Month: April 2020

JUST IN: Lorena Garcia makes the June Primary Ballot!

For Immediate Release                          Contact: Meghan Dougherty
April 30,2020                                               720-560-0177
                                                                       meghan@meghandougherty.com

Denver, Colo. In an expected ruling by a Denver district court judge Thursday afternoon, Secretary of State Jena Griswold has been ordered to place Lorena Garcia on the Primary ballot for June 30. 

“Our grassroots team organized nearly 200 volunteers all across Colorado to collect signatures to make sure that Coloradans have a true people-centered candidate on the ballot this June,” said Lorena Garcia. “COVID19 has turned everyone’s world upside down, including political campaigns, and we are pleased with the decision of the court.”

Garcia’s signatures surpassed by over 4,000 the 50% threshold ruled necessary to make the ballot by the judge. The Secretary of State deemed 9,427 signatures valid, and 1,744 signatures were thrown out because either the signer had not been affiliated with the Democratic party for 29 days prior to signing, or they had signed for another candidate. Garcia’s campaign sees this as a strength of their grassroots organizing: they are reaching beyond the Democratic Party and attracting newly affiliated voters.

“Our campaign has had to contend with a lot of barriers, but this victory proves that Colorado is ready for a new type of leadership,” added Garcia. “Having earned the widespread support of Democrats, unaffiliated voters, and even some Republicans, our campaign is reaching the people and our message of justice and equity is resonating across party lines.”

The campaign will continue to fight. 

“We continue this fight because we refuse to give in to the political machine that keeps diverse voices off the ballot. Colorado deserves elected leaders who will always put people first. We continue this fight because our values command it. We deserve a society in which equal opportunity is a reality, in which people work one job and earn a living wage, and in which our planet is thriving, not dying,” said Garcia.

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About Lorena Garcia

Lorena Garcia has been working on the frontlines leading non-profit social justice policy advocacy organizations for the last fifteen years, fighting for equity, dignity, and justice for everyone, especially those who have been pushed to the margins. As a candidate for US Senate, Garcia believes that it is time for a new voice and a new type of leadership in the US Senate. We are at a crossroads in our history where we can no longer accept the status quo but must take courageous action to fix our broken government systems. She is dedicated to creating a country where thriving means every individual has access to economic opportunity, no matter where one lives, family origins, gender, race, physical ability, or sexual orientation. She is running, not for political aspiration or special interest, but because she believes the path to change must begin with innovative leaders who will work as tirelessly as she has for the interests of every Coloradan. 

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Why We Fight

Sixteen months ago, we embarked on an effort that seemed impossible: earn Colorado’s votes to be its next U.S. Senator. We traveled the state to meet people of all political sides and ideological beliefs. We listened to Coloradans talk about the challenges they faced as farmers, as independent tour operators, as coal miners. We spent thousands of hours talking one-on-one with voters, meeting neighbors, and sharing our vision of a people-centered democracy. 

 

Our commitment to listening to Coloradans is why my campaign chose to get my name on the Democratic primary ballot through signed petitions. We dedicated ourselves to collecting 1,500 signatures from each of the seven congressional districts— a total of 10,500 signatures — from registered democrats. The spread of COVID-19 effectively ended signature gathering before the deadline. On March 11th, Gov. Polis issued a State of Emergency demanding that group gatherings be cancelled and encouraging physical distancing, making it harder for campaigns to collect signatures. In response, and out of an abundance of caution, we stopped collecting at events and moved fully to a door-to-door strategy.  This produced far fewer signatures. Despite these challenges, our amazing grassroots campaign collected 13,824 signatures. Unfortunately, the Secretary of State validated only 9,427 signatures. As of April 20, we have yet to secure ballot access.. But we still have an opportunity to challenge the invalid signatures to prove compliance and provide Coloradans with a people-centered candidate

We are not finished. We choose to keep fighting.

We continue this fight because we refuse to give in to the political machine that keeps diverse voices off the ballot. Colorado deserves elected leaders who will always put people first. Sadly, the two candidates who were first to secure their spots on the Democratic primary ballot continue to put their own political careers and corporate interests above the people of Colorado. 

We continue this fight because our values command it. We deserve a society in which equal opportunity is a reality, in which people work one job and earn a living wage, and in which our planet is thriving, not dying. 

 

We continue this fight because we deserve a Senator who will always put people before profit, before party, and before self. 

We continue this fight because if the winner is inevitable, if the ballot doesn’t represent the diversity of our state, and if people feel they don’t have a true choice, we will continue to disenfranchise our youth, our people of color, our newest citizens. 

Simply put, we fight because we deserve better.

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