gessler effort to set up personal criminal defense fundJanuary 11, 2013 - Colorado Independent Colorado Attorney General John Suthers’ office this week made what’s sure to be a controversial decision to officially support Secretary of State Scott Gessler’s effort to establish a legal defense fund. The move likely prevents AG attorneys from advising ethics commission weighing legality of fund. Read full article (Colorado Independent website)Keywords: conflict of interest, partisan, self-payment, theft Scott Gessler is always right...right?January 10, 2013 - Westword At 9:36 a.m. on August 28, Minerva Padron, an administrative assistant to Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler, answered a call to the office's election number. On the other end of the line was an agitated male who said he wanted to talk to someone about letters that Gessler had sent to nearly 4,000 registered voters whom he suspected might not be American citizens, urging the suspected immigrants to offer proof that they were legal citizens — or otherwise remove themselves from the voter rolls. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: conflict of interest, fear mongering, inactive voters, partisan, self-payment, theft, vote suppression Ethics commission moves forward with Gessler investigationJanuary 08, 2013 - Colorado Independent The Colorado Independent Ethics Commission yesterday unanimously voted to investigate Secretary of State Scott Gessler for misuse of public funds. The five-member bipartisan panel denied a series of motions to dismiss brought by Gessler’s attorneys Read full article (Colorado Independent website)Keywords: reimbursement, self-payment, theft Ethics commission won't drop investigation of GesslerJanuary 07, 2013 - Fort Collins Coloradoan Colorado’s Independent Ethics Commission on Monday denied Secretary of State Scott Gessler’s request to end its investigation of his use of public funds. Gessler’s deputy, in turn, asked the commission’s permission to accept monetary donations beyond the constitutional limit for state officials to fund Gessler’s defense against criminal allegations. Read full article (Fort Collins Coloradoan website)Keywords: reimbursement, self-payment, theft Secretary of State Scott Gessler hires David Lane as attorney in ethics caseDecember 06, 2012 - Denver PostRead full article (Denver Post website) Scott Gessler calls for fewer limits on campaign finance -- to protect free speechNovember 29, 2012 - WestwordRead full article (Westword website) Denver DA launches criminal probe of Secretary of State Scott GesslerNovember 05, 2012 - Denver Post Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey's office confirmed Monday it had launched a criminal investigation of Secretary of State Scott Gessler on the same afternoon the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission voted to begin an investigation into whether Gessler violated the law by using state funds to attend a partisan event. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: reimbursement, self-payment, theft Scott Gessler voter checks: 44 removed from rolls, four of them RepublicansNovember 02, 2012 - Westword Last week, Secretary of State Scott Gessler said his office had identified 300 more non-citizens illegally registered to vote who would be committing fraud if they did so. Gessler admitted that the timing of results from this second round of checks wasn't ideal. But county clerks were able to act before election day. Between the two rounds, a total of 44 people listed on voter rolls have been removed statewide. Only seven of them have voted. And just four were Republicans. Read full article (Westword website)Immigration advocate, legal citizen gets Scott Gessler's non-citizen letterOctober 26, 2012 - Westword In the final weeks of the campaign, as we reported earlier today, Secretary of State Scott Gessler has continued his controversial anti-fraud campaign by tracking down individuals he believes are illegally registered to vote, because they are immigrants. Gessler sent them letters to 300 people asking them to verify their citizenship -- and yesterday, we reached one legal citizen who got the letter and is not happy about it, in part because he himself has done advocacy work around voter participation. Alan Kaplan, 35, has been a citizen since 2001. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: fear mongering, glitches, vote suppression Editorial: Gessler needs to repay taxpayersOctober 23, 2012 - Denver Post Through numerous steps taken in his first two years on the job, Republican Secretary of State Scott Gessler has ensured that his actions will be scrutinized. In recent weeks, his office budget has been put under the microscope — and the results are concerning. First, it was learned that a discretionary account intended to cover official state business was tapped to pay for a partisan junket to Florida. Reporting by The Denver Post also showed that, at the end of the fiscal year, Gessler reimbursed himself $1,400 for expenses for which he has no documentation. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, reimbursement, self-payment, theft Michael Hancock: Scott Gessler's actions similar to nationwide voter-suppression effortsOctober 22, 2012 - Westword Even though Mayor Michael Hancock says he likes to give people the benefit of the doubt, he believes Secretary of State Scott Gessler's actions echo a concerted nationwide effort to suppress votes. The mayor weighed in on this topic last week, and while he declined to directly slam Gessler, he still came down hard on the controversial chief election officer, who has faced a steady stream of opposition in the final days before this year's election. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: conflict of interest, fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Colorado Secretary of State discusses discretionary fundOctober 19, 2012 - KMGH Ch. 7 Colorado's Secretary of State Scott Gessler talks about a discretionary fund that he didn't have receipts for. Marshall Zelinger reports. Click link below to watch the video interview. Read full article (KMGH Ch. 7 website)Keywords: conflict of interest, reimbursement, self-payment, theft Gessler loses everyone-does-it explanationOctober 19, 2012 - Denver Post I can’t imagine many taxpayers are happy with the idea of elected officials using public funds to pay for travel to political party-related events – even fairly serious-minded events such as a GOP lawyers meeting. Yet that’s what Treasurer Scott Gessler did this year, and now The Post’s Tim Hoover has confirmed that his behavior is unusual indeed...Everyone but Gessler seems to realize that expenditures from the office’s discretionary fund should be reserved for non-partisan purposes. Read full article (Denver Post website)Review: Gessler lone statewide official to tap fund for partisan useOctober 19, 2012 - Denver Post A review of discretionary-account spending shows that Secretary of State Scott Gessler, a Republican who attended the Republican National Convention and a GOP lawyers meeting on the same Florida trip, is the only current statewide official who has used his office's fund for party-related events. He's also the only public official who has given himself an end-of-year payout from the fund to reimburse expenses without any receipts. Read full article (Denver Post website)Raising money, Honey Badger styleOctober 19, 2012 - Denver Post In a fundraising letter sent by Coloradans for Gessler this week, the Republican secretary of state asks for donations to combat the “liberal left.” “If proactively cleaning up our state’s voting processes equates to being fearless and driven, then the Honey Badger nickname is one I can live with,” Gessler says in the letter. “Liberal politicians are willing to turn a blind eye toward voter fraud — and that’s something I will not accept.” Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, minority voters, vote suppression Day’s worst: Gessler’s spendingOctober 19, 2012 - Friday wasn’t a kind news day for Republican Secretary of State Scott Gessler. The morning paper included news that in June of 2011, Gessler took what was left in his office’s discretionary fund to reimburse himself for day-to-day expenses at the end of the fiscal year. Just one problem: He didn’t have any receipts to back up what those expenses were. Watchdog group: SoS Gessler’s GOP travel tab an anomalyOctober 16, 2012 - Colorado Independent Luis Toro, director of left-leaning government watchdog group Colorado Ethics Watch, said on Monday that a preliminary review of documents suggests Secretary of State Scott Gessler’s decision to bill taxpayers for travel to partisan political functions stands out when compared to decisions made by other statewide office holders.
Keywords: conflict of interest, reimbursement, self-payment, theft Scott Gessler should be investigated for misuse of public funds, says Colorado Ethics WatchOctober 16, 2012 - Westword Scott Gessler is not only making it harder for people to vote, he's using public funds to help support the Republican Party. At least that's the charge of Colorado Ethics Watch, an advocacy group that is accusing the Secretary of State of spending public dollars to fund trips to political events. With a call for a criminal investigation, these allegations may be the most controversial Gessler has faced in the months before the election. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: conflict of interest, fear mongering, vote suppression Taxpayers funded part of Gessler's RNC tripOctober 09, 2012 - Fort Collins Coloradoan Public funds paid for some costs of Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler’s trip in August to the Republican National Convention and the Republican National Lawyers Association. Voter registration site slammed, Secretary of State’s office doubles number of serversOctober 09, 2012 - Denver Post “We’re getting an incredibly high traffic volume,” said Andrew Cole, a spokesman for Gessler. “We’ve doubled the number of servers available. The application may be slow. People can try again in a few minutes or download the PDF voter registration form and return it with the instructions on the site. Secretary of State Scott Gessler: Left doesn't care about voter fraudOctober 05, 2012 - Denver Post Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler told a conservative audience Thursday that his critics really don't care about voter fraud and are "willing to lie" and "play the racism card." Gessler, a Republican, made his comments during a panel discussion Thursday titled, "Stealing Elections: What the Left Doesn't Want You to Know About Voter Fraud," held at a gathering of the Conservative Political Action Conference in Denver. The secretary of state appeared on the voter fraud panel along with representatives of several conservative organizations, including True the Vote, a highly controversial group that styles itself as an elections integrity organization but which critics say uses voter intimidation tactics. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Scott Gessler to share conservative voter-fraud panel with controversial True the Vote groupOctober 02, 2012 - Westword Secretary of State Scott Gessler likes to say that it should be easy to vote and tough to cheat, but his critics argue that he is a lot more focused on the latter -- especially when it comes to voters who aren't Republican. While Gessler has tried to disprove those accusations, his appearance this week at a conservative voter-fraud panel is not doing much to appease critics. Keywords: conflict of interest, minority voters, special interest influence, vote suppression Scott Gessler office's latest glitch: 800 voters who recently registered may not beSeptember 27, 2012 - Westword Critics of Secretary of State Scott Gessler argue that he spends more time intimidating and suppressing voters than he does registering them. Though Gessler has always denied those claims, he admitted yesterday that nearly 800 voters who legally registered may not have been put into the system due to a glitch -- and now they have to re-register. Trouble is, Gessler's office has no way of figuring out who they are. While this latest problem at the Secretary of State's office has nothing to do with his controversial campaign to weed out illegal voters, it's certainly bad timing for Gessler, who faces continued criticism that he is failing to make voter registration his top priority. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: glitches, vote suppression Scott Gessler registration drive errors cause confusion, more voter suppression claimsSeptember 20, 2012 - Westword This is not quite how Scott Gessler's plan was supposed to go. When Colorado's Secretary of State announced an unprecedented voter registration initiative last month, he told reporters that the effort wasn't a direct response to criticisms of voter suppression, though he said it would hopefully disprove accusations that he is intimidating voters. But now, some county clerks and voters are saying errors in mailers sent out through the registration campaign are causing more harm than good. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: glitches, minority voters, vote suppression Scott Gessler, Colorado’s ‘honey badger,’ may be most closely watched election officialSeptember 20, 2012 - Washington Post DENVER — Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has a deeply partisan past, a dedicated cadre of supporters, a long list of enemies, a colorful nickname bestowed by liberal detractors and a Web site dedicated to “watching” him. Denver clerk sues Gessler over mailing ballots to inactive votersSeptember 19, 2012 - Denver Post Denver Clerk and Recorder Debra Johnson on Wednesday sued Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler, challenging a rule from his office that would block ballots from being mailed to inactive voters in city and school board elections. "The election rules adopted in August by the Colorado secretary of state prohibiting the mailing of ballots to inactive-failed-to-vote voters in nonpartisan and coordinated elections infringes on Denver's status as a home rule city and county," Johnson said in a statement. "We believe that the secretary of state is overstepping his authority by trying to control who gets ballots in local municipal elections. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: inactive voters, lawsuit, vote suppression Noncitizen voters ID'd fraction of those first alleged by GesslerSeptember 16, 2012 - Denver Post More than a year ago, Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler said there could be in excess of 11,000 noncitizens registered to vote in Colorado and more than 4,000 of those who had cast ballots, and he has called noncitizen voter registration a "gaping hole" in the system. But earlier this month, Gessler, a Republican, announced that his office had found only 141 people who were noncitizens registered to vote out of 1,416 names run through a federal database, and of those 141, only 35 who had cast ballots. That number represents 0.001 percent of Colorado's 3.5 million registered voters. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Gessler identifies 35 non-citizens who voted, but holds off on rule-makingSeptember 08, 2012 - Denver Post Secretary of State Scott Gessler said Friday his office had found 35 noncitizens who have voted in Colorado elections, but in the face of criticism over how his office has tried to identify them, Gessler said he would not move forward with proposed regulations to deal with suspected noncitizen voters until after the election. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: election, fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Tribune Opinion: Dear Gessler, voter fraud isn’t an issueSeptember 07, 2012 - The Greeley Tribune Honestly, we have to ask: What was Scott Gessler thinking? Did the Colorado Secretary of State really believe the nearly 4,000 voters he sent a letter to questioning their voting status had registered illegally, or was he simply trying to intimidate those people from not casting a ballot? Critics have asserted the latter, and frankly, we think some of the evidence warrants a questioning of Gessler’s motives. Read full article (The Greeley Tribune website)PERRY: I VOTE FOR CHANGING GESSLER FROM ELECTIONS CHIEF BACK TO BEING PARTISAN GOP LAWYERSeptember 06, 2012 - Aurora Sentinel And the non-Christian, misguided, freedom-hating, government-bashing, communistic, left-leaning Colorado residents who don’t believe in the fundamental goodness of America are supposed to trust this Midwest carpet-bagging lawyer to be honest and fair in administrating election law? In a swing state with so much at stake in November, we’re supposed to believe that Gessler won’t morph into the notorious Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris on Election Day? Read full article (Aurora Sentinel website)Keywords: conflict of interest, fear mongering, minority voters, special interest influence, vote suppression Editorial: Secretary of State Gessler owes some apologiesAugust 31, 2012 - The Denver Post The way in which Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has attempted to rid the state's voter rolls of non-citizens has been controversial and disappointing. Colorado should expect better. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Gessler waived most of activists' campaign finesAugust 30, 2012 - Denver Post Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler waived tens of thousands of dollars in campaign disclosure fines for three men who pushed three ballot initiatives to cut taxes and restrict the state's finances in 2010. Jeff Gross, Louis Schroeder, and Russell Haas racked up more than $20,000 in late fees each for failing to file campaign finance disclosures after a judge's order. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest, special interest influence State Integrity: Tiny Fine for Big Campaign Finance ViolatorsAugust 30, 2012 - Colorado Public Radio It’s a pretty sweet deal. Three men, facing tens of thousands of dollars in fines for campaign finance violations, wound up getting slapped with the equivalent of a parking ticket. But how? CPR's Megan Verlee takes us through one tale of campaign finance waivers. Then Megan talks with host Ryan Warner about how the public can use the same database she did to find this story. Read full article (Colorado Public Radio website)Keywords: ballot initiatives, campaign finance, conflict of interest, special interest influence Database: 88% of questioned people on voter rolls are U.S. citizensAugust 30, 2012 - Denver Post About 88 percent of the approximately 1,400 suspected noncitizens run through a federal database by the Colorado secretary of state's office were determined to be U.S. citizens — and are eligible to vote. The Department of Homeland Security is continuing to review the remaining approximately 168 people to determine whether any of them also are citizens, said Michael Hagihara, voter registration manager for the secretary of state's office. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, election, fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression U.S. citizens among those who got letters questioning right to voteAugust 29, 2012 - Denver Post The largest portion of the letters — 46 percent — went to unaffiliated voters, but 40 percent went to registered Democrats while only 12.5 percent went to Republicans. The remainder went to voters with other parties. The fact that more than three times as many Democrats got the letters as Republicans prompted those on the left to accuse Gessler, a Republican, of partisan motives. A controversial secretary of state, Gessler has clashed with Democrats and liberal groups many times since taking office in 2011. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Gessler asks 4,000 voters to prove they can legally voteAugust 16, 2012 - KDVR-TV Gessler, with his continued focus on eliminating voter fraud, has become a top target of Colorado Democrats, who believe the Republican is engaging in a less than subtle effort to reduce the number of minorities who actually vote in an effort to help GOP candidates. Read full article (KDVR-TV website)Keywords: election, fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Scott Gessler rule changes rejected, watchdog groups pleasedAugust 15, 2012 - Westword Secretary of State Scott Gessler wants to make it easier for political groups to remain secretive about their spending by rewriting election rules and weakening disclosure laws. That's according to two watchdog groups, who praise a court ruling that blocks most of Gessler's efforts. Denver District Court has struck down key campaign finance rule changes adopted earlier this year, but the case isn't closed yet: Gessler says he plans to appeal. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest, election, special interest influence Judge rejects Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler's changesAugust 11, 2012 - Denver Post A Denver District Court judge has invalidated several — and upheld one — of the changes Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler made to campaign-finance regulations in March. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, election, lawsuit, special interest influence Colorado county clerks blast Gessler for "errors and oversights"August 10, 2012 - Denver Post The Colorado County Clerks Association today unleashed a litany of complaints on Secretary of State Scott Gessler, pointing to a "cumbersome list of issues" with his office. In a letter from Executive Director Donetta Davidson, the clerks' association called for greater cooperation. Gessler’s proposed changes to election rules draw heated objectionsJuly 26, 2012 - Colorado Independent Over the course of a five-hour rulemaking hearing Monday, Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler probably got the message that a lot of people are unhappy with proposed rules that would stop county clerks from mailing ballots to inactive voters in some elections, change the way canvass boards are selected and give county clerks more power to determine how much access election watchers have. Read full article (Colorado Independent website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest, expanding government, fear mongering, inactive voters, vote suppression Guest Commentary: Can Secretary of State Scott Gessler be trusted?July 25, 2012 - The Denver Post Only citizens should vote. No one disputes that argument. In Colorado, we should be doing all we can to ensure every eligible citizen is able to vote this November, and encourage everyone to participate in this important constitutional right. As our chief elections officer, Secretary of State Scott Gessler should be taking the lead to encourage participation. Unfortunately, he has gone to great lengths and expense to put obstacles in the way of eligible voters — without evidence that "voter fraud" is a problem at all in Colorado. Read full article (The Denver Post website)House Dems To Gessler: You Don't Make The LawJuly 23, 2012 - Colorado Pols To briefly recap, a state law requiring that mail ballots be delivered to all registered voters with a valid address expired after the 2010 election cycle. Gessler lost in court last fall attempting to stop Denver and Pueblo counties from sending these ballots, after which several other Colorado counties joined them. This year, Gessler helped kill legislation that would have clarified the status of inactive voters statewide and ensured they got mail ballots--because the "uniformity" Gessler wanted was on the side of fewer ballots being delivered. Read full article (Colorado Pols website)Keywords: fear mongering, inactive voters, minority voters, vote suppression Homeland Security Says Gessler May Check Voter CitizenshipJuly 17, 2012 - Denver Post The Department of Homeland Security agreed Monday to let Colorado and other states access a DHS database to verify the citizenship of some registered voters — news that was hailed as a win for Secretary of State Scott Gessler and other Republican election officials but had their critics on high alert. Keywords: fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Gessler's 29 Maybe-Illegal Voters: Don't Take The BaitJuly 14, 2012 - Colorado Pols Which points back to yesterday's Denver paper, where reporter Sara Burnett covers a "spot check" done by Secretary of State Scott Gessler's office into the possibility of noncitizens being registered to vote. In his latest attempt to uncover what he insists in the absence of much evidence is a major problem, Gessler's office checked immigration detainees in Colorado with voter rolls, and found 85 persons who appear both in that list and a list of registered voters. Of that 85, some 29 are marked as "active" voters, meaning they appear to have voted since 2010. Read full article (Colorado Pols website)Keywords: expanding government, fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Gessler Searching for Illegal VotesJuly 13, 2012 - Denver Post Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler is investigating 85 people who may have been illegally registered to vote. A spokesman for Gessler says jail records are being checked for people being detained as illegal immigrants to see if they match names in the state's voter database Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Suthers Backs Gessler, asks Homeland Security to Screen VotersJuly 10, 2012 - Denver Post Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler is intensifying his efforts to root out and remove any noncitizens from the state's voter rolls before the November election — and this time, he has the backing of Attorney General John Suthers and top elections officials in 11 other states. Keywords: election, expanding government, vote suppression Scott Gessler: A 'Good Election' is when 'Republicans Win'June 26, 2012 - Huffington Post ColoradoPols.com unearthed a video of Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler talking about election integrity that may raise come eyebrows. 'So, obviously we have a big election coming up and everyone is -- properly so, I think -- very intensely involved, but there's always a lot of uptightness about it too, a lot of accusations being hurled about. So, let me talk a little bit about what we're looking at, at least from my perspective, in the election. I mean how do you know if you have a good election? Well, Republicans win, of course.' - Scott Gessler Read full article (Huffington Post website)Keywords: election, special interest influence, vote suppression Gessler Still Fighting With Denver Over BallotsJune 21, 2012 - Denver Post Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler is still fighting with Denver election officials over mail ballots to inactive voters. Late last week, Gessler's office proposed a new rule that says clerks may not mail ballots to inactive voters in an election held with another political entity, which could affect November's presidential election. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: inactive voters, vote suppression Denver Clerk, Secretary of State Gessler Spar Over Mailing BallotsJune 20, 2012 - Denver Post The secretary of state’s office said the rule proposed late last week clarifies that clerks may not mail ballots to inactive votersin a “coordinated” mail-ballot election, or a mail-ballot election held simultaneously with another political entity. It also states that inactive voters may not receive a mail ballotfor anyotherelection, with the exception of a primary, unless the voter submits an application for a mail ballot. Keywords: inactive voters, vote suppression Risk Of Non-Citizen Voters At Center Of Struggle In Some StatesJune 02, 2012 - WITN News And to those who might impute a political motive to Gessler to scrub the voter rolls in a state which swung from Republican in 2004 to Democratic in 2008, Gessler said, “I’ve got an obligation enforce the law and let the chips fall where they may.” Read full article (WITN News website)Keywords: vote suppression Gessler aide: Homeland Security 'stalling' on Colorado voter checksJune 01, 2012 - VivaColorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler's office accused the Department of Homeland Security today of using "stall tactics" to prevent Colorado from verifying the citizenship status of about 4,500 registered voters Read full article (VivaColorado website)Keywords: minority voters, vote suppression Wisconsin’s Walker echoes Colorado’s Gessler on voter fraudMay 21, 2012 - The Colorado Independent In the last two years, Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has made voter fraud prevention a top priority. His efforts have included working to stop county clerks from sending absentee ballots to inactive voters, lobbying for a controversial voter ID law and leading an unprecedented effort to determine whether noncitizens are voting in the state. Read full article (The Colorado Independent website)Keywords: fear mongering, vote suppression James O'Keefe: Not Helping Scott GesslerMay 16, 2012 - ColoradoPols As you know, we (and others) have repeatedly debunked this persistent claim that "5,000 noncitizens may have voted" in the 2010 elections in Colorado. The claim originates with Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler, who used this figure in congressional testimony, but it doesn't stand up to even casual scrutiny. As we noted and local media outlets realized last year, over thirty thousand Colorado residents became citizens during the period Gessler "analyzed," enough to easily account for the 5,000 "noncitizens" who "may" have voted in 2010. Read full article (ColoradoPols website)Keywords: fear mongering, vote suppression Why We're Suing Colorado SOS Scott GesslerApril 25, 2012 - Huffington Post Colorado's Secretary of State Scott Gessler has just put into effect a new set of political financing and disclosure rules that open up new opportunities to hide big money in politics from the public's view, throwing out the welcome mat to potential, political corruption in Colorado. Read full article (Huffington Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, lawsuit, vote suppression The right to vote: Secretary of State Scott Gessler’s betrayal of votersApril 14, 2012 - The Denver Post Republican Scott Gessler has made voting by mail a partisan issue. In doing so, he joins a nationwide Republican movement to suppress the vote, because lower turnouts favor them. He claims it is more cost-effective for county clerks to send two separate postcard notices to registered voters who didn’t vote in the last general election than to mail one ballot to them. Voters who sign up for permanent mail ballots expect to receive them, whether they voted last time or not, and that makes sense. Permanent means permanent. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: vote suppression Editorial: Common sense on ballot issueApril 13, 2012 - The Denver Post Given the recent dust-up with Secretary of State Scott Gessler over mail ballots going to "inactive/failed to vote" voters, some might have thought the issue had been resolved. Last October, a judgedeclined Gessler's request for a preliminary injunctionto prevent Denver from sending ballots to those classified as "inactive/failed to vote." They are defined as those who failed to participate in the prior general election and did not respond to two postcards from the elections clerk. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: inactive voters, vote suppression David and Goliath: Paladino Takes On GesslerApril 09, 2012 - Square State A lawsuit aimed at stopping Secretary of State Scott Gessler from vastly increasing secret political spending in Colorado was joined by CO Senate District 27 Democratic candidate David Paladino on Friday, April 6th. Read full article (Square State website)Guarding against the corrupting influence of moneyApril 08, 2012 - The Denver Post Ingenious efforts to thwart the people's right to know who is spending to influence elections have always kept a step ahead of disclosure laws. In light of the Colorado Supreme Court's recent "magic words" ruling, the disconnect is greater now than ever. And, it will only get worse if Secretary of State Scott Gessler's new campaign finance regulations, which among other things would effectively repeal the requirement that 527s disclose their spending, survive inevitable legal challenges. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, special interest influence, vote suppression Watchdog groups sue Colorado secretary of state over campaign-finance lawsApril 07, 2012 - The Denver Post Two organizations sued Secretary of State Scott Gessler on Friday, saying he weakened Colorado's campaign-finance laws when heissued a rewrite of the state's rules earlier this yearand that he didn't have authority to do so. Keywords: campaign finance, lawsuit, special interest influence, vote suppression Aspen election activist suing Colorado secretary of state over traceability of ballotsApril 03, 2012 - Real Aspen The challenges mounting on Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler's deskgo beyond whether to mail ballots to residents who haven't voted in a while. He has another predicament: bar codes. Keywords: election, lawsuit Colorado Democrats launch online petition drive against Secretary of State GesslerMarch 31, 2012 - The Denver Post
Days after calling for the removal of Republican Secretary of State Scott Gessler, Colorado Democrats on Friday launched an online petition drive to bring attention to what party officials say is partisanship emanating from his office. "Many of the problems he has created are pretty technical. ... We will be able to gauge what further actions might be worth pursuing" based on the response to the petition, Colorado Democratic Party spokesman Matt Inzeo said in a statement. Keywords: conflict of interest, election, fear mongering, vote suppression Colorado Democrats want Secretary of State Scott Gessler removed from officeMarch 29, 2012 - The Denver Post Colorado Democrats unleashed some of their strongest criticism yet of Secretary of State Scott Gessler Wednesday, saying he should be removed from office afterhe opposed an election-related bill that was later killed by fellow Republicans. Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest, election, vote suppression Should elected officials talk to all journalists, progressive, conservative, or rabid?March 20, 2012 - ColoradoPols Secretary of State Scott Gessler recently made an appearance Colorado's flagship Tea-Party radio show, KLZ's Grassroots Radio Colorado. I was jealous because Gessler's office won't talk to me, and it's possible that even my audience of three people is bigger than KLZ's. Read full article (ColoradoPols website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest Secretary of State Gessler asks Homeland Security to ID noncitizens on Colorado voter rollsMarch 17, 2012 - The Denver Post Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has asked the Department of Homeland Security to provide his office with the citizenship status of about 4,500 registered voters — his latest tactic in an ongoing effort to remove noncitizens from the state's voter rolls. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression Colorado county clerks baffled by Gessler ‘non-citizen voter registration’ claimsMarch 08, 2012 - The Colorado Independent “I really have no idea what he is talking about,” Republican Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Sheila Reiner told the Colorado Independent. Reiner was referring to allegations made again recently by Secretary of State Scott Gessler that non-citizens are registered to vote in the state. Read full article (The Colorado Independent website)Keywords: fear mongering, vote suppression Scott Gessler spokesmen reject voter suppression accusations against himMarch 08, 2012 - Westword "This time, however, Americans won't be faced with night sticks. They'll instead be faced with new laws written by the Republican legislature and the Secretary of State," Palacio said at a Monday press conference. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: fear mongering, vote suppression Our Secretary of State as a Punch LineMarch 08, 2012 - The Huffington Post Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has become a punch line. I witnessed this recently in a local restaurant. I heard "Scott Gessler" across the room, followed by peals of laughter. No joke. I follow the secretary of state closely because of his self-described attempts to "further the conservative agenda" and voter suppression efforts that match those of the national Republican Party. Read full article (The Huffington Post website)Keywords: ballot initiatives, campaign finance, minority voters, special interest influence, vote suppression Secretary of State Scott Gessler rewrites Colorado campaign finance rulesFebruary 23, 2012 - Secretary of State Scott Gessler adopted a full rewrite of Colorado's campaign finance rules Wednesday, a move critics say is outside of his authority and will allow big money to dominate elections. Read full article ( website)Keywords: campaign finance, expanding government Lawmakers consider eliminating ‘inactive voter’ statusFebruary 22, 2012 - Fox 31 Secretary of State Scott Gessler is currently facing litigation from several county clerks, including Denver’s for his directive that they mail ballots only to ‘active’ registered voters Read full article (Fox 31 website)Keywords: election, inactive voters, vote suppression Gessler shows off his media-criticism skills in Statesman articleFebruary 21, 2012 - ColoradoPols There's a good chance someone is going to say something newsworthy when they preface it with, "some folks in my office cringed when I said this, but I'm going to say it again." That's what Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler told the a GOP group, as reported by the Colorado Statesman's Judy Hope Strogoff prior to repeating his view that the mainstream media hates uppity Republicans. I wrote about it the first time he said it, calling on wimpy reporters to fight back and ask him for more evidence, but no enterprising reporter took the challenge. Read full article (ColoradoPols website)Scott Gessler, in his own words...February 20, 2012 - The Colorado Statesman Secretary of State Scott Gessler is clearly no stranger to publicity. Even before being sworn into office in January of 2011, his name was familiar in political circles. The Democrats had Mark Grueskin as their top election law guru, Republicans in the state usually turned to their own cadre of leading experts, with Gessler at or near the top of their list. There were plenty of stories over the years which showcased Gessler’s ties to Republicans and the political organizations they formed to advance their causes. Read full article (The Colorado Statesman website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest, fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression How Much Do You Trust Scott Gessler?February 18, 2012 - ColoradoPols Last year at this time, Colorado's then-newly elected Secretary of State Scott Gessler was just beginning to recover from a major scandal that hobbled his first weeks in office. Gessler had announced in mid-January of 2011 his intention to continue working for his old elections-specialty law firm, the Hackstaff Law Group (formerly Hackstaff Gessler)...The top-listed item under Gessler's list of external personal income is money paid to him, an unknown amount and for an unknown purpose but sometime within the 2011 calendar year, by the very same Hackstaff Law Group he was going to moonlight for! Read full article (ColoradoPols website)Keywords: campaign finance, moonlighting Colorado Secretary of State Gessler nixes talk of run for governorFebruary 15, 2012 - The Denver Post
Democrats say they are thrilled with the idea of a Gessler candidacy, considering he has made headlines since taking office in 2011, from wanting to moonlight at his old law firm to boost his state salary to fighting with county clerks in his own party. "Instead of 'Coloradans for Gessler,' the committee should be called 'Coloradans Suing Gessler,' " joked House Minority Leader Mark Ferrandino of Denver. Keywords: conflict of interest, election In Colorado's Close Races, the Hispanic Vote is KeyFebruary 14, 2012 - The Huffington Post One of these obstacles was presented by Secretary of State Scott Gessler, who, citing concerns about voter fraud, created the category of "inactive voter," encompassing anyone who voted, for example, in 2008 but not 2010. The issue is currently being challenged in court and is considered an attempt at voter suppression, particularly of minority voters like Hispanics, explained Grace López Ramírez, state director of Mi Familia Vota. Read full article (The Huffington Post website)Keywords: vote suppression Scott Gessler targeted by activist over voting in Saguache county and beyondFebruary 13, 2012 - The Westword The woman behind Citizen Center, a nonprofit organization that focuses on elections issues and more, is pushing Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler's office to hold a hearing prompted by her complaint about alleged voting irregularities in Saguache County. And today, she plans to announce a broader lawsuit focusing on Gessler and officials in several other counties. Read full article (The Westword website)Keywords: election, vote suppression Voters file suit against Gessler, six clerks for ballot practicesFebruary 13, 2012 - The Denver Post A group of Colorado voters filed a federal lawsuit against Secretary of State Scott Gessler and six county clerks today, saying their election practices are unconstitutional because they allow some ballots to be traced back to the person who cast them. Keywords: vote suppression Colorado lawmakers won’t push ‘proof of citizenship’ bill this sessionJanuary 23, 2012 - The Colorado Independent Colorado lawmakers who last year introduced legislation to address claims that perhaps thousands of undocumented residents had voted in the state will not re-introduce the legislation this year. Secretary of State Scott Gessler reportedly waved off the lawmakers, saying he felt he could address the issue outside the halls of the capitol with means available to him through his office. Read full article (The Colorado Independent website)Keywords: minority voters, vote suppression Scott Gessler provides inaccurate data for spending report -- but should he be blamed?January 19, 2012 - Westword Could Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler have provided inaccurate data for a national report -- a prospect that comes to light during the same week that NPR sent him an audio love letter? Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: campaign finance Scott Gessler dubbed rock star by NPR, but he prefers being called Honey BadgerJanuary 18, 2012 - Westword Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler is a controversy magnet, with many progressive figures taking his name in vain. Example: a blistering October critique by MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. But today, NPR, a news outfit frequently accused of liberal bias, sent the mega-conservative Gessler an audio love letter in which he's implicitly dubbed a rock star, as well as a honey badger. Hear it below. Read full article (Westword website)Keywords: election, special interest influence, vote suppression CO's Scott Gessler a New Type of Secretary of StateJanuary 18, 2012 - Colorado Public Radio In the year since his election, Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has grabbed a lot of headlines. He’s part of an activist trend nationwide that’s transforming the office from an administrative role to something with a much higher profile. Colorado Public Radio’s Megan Verlee reports. Read full article (Colorado Public Radio website)Keywords: minority voters, moonlighting, vote suppression WTF is WTP? The checkered history of Colorado's chameleonic advocacy groupJanuary 12, 2012 - The Colorado Springs Independent And, perhaps most impressively, current Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler served as lead attorney in the group's 2009 lawsuit against Longmont's Fair Campaign Practices Act. Although Gessler had hoped to continue "moonlighting" for his old law firm after taking office, American Tradition Partnership's Donald Ferguson says he's no longer representing the group. "We don't need him right now, I guess," Ferguson says with a laugh. Read full article (The Colorado Springs Independent website)Keywords: moonlighting, special interest influence Gessler critics say plan to limit campaign fines helps big-money groupsJanuary 09, 2012 - The Denver Post
Opponents of the rule change say Gessler doesn't have the authority to alter guidelines voters approved as part of a 2002 constitutional amendment. They also question whether Gess ler's motives are as benevolent as he says, or if the Republican is just looking out for the kind of big-money organizations — in particular, groups known as 527s — that the former elections attorney used to represent. Keywords: campaign finance, special interest influence Gessler issues 2012 campaign-finance rules for ColoradoJanuary 06, 2012 - The Denver Post The legislature's Legal Services Committee voted this month not to include the rule in the annual list of rules approved by the General Assembly, saying Gessler had overstepped. Typically, that would have meant the rule would expire May 15, or sooner if an earlier legislative vote occurred. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, election, expanding government Election officers who block the voteJanuary 06, 2012 - Politico Secretary of State Scott Gessler of Colorado, for example, asserted before Congress that as many as 11,000 noncitizens could be registered to vote in Colorado. He drew that conclusion by comparing people who used noncitizen documentation to obtain a driver’s license to voter registration rolls. But the likely discrepancy, aside from clerical errors, is that those noncitizens became legal citizens after receiving their driver’s license. During the same time period, 32,000 people became legal citizens in Colorado. Read full article (Politico website)Keywords: vote suppression COLORADO'S WORST POLITICO, 2011: Secretary of State Scott GesslerJanuary 03, 2012 - ColoradoPols It's quite possible that this "award" could end up being permanently named for Gessler, who isn't likely to be much less of a disaster in 2012 than he was in 2011. Gessler has been WTF-awful since he was first elected in November 2010, using what has historically been a benign position to cause all sorts of unnecessary problems all across the state. Just how has Gessler erred? Let us count the ways: Read full article (ColoradoPols website)Keywords: ballot initiatives, campaign finance, conflict of interest, inactive voters, moonlighting, vote suppression Limiting people from politics hurts us allJanuary 01, 2012 - The Pueblo Chieftain Since his election last January, Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has been at the forefront of the battle on influencing the political landscape. In his short tenure, Gessler has proposed overreaching legislation to limit voting, made unsubstantiated claims of illegal voting, ordered county clerks not to send ballots to “inactive” eligible voters (even overseas military voters) and proposed rules that would allow unlimited special interest money to influence our elections. Read full article (The Pueblo Chieftain website)Keywords: minority voters, vote suppression Gessler issues 2012 campaign-finance rules for ColoradoDecember 28, 2011 - The Denver Post Candidates for Colorado's 2012 primary election must begin filing biweekly campaign-finance reports Jan. 30 under a rule issued Tuesday by Secretary of State Scott Gessler.
The rule comes on the heels of a dispute between state lawmakers and Gessler over whether he had the authority to change the campaign-finance reporting schedule and when candidates would be required to start filing. Keywords: campaign finance Colorado Secretary of State Gessler embraces being targeted over his push for reformsDecember 24, 2011 - The Denver Post I'm probably going to be in court more than any previous secretary of state, Gessler said, according to several people in the room. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, inactive voters, moonlighting, vote suppression Gessler, lawmakers clash on campaign-finance deadlinesDecember 16, 2011 - The Denver Post Lawmakers and representatives from Secretary of State Scott Gessler's office sparred for a second day Thursday over campaign-finance filing deadlines, with a state senator accusing Gessler of "retribution" and Gessler's office saying lawmakers are talking out of both sides of their mouths. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest Gessler, lawmakers clash on campaign-finance deadlinesDecember 16, 2011 - The Denver Post Lawmakers and representatives from Secretary of State Scott Gessler's office sparred for a second day Thursday over campaign-finance filing deadlines, with a state senator accusing Gessler of "retribution" and Gessler's office saying lawmakers are talking out of both sides of their mouths. Keywords: campaign finance Committee shoots down Gessler campaign rulesDecember 15, 2011 - Pueblo ChieftainThe legislative committee that reviews regulatory rules rejected changes Secretary of State Scott Gessler adopted that reduce the number of campaign-finance reporting periods in the run-up to primary elections. Nonpartisan lawyers from the Office of Legislative Legal Services found Gessler overstepped his authority to enact the rule. “The secretary has effectively created new policy on a very controversial issue affecting the disclosure of campaign and political finance reports in the absence of any direction from the General Assembly,” said Bob Lackner of legal services.Read full article (Pueblo Chieftain website) Carroll admonishes Gessler in advance of campaign finance hearingDecember 15, 2011 - The Colorado Independent State Senator Morgan Carroll, D-Aurora, a strong advocate for campaign-finance transparency, Wednesday penned an open letter to Republican Secretary of State Scott Gessler, asking him to rethink rules he is proposing that would dramatically thin laws governing political issue committee donation disclosure reporting (pdf). Gessler’s office is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the proposed rules today. Read full article (The Colorado Independent website)Keywords: campaign finance, election Critics say changes considered by Colorado Secretary of State Gessler would leave vote machines open to hackingDecember 08, 2011 - The Denver Post Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, election Brown: Scott Gessler, meet Natalie MeyerDecember 02, 2011 - The Denver Post Scott Gessler is also a Republican, but he really ought to talk to Natalie Meyer about how to run the secretary of state's office. "I think he got off to a very bad start," Meyer says Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, election, inactive voters, minority voters, vote suppression Sec. State Gessler eyeing cost savingsDecember 01, 2011 - The Fort Morgan Times Gessler also said he wants to map out his office's procedures to make them more efficient, which may mean changes in rules or the statutory framework. That is why he is proposing a cost-saving package to the legislature this coming legislative session. Read full article (The Fort Morgan Times website)Keywords: campaign finance, expanding government, inactive voters Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler proposes rewriting of state campaign-finance rulesNovember 24, 2011 - The Denver Post Secretary of State Scott Gessler has proposed a wholesale rewrite of Colorado campaign-finance rules — changes Gessler says are long overdue but critics call a heavy-handed attempt to allow big money to dominate elections. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance Gessler names former law partner to search panel looking for new deputyNovember 22, 2011 - The Denver Post Secretary of State Scott Gessler today announced he was appointing a search panel to find a new deputy secretary of state to replace Bill Hobbs, who recently announced his retirement. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: expanding government Media omission: Gessler promised to produce evidence of election “fraud,” but hasn’t delivered anyNovember 21, 2011 - Big Media Blog With no proof of election fraud here in Colorado, he may trot out evidence, Keywords: election, fear mongering, special interest influence, vote suppression GOP's Stapleton, Gessler jab HickNovember 18, 2011 - The Colorado Statesman Gessler also slammed a Denver judge for remarks delivered from the bench during a hearing challenging a rule issued by his office. A pair of watchdog groups contend the rule violated the state constitution when he raised a reporting threshold for issue committee expenditures from $200 to $5,000, but Gessler said the state was forced to raise the limits by a federal court of appeals decision. Predicting a ruling against his office by Denver District Court Judge A. Bruce Jones, Gessler vowed to appeal the decision as soon as it comes down. Read full article (The Colorado Statesman website)Keywords: ballot initiatives, campaign finance Gessler loses round on campaign reportsNovember 18, 2011 - The Pueblo Chieftain A district judge on Thursday rejected a rule enacted by Secretary of State Scott Gessler that would have raised the minimum campaign contribution reporting requirement for issue committees from $200 to $5,000. Read full article (The Pueblo Chieftain website)Keywords: campaign finance Judge Says Gessler's Campaign Finance Changes UnconstitutionalNovember 17, 2011 - Denver Post "The constitutional definition of issue committee is based, in part, on a dollar amount," Jones wrote in his order. " Changing the dollar amount necessarily changes the constitutional definition." Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest, special interest influence Legislature's attorneys say Secretary of State Gessler exceeded authority Read more: Legislature's attorneys say Secretary of State Gessler exceeded authorityNovember 17, 2011 - Denver Post "The secretary lacks the authority to assume the legislature's policymaking role and, accordingly, has exceeded his rulemaking authority," the memo said. "The substantive policy decision is the prerogative of the General Assembly." Keywords: campaign finance, expanding government Mail ballots are problematic, Gessler saysNovember 10, 2011 - The Pueblo Chieftain Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler on Wednesday expressed numerous concerns about the use of mail-in ballots. Read full article (The Pueblo Chieftain website)Keywords: inactive voters Judge warns Colorado secretary of state went too far in raising campaign-finance thresholdNovember 09, 2011 - The Denver Post A Denver judge unloaded on Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler on Tuesday, suggesting he overstepped his authority when he raised the campaign-finance threshold for "issue committees" and saying Gess ler isn't "some roving do-gooder" who may unilaterally fix problems with state law. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance Corrected Pueblo County inactive voter figures still highNovember 03, 2011 - The Colorado Independent Ortiz and other county clerks battled against Gessler’s new interpretation of state election law when he brought it out. Ortiz argued that Gessler’s order would force him to violate the federal Uniform Military and Overseas Voters Act, which obligates county clerks to send ballots to all eligible voters in the military, active and inactive. Read full article (The Colorado Independent website)Keywords: election, vote suppression All-mail election nets record turnout for off-year contestNovember 03, 2011 - Aspen Daily News Taking into account “inactive” voters, those who did not cast ballots in the 2010 election and who Secretary of State Scott Gessler attempted to block from receiving mail ballots, the county turnout was 39 percent. Read full article (Aspen Daily News website)Keywords: election, vote suppression Turnout by Colorado voters listed as "inactive" rises after disputeNovember 02, 2011 - The Denver Post Those ballots were sent out after a months-long battle between Secretary of State Scott Gessler and Denver Clerk and Recorder Debra Johnson over whether to mail them. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: inactive voters, minority voters, vote suppression Inactive voters playing major role in Pueblo County electionNovember 01, 2011 - The Colorado Independent Gessler’s order would have disproportionately affected minority voters. Gessler unveiled his new interpretation of state election law in September, just weeks before Election Day, telling clerks it was illegal for them to send ballots to inactive voters. Read full article (The Colorado Independent website)Keywords: inactive voters, minority voters, vote suppression After Unprecedented GOP Effort, New Voting Laws Could Reshape Electorate in 2012November 01, 2011 - TIME In September, Colorado's elected secretary of state, Republican Scott Gessler, sued the clerk of Democratic-leaning Denver County to stop mailing ballots to voters the state deems "inactive" for having failed to participate in the 2010 elections. Read full article (TIME website)Keywords: vote suppression Colorado Lawmakers Prepared to Address Voter Ballot Issues Raised by GesslerOctober 26, 2011 - Colorado Independent “The overall goal has to be to facilitate the right to vote. Voting is an American value that people cherish. Expanding the franchise is the goal,” said Rep. Crisanta Duran. Read full article (Colorado Independent website)Keywords: vote suppression Colorado probably only state where a registered voter isn’t guaranteed mail ballot after missing one electionOctober 21, 2011 - The Big Media Blog It seems crazy to me that in Colorado, you won’t necessarily get a ballot in the mail if you missed voting in just one election, and I haven’t seen much info reported locally on how other states deal with this issue. Read full article (The Big Media Blog website)Keywords: inactive voters, vote suppression Pueblo Clerk Ortiz Portrayed as National Voting Rights Hero on Rachel MaddowOctober 14, 2011 - Colorado Independent “Sometimes it comes down to one person, one official, doing what he or she thinks is the right thing, and doing it right now,” she said about Ortiz’s decision to mail ballots to American soldiers serving overseas. Read full article (Colorado Independent website)Keywords: vote suppression A Win for Voters is Gessler's Second LossOctober 10, 2011 - Huffington Post Secretary Gessler's position is that mail ballots should be sent only to voters who voted in the last election, or to those who contact the County Clerk in writing or show up in person at the election office to specifically tell the county that they would like to receive a mail ballot. This could have effectively prevented thousands of Denver residents who would otherwise vote from doing so -- in the last Denver mail-ballot election, 6,138 of the 55,023 voters who did not participate in the prior election voted when mail ballots were sent to them. Under Secretary Gessler's plan, all of them would have been out of luck. Secretary Gessler claims this step is necessary to prevent "fraud," but there is absolutely no factual or logical connection between skipping a single election and voter fraud. Read full article (Huffington Post website)Keywords: election, inactive voters, vote suppression Great Scott! Is it the Name?October 09, 2011 - Denver Post Think how much we could save on conducting elections if only two or three people in upscale precincts, and none at all in downscale venues likely to vote the wrong way, received ballots and had the papers to prove residency and citizenship if Gessler or his agents challenged them. Keywords: vote suppression Judge's ruling allows Nov. 1 election ballots to be sent to inactive votersOctober 08, 2011 - Denver Post Denver Mayor Michael Hancock called the ruling "a great victory for Denver voters." Inactive Voters to Receive BallotsOctober 08, 2011 - Pueblo Chieftain Judge Allows Denver, Pueblo to send inactive ballots for November 1 election. Read full article (Pueblo Chieftain website)Keywords: vote suppression Court Showdown Looms as Gessler, Johnson, Ortiz Square Off on Inactive BallotsOctober 07, 2011 - Huffington Post "Gessler’s actions would violate the free speech and equal protection guaranteed in the First and Fourteenth Amendments." Read full article (Huffington Post website)Keywords: vote suppression Gessler Loses Round OneOctober 07, 2011 - Junction Daily Blog The judge was apparently unpersuaded by Gessler’s argument that e-mail “orders” from the Secretary of State somehow conform to the rigorous rule-making process defined by state law. Read full article (Junction Daily Blog website)Keywords: vote suppression Denver and Pueblo Will Send Ballots to Inactives But Not El Paso CountyOctober 07, 2011 - Colorado Springs Independent Gessler, you'll remember, has been trying to keep cities from sending mail ballots to inactive voters. He says it's against the law. Read full article (Colorado Springs Independent website)Keywords: vote suppression Crowd Gathering for Court Battle Over Inactive VotersOctober 07, 2011 - Pueblo Chieftain Ortiz sharpened the confrontation last week by challenging Gessler on the question of inactive military voters. Read full article (Pueblo Chieftain website)Keywords: vote suppression Judge Denies Injunction in Gessler's Ballot LawsuitOctober 07, 2011 - NoCo 5 Voter advocacy groups had argued inactive voters would be disenfranchised if Gessler prevailed because those voters are still eligible to cast ballots. Read full article (NoCo 5 website)Keywords: vote suppression Denver May Send Ballots to Inactive VotersOctober 07, 2011 - Denver Post Judge rules that there is no harm caused in mailing ballots to 55,000 inactive Denver voters. Read full article (Denver Post website)Guessing at Gessler's MotivesOctober 07, 2011 - Denver Post Statewide, as of August 2011, there were 92,000 more inactive Democrats than Republicans. As Denver's record shows, if you nudge them, they might vote. That may explain why Republicans like Gessler would rather not risk jostling them out of hibernation. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: vote suppression Boulder County May Mail Ballots to Inactives After Court RulingOctober 07, 2011 - Longmont Times-Call
Read full article (Longmont Times-Call website) Keywords: vote suppression Pueblo Clerk Sends Ballots to Inactive VotersOctober 07, 2011 - KOAA-TV "It's a victory for Pueblo County voters," said Ortiz. "I give all credit to Denver County Clerk Debra Johnson for staying with this fight all the way through," he added. Read full article (KOAA-TV website)Keywords: vote suppression Denver Judge Rules All Voters May Receive BallotsOctober 07, 2011 - Steamboat Pilot Routt County Clerk & Recorder says she's leaning against sending ballots to inactive voters. Read full article (Steamboat Pilot website)Keywords: vote suppression Gessler Lawsuit Against Denver Goes to CourtOctober 07, 2011 - KWGN-TV Judge denies Secretary of State's request to block Denver from mailing ballots to inactive voters. Advocacy groups say the move would have disenfranchised minorities, low-income. Read full article (KWGN-TV website)Keywords: vote suppression Colorado Secretary of State Gessler Making a Name for HimselfOctober 06, 2011 - American Independent No word yet on whether he’s seeking higher office but there are certainly Republican candidates for president getting less press than Gessler. Read full article (American Independent website)Keywords: vote suppression Don't Get Out the Vote: Secretary of State Working Against Colorado VotersOctober 06, 2011 -
Read full article ( website) Keywords: vote suppression Brief Filed Against Gessler on Inactive StanceOctober 06, 2011 - KDVR-TV Fox 31 "[Gessler's] actions are contrary to Colorado law because they unnecessarily and improperly restrict voter participation and potentially disenfranchise eligible electors." Read full article (KDVR-TV Fox 31 website) American Troops Have the Right to VoteOctober 05, 2011 - Votevets.org The idea that Scott Gessler would deliberately prevent our service members from exercising the very freedoms they fight for is offensive, un-American, and wrong. Sign our petition telling Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler that this is unacceptable. Read full article (Votevets.org website)Keywords: vote suppression Rachel Maddow Slams Gessler Over Ballot InitiativeOctober 05, 2011 - Washington Independent She showed a map comparing areas of Denver with the most inactive voters to a map showing areas of heavy Hispanic concentration, and guess what? They match. Read full article (Washington Independent website)Keywords: vote suppression Pueblo Clerk Joins Denver as Defendant in Gessler LawsuitOctober 05, 2011 - KWGN-TV Gessler fires back, as coalition of progressives grows. Read full article (KWGN-TV website)Rep. Charlie Gonzalez wants Justice Department to probe military ballot controversySeptember 30, 2011 - My San Antonio A Texas congressman urged the Justice Department to investigate actions by the Colorado secretary of state that he says will deny active duty military personnel the right to vote. Read full article (My San Antonio website)Keywords: inactive voters, minority voters, vote suppression Gessler: No to mailing ballots to inactive votersSeptember 30, 2011 - The Pueblo Chieftain U.S. Reps. Robert Brady, D-Pa., and Charles Gonzales, D-Texas, weighed in on the issue this week, sending a letter to the Justice Department that charged Gessler with trying to suppress voting in Denver County and Colorado. "What Secretary Gessler suggests is likely to disenfranchise eligible voters and should be condemned therefore," they wrote, adding they wanted an investigation of Gessler's actions. Read full article (The Pueblo Chieftain website)Keywords: election, inactive voters, minority voters, vote suppression Secretary Of State Attends Fundraiser To Raise Money For Fine He LeviedSeptember 22, 2011 - CBS News Secretary of State Scott Gessler attended a fundraiser in Fort Collins Thursday evening. The fundraiser is raising money to pay for a fine that Gessler levied against the Larimer County Republican Party. The fundraiser took place at a private home. It was originally scheduled at a park, but media attention about the fundraiser pushed organizers to scale it back. Gessler was set to appear in a dunk tank to raise money. Read full article (CBS News website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest, dunk tank Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler threatens to sue Denver over ballot flap involving inactive votersSeptember 19, 2011 - The Denver Post Jenny Rose Flanagan, director of Colorado Common Cause, was critical of Gessler."I think he's picking the wrong fight," she said. "These voters are eligible to vote and when we give them ballots, they vote." Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: fear mongering, inactive voters, vote suppression SoS Gessler sticks to his gunsSeptember 19, 2011 - The Colorado Statesman Embattled Secretary of State Scott Gessler, who has come under recent fire by Democrats and public watchdog groups for agreeing to participate in a Sept. 22 fundraiser to help the Larimer County Republican Party pay a $15,700 fine which his own office has levied, isn’t backing down. Read full article (The Colorado Statesman website)Keywords: campaign finance Gessler won't be dunked, but he'll still raise funds to help GOP with fineSeptember 16, 2011 - Denver Post Secretary of State Scott Gessler won't be in a dunk tank after all, but despite being inundated with criticism, he's still participating in a fundraiser to help pay a fine his office levied against the Larimer County Republican Party. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, dunk tank, special interest influence Colorado secretary of state will help GOP pay off fine levied by his officeSeptember 10, 2011 - Denver Post Just weeks after reducing a fine against the Larimer County Republican Party, Secretary of State Scott Gessler is helping the party host a fundraiser to pay down the penalty his office ultimately levied. The fundraiser will feature Gessler, a Republican who took office in January, sitting in a dunk tank so that local Republicans angry about the $15,700 fine can throw balls at a target and send him splashing downward. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, dunk tank, special interest influence Colorado secretary of state will help GOP pay off fine levied by his officeSeptember 10, 2011 - The Denver Post The county party was fined for failing to file numerous campaign finance reports during the 2010 election cycle. However, Gessler's office ultimately determined the county GOP was merely negligent in not filing the reports and reduced the fines from $48,700 to $15,708 Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: campaign finance, conflict of interest Evidence of Illegal Voting From Gessler: Zip, Zilch, NadaJune 17, 2011 - Colorado Pols Folks, if this is what the Republican county clerks think, you can imagine how much credibility Gessler actually has on this issue. Somewhere between "none" and a strong suspicion of purposeful mendacity. We think the more that voters of all political persuasions understand about the flimsy case Gessler is basing these very serious allegations on, the worse this will look for Republicans in general: especially those who backed his related legislation this year. After all, nobody likes being terrorized without cause--or worse, with a very nasty ulterior motive. Read full article (Colorado Pols website)Keywords: fear mongering, minority voters, vote suppression CO Sec of State defies constitution, overturns transparency election lawsJune 17, 2011 - Huffington Post Gessler has decided to unilaterally overturn the state constitution, specifically amendment 27, which stipulates any spending on elections over $200 must be reported to the secretary of state. Now he has decided that a political committee for efforts like personhood amendments or anti-labor laws can spend up to $5,000 without reporting who they are or where they came from -- somewhat copying on a smaller scale the Citizens United decision. Read full article (Huffington Post website)Saguach vote review criticizedJune 16, 2011 - Pueblo Chieftain Secretary of State doesn't dispute grand jury findings. An Aspen voting-rights activist, whose critiques of the Saguache County election may have formed the basis for several complaints, said the statewide grand jury report issued Tuesday was based on insufficient evidence. That report, issued after more than three months of deliberations by the grand jury, said violations by state and county election officials did not impact election results. Read full article (Pueblo Chieftain website) 2 Groups sue Gessler over campaign finance decisionJune 10, 2011 - Denver Post Two groups teamed up today to sue Secretary of State Scott Gessler, alleging the Republican overstepped his authority by raising the threshold for ballot issue political committees to report campaign finances. Luis Toro, executive director of Colorado Ethics Watch, said there was no threshold amount Gessler could choose that would prevent another lawsuit. "It's not the Secretary of State's role to rewrite campaign finance law," Toro said. Read full article (Denver Post website)Sec of State Gessler lands on legislative ‘loser’ lists for voter ID debacleMay 12, 2011 - Colorado Independent As the architect and main lobbyist for a failed voter ID bill, Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler is landing on “losers” lists for the just-wrapped 2011 state legislative session. He ranked number five loser on the lefty activist ProgressNow list brought out last week and this morning rated a photo and a brief write up in the Denver Post legislative losers column. In one committee hearing, longtime elections integrity watcher Rep Lois Court, D-Denver, said she would like to see evidence that any non-citizens have participated in voter fraud in the state. No solid evidence ever came, despite the fact that Gessler appeared not just before lawmakers in Denver but also in Washington to tout unverified statistics his office compiled in support of the bill. Read full article (Colorado Independent website)Winners & LosersMay 12, 2011 - Denver Post Secretary of State Scott Gessler. Lost on a voter-ID bill and got a self-inflicted black eye after his $68,500-a-year salary wasn't enough and saying he planned to moonlight with his old law firm, which handles elections law. Read full article (Denver Post website)New rules target campaign finance finesMay 07, 2011 - Coloradoan The Colorado Secretary of State's Office has formally approved new rules that will guide reduction of campaign finance fines, even for candidates or committees guilty of "willful" violations of the law. Public interest groups that follow campaign finance laws said the new rules bring more transparency to the process, but they said giving leniency to willful violators of the law is wrong and violates the Colorado Constitution. Read full article (Coloradoan website) Sec of State Gessler draws fire from watchdogs in latest chapter of Clear the Bench caseMay 03, 2011 - Colorado Independent Six months after the ruling and in the wake of an election that made Gessler secretary of state, Ethics Watch believes that, in petitioning the appeals court in the case with an ostensibly unbiased “amicus brief,” Gessler is in fact seeking to obtain a second chance for his former client and that he is using state funds and the authority of his office to do so. Read full article (Colorado Independent website)With Clear the Bench brief, Sec of State Gessler draws more ethics scrutinyApril 20, 2011 - Colorado Independent Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler filed a brief with the attorney general last week supporting an appeal brought by election-politics group Clear the Bench in a campaign finance case. Gessler defended the group as a private attorney in the original case and so his support now as secretary of state is sure to raise more questions about his ability to serve the public without treading across ethical boundaries. Read full article (Colorado Independent website)Colo clerks press Gessler for details on alleged illegal-voter problemApril 13, 2011 - Denver Post While Secretary of State Scott Gessler continues to press for legislation he says is needed to solve a problem of illegal voters in Colorado, the state's county clerks officially have asked him to show them the problem. Until that happens, they are not sure it exists. Gessler already has tools sought in Colorado bill to find illegal votersApril 03, 2011 - Denver Post Gessler told a congressional committee last week. "We do not know how big the problem is, and we believe we lack the tools to efficiently handle the problem." But Gessler, who arrived at a number of potential noncitizen voters by comparing driver's license records with voter registrations, does have the tools. He has chosen not to use them. Gessler's spokesman acknowledged Wednesday that nothing in state law currently prevents the secretary of state's office from doing such a comparison to contact those voters and determine for certain whether noncitizens have voted. Read full article (Denver Post website)Weld Republicans reflect on past year, look to future at Lincoln Day DinnerMarch 12, 2011 - Greeley Tribune Gessler has faced criticism for efforts to moonlight for his former law firm while in office, working to keep the Legislature from sweeping about $4 million from the Secretary of State’s cash-fund budget to help balance the state’s books and for pushing proof of citizenship for registered voters. Gessler said many politicians let criticism sway them because they’re worried about holding onto their office, but he hasn’t wavered form his principles. Editorial: Voter integrity or power grab?March 11, 2011 - The Denver Post In justifying his efforts to seek such power, Gessler relies on a speculative report. The analysis Gessler recently released says some 11,805 people who were non-citizens when they got driver's licenses are currently registered to vote in Colorado. Gessler admits he does not know how many of them have become citizens since getting driver's licenses. But through a series of inferences, he suggests some of them are probably on the voter rolls when they shouldn't be. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Gessler wants to purge voter databaseMarch 09, 2011 - Durango Herald Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, called Gessler’s methodology “a stretch” and said the databases he wants to use are not intended to prove citizenship. Gessler’s plan would cause hardship for innocent people, said Jenny Flanagan, executive director of Colorado Common Cause, a left-leaning group that monitors the integrity of elections and government. Read full article (Durango Herald website)Colorado lawmakers weigh bill requiring citizenship to voteMarch 09, 2011 - Associated Press Colorado lawmakers will discuss a Republican proposal that would prevent people from voting if they can't prove they're U.S. citizens. Read full article (Associated Press website)Colo. secretary of state seeks authority to cross-check voter rolls for non-citizensMarch 09, 2011 - The Denver Post Ellen Dumm, executive director of the advocacy group Campaign for a Strong Colorado, called the legislation a "blacklist" on which Colorado voters suspected of being noncitizens would be guilty until proved innocent. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Secretary of State Gessler hires aide credited with mending culture at auto dealer associationFebruary 27, 2011 - Denver Post Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler has hired an executive from a former client at the center of the most significant controversy Gessler faced during his campaign. Gessler announced last week that Gary Zimmerman would fill the role of chief administrative officer, a job that was vacant under former secretary Bernie Buescher. Zimmerman most recently directed the Colorado Independent Automobile Dealers Association, where he was hired in August and charged with correcting a culture that had led to more than $500,000 in fines to the secretary of state's office, which Gessler wished to occupy. For much of the time period during which those fines accrued, Gessler was listed as the registered agent for CIADA's political committee. Read full article (Denver Post website)New secretary of state rules out toiling at old firm tooFebruary 02, 2011 - The Denver Post "Over the past two weeks, many have asked that I publicly disclose client names," Gessler, a Republican who defeated incumbent Secretary of State Bernie Buescher in November, said in a statement. "My former law firm has expressed great discomfort with this arrangement. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, moonlighting Gessler's old law firm uneasy over disclosing clientsJanuary 30, 2011 - The Denver Post Gessler, a Republican, wants to do contract work with Hackstaff Law Group, which used to be Hackstaff Gessler, to supplement his $68,500 job as secretary of state. He estimated he would be working about 20 hours a month. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, moonlighting Gessler pushes for citizenship proof when voters registerJanuary 28, 2011 - Denver Post New Secretary of State Scott Gessler wants to change Colorado's voter-registration laws based on his fear that 16,000 or more registered voters in the state might not be citizens. But that number is being questioned by some who say Gessler is manufacturing a voter-fraud scare to push civil-rights-constricting legislation. Gessler decides office will keep $3.5 million his predecessor marked for general fundJanuary 26, 2011 - Denver Post Secretary of State Scott Gessler is reversing a decision made by his predecessor that would have shuffled $3.5 million from the office to help balance the state budget. Read full article (Denver Post website)Keywords: expanding government After criticism, Colorado secretary of state vows to disclose clients if he moonlights at law firmJanuary 25, 2011 - The Denver Post Secretary of State Scott Gessler said Monday he'll reveal who his legal clients are if he ends up moonlighting for his old law firm while working in his new elected position. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, moonlighting Editorial: Gessler needs to clear up conflictJanuary 25, 2011 - Denver Post Secretary of State Scott Gessler's plan to moonlight for his old firm, which has been one of the most active election-law practices in the state, is a troubling idea. Even though Gessler says he will be doing 20 hours a month of contract law unconnected to election matters, the arrangement raises serious issues. First and foremost is transparency. It is imperative that Gessler reveal who he does work for so the public may judge whether the secretary is putting himself in a position where he has a conflict of interest or even the potential for a conflict.
Read full article (Denver Post website) Keywords: conflict of interest, moonlighting Secretary of State Gessler stands firm as liberal group challenges his plan to moonlightJanuary 23, 2011 - The Denver Post Gessler, a Republican who defeated Democratic incumbent Bernie Buescher in November, said he's going to be working about 20 hours a month for the Hackstaff Law Group, formerly Hackstaff Gessler, one of the most well- known elections and campaign law firms in town, and distinguished for representing many Republican soft-money organizations. Gessler, who will earn $68,500 as secretary of state, said that salary wasn't enough to support his family. Read full article (The Denver Post website)Keywords: conflict of interest, moonlighting Democrats say lawsuit against candidate was 'bogus' from the startOctober 25, 2006 - Rocky Mountain News A Republican attorney filed a campaign finance complaint against a Democratic state House candidate, then blasted her in a mailing paid for by the political attack group he set up. Democrats are crying foul, saying attorney Scott Gessler knew when he filed the complaint against Democrat Jeanne Labuda, of Denver, that it would be dismissed because he had waited too long before making his case. But they said he filed it anyway so he could mention the complaint in the mailing to voters in House District 1. Read full article (Rocky Mountain News website)Keywords: campaign finance, election, lawsuit, special interest influence |
| ||||||||||||||
SCOTT GESSLER IN THE NEWS |
TWITTER: #GESSLER |
 |
A Project of ProgressNow Colorado |