Voter Guide 2026

US Senator

Our pick: Adam Withrow

DSA's pick: No on Hickenlooper

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: John Hickenlooper

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Adam Withrow is the only candidate in this race whose own platform opposes paying for Israel's war on Gaza and opposes US empire as a whole: no aid to "nations engaged in apartheid or conquest," "no hegemony," and amends for broken treaties with Native nations. He is also the strongest on workers. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Mark Baisley, John Hickenlooper, Bob Chew, Christopher Baum, Blake Huber, Adam Withrow.

The candidates

• Adam Withrow (Unity) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: strong · Antiwar: strong · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • On Israel and Palestine: "Do you think it is OK for people to be killed and expelled from their land based solely on their race and religion? I don't, and I don't want to pay for it to happen." (his campaign site, Israel and Palestine)
  • On foreign aid: "We should not prop up nations engaged in apartheid or conquest." (his campaign site, Foreign Aid)
  • On the military: "Our soldiers do not need to settle rich men's squabbles." He calls for "No more military adventurism" and says "Defense contractors have too much influence." (his campaign site, The Military)
  • On Iran, he notes "the Islamic Republic was founded after a revolution against a brutal regime that was installed by the United States" and says "Peace and reconciliation is the only path." (his campaign site, Iran)
  • "There can be no international hierarchy. There can be no hegemony." (his campaign site, Diplomacy)
  • "We must acknowledge our past violations of treaties with the native people of this continent and make meaningful amends." (his campaign site, Treaties)
  • "Federal Minimum Wage needs to be at least $25/hr and tied to the Consumer Price Index." He calls for a "21st Century WPA." (his campaign site, Jobs)
  • 🚩 He has worked as a detention officer. (CPR News)
• John Hickenlooper (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: mixed · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: Colorado: Flip-flopper.

  • 🚩 On Jul 30, 2025 he voted Nay on S.J.Res.34, Sanders's resolution to block a weapons sale to Israel. It failed 24-73. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 455, 119th Congress, 1st session)
  • On Apr 15, 2026 he voted Yea on S.J.Res.32, Sanders's resolution to block a $295 million sale of Caterpillar D9 bulldozers to Israel. It failed 40-59. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 80, 119th Congress, 2nd session)
  • 🚩 He is an original cosponsor of the Antisemitism Awareness Act (S.558), which would write the IHRA definition of antisemitism into federal civil-rights enforcement. (GovTrack, S.558 cosponsors (from Congress.gov data))
  • 🚩 FEC records list 233 payments from the AIPAC PAC to Hickenlooper for Colorado in the 2025-26 cycle, totaling $319,489.50. All but two $5,000 direct contributions are earmarked donations passed through from individuals. (Federal Election Commission, disbursements by AIPAC PAC (C00797670), 2025-26)
  • On Jun 23, 2026 he voted Yea on H.Con.Res.86, directing the president to remove U.S. forces from hostilities with Iran. It passed 50-48. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 184, 119th Congress, 2nd session)
  • On Jan 20, 2025 he voted Nay on final passage of the Laken Riley Act, which requires immigration detention for people charged with certain crimes. It passed 64-35. (US Senate roll call 7)
  • 🚩 On Dec 17, 2025 he voted Yea on the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act. It passed 77-20. (US Senate roll call 648)
  • 🚩 He opposes the Iran war, but says "Every dollar we spend on Iran is a dollar we're not spending modernizing our military to protect against the threat of an ascendant China." (Colorado Newsline voter guide)
  • 🚩 On Nov 20, 2024 he voted Nay on the motion to discharge S.J.Res.111, a resolution to block a weapons sale to Israel. It failed 18-79. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 292, 118th Congress, 2nd session)
  • 🚩 On Nov 20, 2024 he voted Nay on the motion to discharge S.J.Res.113, a resolution to block a weapons sale to Israel. It failed 19-78. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 293, 118th Congress, 2nd session)
  • 🚩 On Nov 20, 2024 he voted Nay on the motion to discharge S.J.Res.115, a resolution to block an export license for weapons to Israel. It failed 17-80. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 294, 118th Congress, 2nd session)
  • 🚩 On Apr 3, 2025 he voted Nay on the motion to discharge S.J.Res.33, a resolution to block a weapons sale to Israel. It failed 15-82. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 165, 119th Congress, 1st session)
  • 🚩 On Jul 30, 2025 he voted Nay on the motion to discharge S.J.Res.41, a resolution to block a weapons export to Israel. It failed 27-70. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 454, 119th Congress, 1st session)
  • 🚩 On Oct 9, 2025 he voted Nay on Sanders's amendment to cut the Pentagon budget by 10 percent and expand veterans' dental care instead. It failed 10-88. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 568, 119th Congress, 1st session)
  • On Apr 15, 2026 he voted Yea on the motion to discharge S.J.Res.138, a resolution to block a weapons sale to Israel. It failed 36-63. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 81, 119th Congress, 2nd session)
  • On Sep 29, 2026 he voted Yea on the motion to discharge S.Res.852, requesting a report on Israel's human rights practices under section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act. It failed 47-51. (U.S. Senate roll call vote 252, 119th Congress, 2nd session)
• Mark Baisley (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: weak · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 Asked whether the US should give Israel more military and financial aid, and attach conditions, he answered "Yes and yes." (Colorado Sun, Oct 5, 2026)
  • 🚩 On Trump's war on Iran: "I think it's been handled very well, actually." (Colorado Sun, Oct 5, 2026)
  • 🚩 He said US troops were "trying to calm down the Middle East" and "defeat the bad guys," and that criticizing the commander-in-chief "in the middle of battle" is "wholly inappropriate." (Colorado Newsline voter guide)
  • 🚩 "That's what I intend to do in the United States Senate — to partner with the Trump administration." (Colorado Newsline voter guide)
• Bob Chew (Forward Party, running unaffiliated)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: mixed · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • A former Republican and former Navy nuclear submarine officer. (Colorado Newsline voter guide)
  • 🚩 He calls the Iranian regime "a violent, bloodthirsty monstrosity" and criticizes the 2015 nuclear deal. His objection to Trump's war is "a staggering collapse of American strategic influence and power." (Colorado Newsline voter guide)
  • 🚩 He supports "a secure southern border." (Berthoud Surveyor)
  • 🚩 He would balance the budget with revenue increases and spending cuts, "including entitlement spending." (Berthoud Surveyor)
• Blake Huber (Libertarian)

  Anti-genocide: mixed · Antiwar: mixed · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • "I am deeply troubled by the suffering in Gaza and by the serious accusations that Israel's conduct may amount to genocide." He wants them "investigated impartially." (iVoterGuide, 2026)
  • He says the US "has become too involved in other countries' affairs." (iVoterGuide, 2026)
  • He strongly agrees with sanctuary cities: "Local police should focus on protecting people from crime, not enforcing federal immigration law." (iVoterGuide, 2026)
  • 🚩 He strongly disagrees that people who can afford it should pay more taxes "to provide relief for working families," preferring "Voluntary generosity." (iVoterGuide, 2026)
• Christopher Baum (Approval Voting)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • We could not verify a public record on these questions.

US Representative, District 2

Our pick: Gaylon Kent

DSA's pick: No on Neguse

Labor's pick: Joe Neguse

Progressives' pick: Joe Neguse

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Joe Neguse

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Gaylon Kent is the only candidate in this race who calls Israel's war on Gaza a genocide and says the US must not assist it. His tax plan counts against him, and he did not answer the 2026 questionnaire, so these are his 2024 positions. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Joe Neguse, Kelley Anne Dennison, Gaylon Kent.

The candidates

• Gaylon Kent (Libertarian) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: strong · Antiwar: strong · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Asked in 2024 whether the US relationship with Israel is important: "It is important, but we must not assist them in their war with Hamas. Israel long ago gained the military and tactical advantage and their continued slaughter of civilians is genocide." (iVoterGuide, 2024 questionnaire)
  • He chose "The United States should stay out of foreign conflicts completely": "No nation has survived perpetual war, and America will not be the first. We must give other nations the dignity of conducting their affairs without the benefit of US interference." (iVoterGuide, 2024 questionnaire)
  • On immigration: "I think current US immigration law is satisfactory." He was neutral on doing more to secure the southern border. (iVoterGuide, 2024 questionnaire)
  • 🚩 He favors "a flat tax of no more than 5% on incomes over $50,000 and eliminating inheritance & capital gain taxes. Corporate income taxes, too". (iVoterGuide, 2024 questionnaire)
  • He did not answer the 2026 questionnaire. (iVoterGuide, 2026)
• Joe Neguse (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: mixed · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 On May 1, 2024 he voted Yea on H.R.6090, the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which uses the IHRA definition of antisemitism. It passed 320-91. (House Clerk, roll call 172 (2024))
  • 🚩 On Apr 20, 2024 he voted Yea on H.R.8034, the Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act. It passed 366-58. (House Clerk, roll call 152 (2024))
  • On Jul 15, 2026 he voted Aye on Rep. Massie's amendment to H.R.8595 barring the bill's funds from going to Israel, cutting Foreign Military Financing by $3.3 billion. It failed 104-314. (GovTrack, House roll call 243)
  • 🚩 FEC records list 185 payments from the AIPAC PAC to Joe Neguse for Congress in the 2025-26 cycle, totaling $194,051.16. All but two $5,000 direct contributions are earmarked donations passed through from individuals. (Federal Election Commission, disbursements by AIPAC PAC (C00797670), 2025-26)
  • On Jun 3, 2026 he voted Yea on H.Con.Res.86, directing the president to remove U.S. forces from hostilities with Iran. It passed 215-208. (House Clerk, roll call 199 (2026))
  • On Jan 22, 2025 he voted Nay on the Laken Riley Act, which requires immigration detention for people charged with certain crimes. It passed 263-156. (House roll call 23)
  • On Dec 10, 2025 he voted Nay on the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act. (House roll call 320)
  • 🚩 On Dec 5, 2023 he voted Yea on H.Res.894, which "clearly and firmly states that anti-Zionism is antisemitism". It passed 311-14, with 92 Democrats voting Present. (House Clerk, roll call 697 (2023))
  • 🚩 On Jun 9, 2025 he voted Yea on H.Res.488, on the Boulder attack, which "expresses gratitude to law enforcement officers, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel". It passed 280-113. (House Clerk, roll call 158 (2025))
  • 🚩 On Jun 12, 2025, after Israel struck Iran, he said "Israel, like all nations, has the undeniable right to defend itself against any imminent threat." (Rep. Neguse press release, Jun 12, 2025)
  • 🚩 On Jun 4, 2026 he voted Nay on H.Con.Res.84, Rep. Tlaib's resolution to remove U.S. forces from Lebanon. It failed 92-324. (GovTrack, House roll call 201)
  • He is an original cosponsor of the PRO Act (H.R.20), which strengthens the right to organize. (GovTrack, H.R.20 cosponsors)
  • The AFL-CIO scores him 100% for 2025 and 99% lifetime. (AFL-CIO legislative scorecard)
  • 🚩 He cosponsored H.R.1229, the United States-Israel Defense Partnership Act of 2025, on Mar 21, 2025. (GovTrack, H.R.1229 cosponsors (from Congress.gov data))
  • On Sep 18, 2024 he voted Nay on H.R.5179, the Anti-BDS Labeling Act. It passed 231-189. (House Clerk, roll call 428 (2024))
  • On Jan 9, 2025 he voted Nay on H.R.23, the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act, which sanctions the International Criminal Court. It passed 243-140. (House Clerk, roll call 7 (2025))
  • On Sep 3, 2026 he voted Nay on H.R.4795, the Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act, which cuts colleges that take part in a commercial boycott of Israel off from certain Higher Education Act funds. It passed 237-169. (House Clerk, roll call 295 (2026))
• Kelley Dennison (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 "There must still be detention and deportation of people who violated our sovereignty, however there should be a degree of human decency that the American philosophy demands." (Colorado Newsline voter guide, quoting her campaign site)
  • 🚩 "Families should not have to depend on government programs simply to survive." She blames "Washington's reckless spending, overregulation, and anti-energy policies" for rising costs. (Colorado Newsline voter guide, quoting her campaign site)
  • Newsline could not determine her position on the Iran war. We found nothing from her on Israel or Gaza. (Colorado Newsline voter guide)

Governor and Lieutenant Governor

Our pick: Erik Underwood

DSA's pick: Neutral on Weiser

Labor's pick: Phil Weiser

Progressives' pick: Phil Weiser

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Phil Weiser

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Erik Underwood is the only candidate for governor who calls Israel's war on Gaza a genocide, and he has a plan a governor can carry out: repeal Colorado's anti-BDS law and stop the state pension fund enforcing it. He would also hold ICE agents accountable, ban private prisons, and his platform is the strongest for working families. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Victor Marx / George Washington Markert, Phil Weiser / Lesley Dahlkemper, Stephen T. Hamilton / James K Treibert, Eric Mulder / Wayne Harlos, Jeff Peckman / T.J. Cole, Erik Underwood / Frank Atwood, Greg Lopez / Taralyn Romero.

The candidates

• Erik Underwood (Approval Voting) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: strong · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • "I support Colorado families who want to sponsor Palestinian families fleeing the ongoing genocide in Gaza." He says "as Governor, I will condemn the atrocities happening in Gaza." (his campaign site, Justice & Human Rights)
  • He will repeal HB 16-1284, Colorado's anti-BDS law, which makes the public employees' pension fund (PERA) divest from companies that boycott Israel. On day one he would direct PERA's board "to cease enforcement" pending repeal. (his campaign site, AIPAC Policy)
  • On day one he would direct the Attorney General to sue "to compel AIPAC's registration under the Foreign Agents Registration Act." (his campaign site, AIPAC Policy)
  • "I will sign a bill holding ICE agents accountable for any constitutional or human rights violations in Colorado." He would ban private prisons on day one and calls forced prison labor "slavery." (his campaign site, Justice & Human Rights)
  • "Healthcare is a Human Right, Not a Privilege." He promises Coloradans "free healthcare, or at minimum $50 maximum per year per family member." (his campaign site, Universal Healthcare)
  • He promises free college and trade school and a state child care program. (his campaign site, Free College & Trade School)
• Phil Weiser (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: mixed · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: Colorado: Zionist.

  • 🚩 At JewishColorado's Celebrate Israel event in May 2024 he said: "It is not hard to explain that being a Zionist means you believe that Israel has a right to exist." (JTA, Jul 1, 2026)
  • In June 2025, as attorney general, he joined a multistate court brief backing California's lawsuit to block Trump's federalization and deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles. (Colorado Newsline, Jun 12, 2025)
  • On Sep 29, 2026 he sued DHS and ICE to stop or delay the GEO Group immigration detention center planned for Hudson, arguing the agencies skipped required environmental review. (Colorado Newsline, Sep 29, 2026)
  • During the primary he said: "I do not believe that ICE officers should be able to hide their identities and wear masks." (Colorado Sun, Jun 2, 2026)
  • He backs full collective bargaining for all public-sector workers and said "This Labor Peace Act is antiquated," but declined to endorse the Worker Protection Act that unions sought. (Colorado Newsline, May 18, 2026)
• Victor Marx (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 His 10-point platform calls for ending state and local limits on cooperation with ICE. (Colorado Newsline, Jun 2, 2026)
• Greg Lopez (unaffiliated)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: weak · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 A former Republican congressman. On Sep 18, 2024 he voted Yea on the Anti-BDS Labeling Act (H.R.5179). It passed 231-189. (House Clerk, roll call 428 (2024))
  • 🚩 On Dec 11, 2024 he voted Yea on the FY2025 National Defense Authorization Act (passed as H.R.5009). It passed 281-140. (House Clerk, roll call 500 (2024))
• Jeff Peckman (Unity)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Answering the Shut Down GEO Aurora campaign and the American Friends Service Committee, he said "many actions and operations of DHS/ICE perfectly match the definition of “Domestic terrorism”" in the USA PATRIOT Act. (his campaign site, Candidate Q&A)
  • "I oppose strictly private, for-profit immigration centers and lucrative financial incentives and quotas for DHS/ICE to arrest and detain people." (his campaign site, Candidate Q&A)
  • We found nothing from him on Israel, Gaza or workers. His campaign centers on "coherence" in government. (his campaign site, Candidate Q&A)
• Eric Mulder (Libertarian)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • He would "oppose the expansion of government-operated Flock cameras," which he says "raise serious Fourth Amendment concerns." (his campaign site, Priorities)
  • 🚩 He would have agencies identify permitting requirements "not expressly required by statute" and eliminate or simplify them, starting with oil and gas, and says "we cannot make Colorado a place that is hostile to energy production." (his campaign site, Issues)
  • We found nothing from him on Israel, Gaza or war. (his campaign site, Issues)
• Stephen T. Hamilton (American Constitution)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • We could not verify a public record on these questions.

Secretary of State

Our pick: Amanda Gonzalez

DSA's pick: Yes on Gonzalez

Labor's pick: Amanda Gonzalez

Progressives' pick: Amanda Gonzalez

Working Families' pick: Amanda Gonzalez

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Amanda Gonzalez

RMPJC's pick: no pick

The Secretary of State runs Colorado's elections, so the question here is who protects the vote. Amanda Gonzalez helped write the amendments that created Colorado's independent redistricting commissions, worked to end prison gerrymandering, and will defend mail ballots against federal interference. Two of her opponents would roll back mail voting. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Amanda Gonzalez, James Wiley, Sean Vadney, Amanda Campbell, Celeste Landry.

The candidates

• Amanda Gonzalez (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • As head of Common Cause Colorado she was among the drafters of the 2018 amendments that created Colorado's independent redistricting commissions, and she worked to end "prison gerrymandering" so incarcerated voters are counted in their home communities. (Colorado Newsline, Jan 6, 2025)
  • "We shouldn't dismantle a system that securely gives Coloradans the freedom to vote in the way that works for them." She defends Colorado's mail ballots and says she will fight federal interference, "including in court when necessary." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
  • At an April 2026 forum in Grand Junction she said she supports bills to increase oversight of immigration officials. (Colorado Newsline, Apr 13, 2026)
  • Asked how she would protect Colorado's elections from federal interference, she said she would use "every tool in the toolbox," including going to court. (Colorado Sun, Jun 1, 2026)
• James Wiley (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 "Colorado should move toward one-day, in-person voting with government-issued voter ID, paper ballots, and citizen-controlled counting." That would end the mail ballots most Coloradans vote with. (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
  • He founded the "Union of Ballot Counters" and calls himself an "election-integrity advocate." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
• Sean Vadney (Libertarian)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 "I would roll back the mail-in voting system with exceptions for individuals who have disabilities." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
• Celeste Landry (Forward)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • A League of Women Voters volunteer lobbyist on voting methods. She supports "mail-in ballots, vote centers (open multiple days for in-person voting)," paper ballots and risk-limiting audits. (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
• Amanda Campbell (American Constitution)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • We could not verify a public record on these questions.

State Treasurer

Our pick: Jeff Bridges

DSA's pick: Neutral on Bridges

Labor's pick: Jeff Bridges

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Jeff Bridges

RMPJC's pick: no pick

The Treasurer invests the state's money and sits on the board of PERA, the public employees' pension fund. Jeff Bridges would invest by Colorado values, has promised to keep the pension promise to public workers, and has the strongest labor and immigration record in the race. Kevin Grantham sponsored the 2016 anti-BDS law. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Jeff Bridges, Kevin Grantham, Jodie Barr, Marilee Langner Sturgis.

The candidates

• Jeff Bridges (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • "Right now Colorado invests in Wall Street and Washington. I'll put those dollars to work here in Colorado," in affordable housing, infrastructure and renewable energy, "to align our Colorado investments with our Colorado values." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
  • On public workers' pensions: "PERA is a promise we've made to Colorado's teachers, state employees, and other public servants, and we must keep it." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
  • On May 3, 2019 he voted Yes on HB19-1124, which bars Colorado police from arresting or holding anyone solely on a civil immigration detainer. It passed the Senate 20-15. (Colorado General Assembly, Senate floor vote, HB19-1124)
  • On Apr 21, 2025 he voted Yes on SB25-276, which bars jails from delaying release for immigration enforcement and widens other protections for immigrants. It passed the Senate 22-13. (Colorado General Assembly, Senate floor vote, SB25-276)
  • On May 1, 2026 he voted Yes on HB26-1005, which would have eased union formation by removing the Labor Peace Act's second election. It passed the Senate 23-12 but did not become law. (Colorado General Assembly, Senate floor vote, HB26-1005)
  • On Mar 25, 2026 he voted No on SB26-121, which sets farmworker overtime at 56 hours a week for certain workers. It passed the Senate 19-16. (Colorado General Assembly, Senate floor vote, SB26-121)
• Kevin Grantham (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • A former Colorado Senate president. He would keep the office to its "traditional focus on managing and investing state money" (Colorado Politics' summary), and attacks Bridges for "leading the charge to increase taxes." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
  • 🚩 As a state senator he was a sponsor of HB16-1284, Colorado's anti-BDS law, which makes the state pension fund divest from companies that boycott Israel. It became law in 2016. (Colorado General Assembly, HB16-1284)
• Jodie Barr (Libertarian)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 On public workers' pensions: "I'd push to close the defined-benefit plan to new hires in favor of portable defined-contribution accounts." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
  • 🚩 Promises to "Defend TABOR against workarounds that spend past voter-approved limits." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 2, 2026)
• Marilee Langner Sturgis (Approval Voting)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • We could not verify a public record on these questions.

Attorney General

Our pick: Recommend None

DSA's pick: No on Griswold

Labor's pick: Jena Griswold

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: Jena Griswold

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Jena Griswold

RMPJC's pick: no pick

We cannot support Jena Griswold. The day after Hamas's October 7 attack she wrote “I stand with the people of Israel,” and a week later she joined the Israeli American Council's pro-Israel rally at the State Capitol. In the three years of genocide in Gaza since, we found nothing from her on a ceasefire, on arms, or on Colorado's anti-BDS law, which as attorney general she would defend. Standing with Israel is a line we do not cross, however good her record on ICE and wage theft. Her opponent, Michael Allen, is no alternative: he says Israel “is defending itself against entities that want to wipe it off the face of the earth,” and he would drop lawsuits against the Trump administration. No one else is on the ballot, so we recommend none of them. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

A note on the DSA's guide: it says the DSA backed David Seligman “for Secretary of State”; he ran for attorney general, as the DSA's own primary guide says.

On the ballot: Michael J. Allen, Jena Griswold.

The candidates

• Jena Griswold (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 The day after Hamas's October 7 attack she tweeted: "I stand with the people of Israel. We mourn the victims and strongly condemn Hamas's terrorist attacks on the innocent." (CBS Colorado, Oct 8, 2023)
  • 🚩 On Oct 15, 2023 she joined the pro-Israel rally hosted by the Israeli American Council outside the State Capitol. (Denver Gazette, Oct 15, 2023)
  • She said: "ICE is terrorizing cities, absolutely terrorizing Americans. I will prosecute ICE agents who commit crimes." (Colorado Sun, Oct 6, 2026)
  • She supports Colorado's law barring state and local police from working with ICE in most cases: "Local officials, state officials, are not federal immigration agents." (Colorado Sun, Oct 6, 2026)
  • As Secretary of State she refused the Justice Department's demand for sensitive voter data. A federal judge dismissed DOJ's lawsuit against Colorado with prejudice on Aug 4, 2026. (Colorado Sun, Aug 4, 2026)
  • She plans to staff up an Office on Workers' Rights in the attorney general's office to fight wage theft. (Colorado Sun, Oct 6, 2026)
  • The Colorado AFL-CIO and SEIU Colorado are among the unions her campaign lists as endorsers. (Griswold campaign website)
• Michael J. Allen (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 He said Israel "is defending itself against entities that want to wipe it off the face of the earth." (Intermountain Jewish News, Jun 24, 2026)
  • District attorney for El Paso and Teller counties. He says he would prosecute ICE officers who break the law and is "concerned about some of the things that are happening with ICE and immigration." (Colorado Sun, Oct 6, 2026)
  • He says police should work with federal immigration authorities against criminal activity such as cartels, and that the current law on cooperating with ICE is "probably fine the way it is now." (Colorado Sun, Oct 6, 2026)
  • 🚩 He would drop lawsuits against the Trump administration where "it appears that the lawsuit was more politically motivated," and wants "stronger sentencing" where needed. (Colorado Sun, Oct 6, 2026)

CU Regent, District 2

Our pick: Recommend None

DSA's pick: No on Hooton

Labor's pick: Edie Hooton

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Edie Hooton

RMPJC's pick: no pick

We cannot support Edie Hooton. When the state Democratic Party voted down a Gaza ceasefire resolution in 2024, StandWithUs thanked her by name for speaking out against it. Her endorsers include three people on our Boulder Zionists list, and she has said nothing about CU derecognizing Students for Justice in Palestine. We credit her stand against CU's ICE flights and her support for bargaining, but a regent will decide how CU treats pro-Palestine students. The other two candidates have no public record, so we recommend none of them. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Marty Neilson, Edie Hooton, Richard Friend.

The candidates

• Edie Hooton (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 StandWithUs thanked her by name for having "courageously spoke out against" a Gaza ceasefire resolution that the Colorado Democratic Party's central committee voted down on Jul 1, 2024. (StandWithUs, Jul 3, 2024)
  • On campus protest: "CU must strictly adhere to the First Amendment, protecting political protest and free expression — even when the ideas expressed are deeply unpopular or uncomfortable. ... However, free speech is not absolute; it ends where targeted harassment, physical threats, and discrimination begin." She says "Regents must not intervene in day-to-day enforcement or police political content." (Boulder Reporting Lab questionnaire)
  • She said: "I strongly support CU Boulder ending its contract with Key Lime Air," the airline that flies ICE detainees. (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate questionnaire, 2026)
  • As a state representative, on Jun 3, 2021 she voted Yes on SB21-131, protecting personal information held by the state. It passed the House 41-23. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB21-131)
  • She said: "Yes, I fully support collective bargaining rights for university employees, and I would vote in their favor if they came before the board." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate questionnaire, 2026)
  • In the June primary, the unions pushing for collective bargaining at CU endorsed her opponent, Murray Smith, not her. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jun 2026)
  • We found no statement from her on CU's derecognition of Students for Justice in Palestine, or on CU South development. (Boulder Reporting Lab questionnaire)
  • 🚩 Her endorsers include Mayor Aaron Brockett and councilmembers Tara Winer and Tina Marquis, all on our Boulder Zionists boycott list. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Mar 1, 2026)
  • In March she would "reserve judgment" on collective bargaining at CU; by June she said she fully supported it. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Mar 1, 2026)
• Marty Neilson (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • We could not verify a public record on these questions.
• Richard Friend (Libertarian)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • We could not verify a public record on these questions.

State Senator, District 15

Our pick: Janice Marchman

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: Janice Marchman

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Janice Marchman

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Janice Marchman sponsored the laws protecting immigrants from ICE, the bill to make forming a union easier, and limits on license-plate surveillance. Her opponent, Rob Woodward, voted against paid sick leave, farmworker rights, local minimum wages and protections for immigrants. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Rob Woodward, Janice Marchman.

The candidates

• Janice Marchman (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • She co-sponsored SB25-276, which bars jails from delaying release for immigration enforcement, and voted Yes on Apr 21, 2025. It passed the Senate 22-13 and became law. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • She co-sponsored HB26-1276, state inspections of immigration detention, and voted Yes on May 11, 2026. It passed the Senate 23-12 and became law. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • She was a Senate sponsor of SB26-070, which would have barred government access to stored location data such as license-plate-reader records. It died on Apr 29, 2026. (Colorado General Assembly, SB26-070)
  • She sponsored HB26-1005, ending the Labor Peace Act's second union election, and voted Yes on May 1, 2026. It passed the Senate 23-12; Gov. Polis vetoed it. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • On Mar 25, 2026 she voted No on SB26-121, which sets farmworker overtime at 56 hours a week for certain workers. It passed the Senate 19-16. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • She co-sponsored HB26-1272, extreme-temperature protections for workers, and voted Yes on May 13, 2026. It passed 21-14 and became law. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • We found no statement from her on Israel or Gaza. (her campaign site)
• Rob Woodward (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: weak · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 As a state senator, on May 3, 2019 he voted No on HB19-1124, which bars arrests on civil immigration detainers. It passed 19-16. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • 🚩 On May 12, 2021 he voted No on SB21-131, which protects personal information held by the state from immigration enforcement. It passed 25-10. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • 🚩 On Jun 9, 2020 he voted No on SB20-205, paid sick leave for workers. It passed 19-14. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • 🚩 On May 20, 2021 he voted No on SB21-087, rights for agricultural workers. It passed 19-15. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • 🚩 On May 2, 2019 he voted No on HB19-1210, letting local governments set a higher minimum wage. It passed 19-16. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • 🚩 "A.I. and other technology will be the core of economic and military success in the future"; "The U.S. must lead these fields if we are to remain ahead of dangerous adversaries." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 5, 2026)

State Senator, District 17

Our pick: Katie Wallace

DSA's pick: Yes on Wallace

Labor's pick: Katie Wallace

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Katie Wallace

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Katie Wallace sponsored the laws protecting immigrants from ICE, the bill to make forming a union easier, and limits on license-plate surveillance. Her opponent's questionnaire answers back Israel on religious grounds and oppose sanctuary cities and a minimum wage. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Katie Wallace, Pat Miller.

The candidates

• Katie Wallace (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • On Mar 25, 2026 she voted No on SB26-121, which sets farmworker overtime at 56 hours a week for certain workers. It passed the Senate 19-16. (Colorado General Assembly, Senate floor vote, SB26-121)
  • On May 1, 2026 she voted Yes on HB26-1005, which would have eased union formation by removing the Labor Peace Act's second election. It passed the Senate 23-12 but did not become law. (Colorado General Assembly, Senate floor vote, HB26-1005)
  • On May 8, 2026 she voted Yes on SB26-193, exempting the state from local minimum-wage ordinances where it has a wage agreement with its workers' union. It passed the Senate 28-6. (Colorado General Assembly, Senate floor vote, SB26-193)
  • On Apr 21, 2025 she voted Yes on SB25-276, which bars jails from delaying release for immigration enforcement. It passed the Senate 22-13. (Colorado General Assembly, Senate floor vote, SB25-276)
  • She co-sponsored HB26-1276, state inspections of immigration detention, and voted Yes on May 11, 2026. It passed 23-12 and became law. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
  • She was a Senate sponsor of SB26-070, which would have barred government access to stored location data such as license-plate-reader records. It died on Apr 29, 2026. (Colorado General Assembly, SB26-070)
  • On May 13, 2026 she voted Yes on HB26-1272, extreme-temperature protections for workers. It passed 21-14 and became law. (Colorado General Assembly roll call)
• Pat Miller (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 On Israel: "Israel is our strongest ally in the Middle East. God has a Covenant with Israel that will never be broken." (questionnaire answers may date from a 2020 race) (iVoterGuide questionnaire)
  • 🚩 Answered "Strongly Disagree" to supporting sanctuary cities for undocumented people. (iVoterGuide questionnaire)
  • 🚩 On the minimum wage: "The government should stay out of private businesses and not mandate an additional cost." (iVoterGuide questionnaire)

State Representative, District 10

Our pick: No on Junie Joseph

DSA's pick: Yes on Joseph

Labor's pick: Junie Joseph

Progressives' pick: Junie Joseph

Working Families' pick: Junie Joseph

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Junie Joseph

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Junie Joseph is unopposed, and her votes for unions and for inspecting immigration detention are real. But in 2024 she seconded the motion that killed the bill to repeal Colorado's anti-BDS law, which makes the state pension fund divest from companies that boycott Israel. On the day of the Boulder County caucus she told one of our organizers, in a one-on-one conversation, that AIPAC does not take part in state races and that she would not act on Gaza for fear of offending the Jewish community. Treating Palestinian lives as a question of who might be offended is exactly what this group exists to oppose, so we say no. Her full record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against her.

Where we differ: the DSA backs Junie Joseph.

On the ballot: Junie Joseph.

The candidates

• Junie Joseph (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 On Feb 26, 2024, in the House Finance Committee, she seconded the motion to kill HB24-1169, the bill to repeal Colorado's anti-BDS law (HB16-1284), and voted for it. It passed 10-1. Minutes earlier she had voted No on sending the bill to the full House. (Colorado General Assembly, House Finance roll call)
  • 🚩 Yellow Scene's guide, summarizing her interview: "I did not directly answer whether I support continued military aid to Israel or conditions on weapons." And: "AIPAC funding is not something I contemplate as a state legislator." (Yellow Scene, 2026 Election Guide)
  • After the June 2025 Boulder attack she said: "I reject the notion that standing against antisemitism requires abandoning solidarity with those who advocate for Palestinian human rights—or vice versa." (Denver Gazette, Jun 2, 2025)
  • On Apr 16, 2026 she voted No on SB26-121, which sets farmworker overtime at 56 hours a week for certain workers. It passed the House 33-32. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB26-121)
  • On May 6, 2025 she voted Yes on SB25-005, removing the Labor Peace Act's second election before a union security agreement. It passed the House 43-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB25-005)
  • On May 5, 2026 she voted Yes on HB26-1272, extreme-temperature protections for workers. It passed the House 43-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, HB26-1272)
  • On Apr 27, 2026 she voted Yes on HB26-1276, which expands state health inspections of immigration detention facilities. It passed the House 42-21. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, HB26-1276)

State Representative, District 11

Our pick: Karen McCormick

DSA's pick: Neutral on McCormick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Karen McCormick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Karen McCormick is unopposed. She has voted for immigrant protections and for making it easier to form a union, but she also voted for the cut to farmworker overtime, which we count against her. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Karen McCormick.

The candidates

• Karen McCormick (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 On Apr 16, 2026 she voted Yes on SB26-121, which sets farmworker overtime at 56 hours a week for certain workers. It passed the House 33-32. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB26-121)
  • On May 6, 2025 she voted Yes on SB25-005, removing the Labor Peace Act's second election before a union security agreement. It passed the House 43-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB25-005)
  • On Apr 27, 2026 she voted Yes on HB26-1276, which expands state health inspections of immigration detention facilities. It passed the House 42-21. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, HB26-1276)
  • On Jun 3, 2021 she voted Yes on SB21-131, protecting personal information held by the state. It passed the House 41-23. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB21-131)

State Representative, District 12

Our pick: Recommend None

DSA's pick: Neutral on Brown

Labor's pick: Kyle Brown

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Kyle Brown

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Asked whether he supports military aid to Israel or conditions on US weapons, Kyle Brown would not answer, calling it beyond state jurisdiction. Refusing to take a position on arming a genocide is a position, and we will not recommend him. His opponent has no public record on our questions, so we recommend none of them. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Ryan Rhatigan, Kyle Brown.

The candidates

• Kyle Brown (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 Yellow Scene's guide, summarizing his interview: "I did not answer whether I support military aid to Israel or conditions on U.S.-supplied weapons, saying those issues are beyond state jurisdiction and expressing hope for peace. I have never accepted AIPAC support". (Yellow Scene, 2026 Election Guide)
  • He was a House prime sponsor of SB26-193, which exempts the state, where it has a wage agreement with its workers' union, from local minimum-wage ordinances. (Colorado General Assembly, SB26-193 bill page)
  • On Apr 16, 2026 he voted No on SB26-121, which sets farmworker overtime at 56 hours a week for certain workers. It passed the House 33-32. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB26-121)
  • On May 6, 2025 he voted Yes on SB25-005, removing the Labor Peace Act's second election before a union security agreement. It passed the House 43-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB25-005)
  • On Apr 27, 2026 he voted Yes on HB26-1276, which expands state health inspections of immigration detention facilities. It passed the House 42-21. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, HB26-1276)
• Ryan Rhatigan (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • A residential contractor running on the motto "Accountability of Governance." (his campaign site)
  • Proposes that "Contracts funded by Colorado taxpayers should release payment in stages against verified progress — the way any homeowner pays a builder." Nothing found on our four questions. (his campaign site)

State Representative, District 19

Our pick: Jillaire McMillan

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: Jillaire McMillan

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Jillaire McMillan

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Jillaire McMillan has never held office. She told Yellow Scene that Israel has committed major crimes, that the UN defined it as genocide, and that she will not take AIPAC money; she also said Israel “has a right to defend itself,” which we reject, since Israel is the occupying power. What she has said favors working families and immigrants, and her opponent, Dan Woog, voted against immigrant protections, against making it easier to form a union, and against heat protections for workers. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Dan Woog, Jillaire McMillan.

The candidates

• Jillaire McMillan (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: mixed · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Yellow Scene's guide, summarizing her interview: "I'm horrified by Gaza; Israel has committed major crimes, and the UN defined it as genocide." and "I do not and would not accept AIPAC support." (Yellow Scene, Oct 9, 2026)
  • 🚩 In the same summary: "Israel has a right to defend itself, but its retaliation has gone too far." Israel is an occupying power in Palestine; we do not accept that line. She did not answer whether she supports continued military aid or conditions on weapons. (Yellow Scene, Oct 9, 2026)
  • Her campaign biography says she advocated for the Child Tax Credit and "humane immigration reform." (her campaign site)
  • On data centers: "The legislature's focus needs to be community welfare, not corporate welfare." (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 5, 2026)
  • She would review industry tax breaks every 3-5 years and says "improving public transit and supporting child care access will give working families more flexibility with their budgets." We found nothing from her on Gaza, war, ICE or unions. (Colorado Politics candidate Q&A, Oct 5, 2026)
• Dan Woog (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 On May 3, 2025 he voted No on SB25-276, which bars jails from delaying release for immigration enforcement. It passed the House 42-21. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB25-276)
  • 🚩 On Apr 27, 2026 he voted No on HB26-1276, which expands state health inspections of immigration detention facilities. It passed the House 42-21. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, HB26-1276)
  • 🚩 On May 6, 2025 he voted No on SB25-005, removing the Labor Peace Act's second election before a union security agreement. It passed the House 43-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB25-005)
  • 🚩 On Mar 9, 2026 he voted No on HB26-1005, the second attempt to remove the Labor Peace Act's second election. It passed the House 42-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, HB26-1005)
  • 🚩 On Apr 16, 2026 he voted Yes on SB26-121, which sets farmworker overtime at 56 hours a week for certain workers. It passed the House 33-32. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB26-121)
  • 🚩 On May 5, 2026 he voted No on HB26-1272, extreme-temperature protections for workers. It passed the House 43-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, HB26-1272)

State Representative, District 49

Our pick: Lesley Smith

DSA's pick: No on Smith

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Lesley Smith

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Lesley Smith told Yellow Scene she does not support military aid or weapons to Israel and wants the US out of the Middle East, the strongest Gaza position of any state legislator on this ballot. We flag her time as a CU Regent, when the board voted 9-0 to condemn a student group campaigning for divestment from Israel. The DSA says no because she voted for the cut to farmworker overtime, and we flag that too. But her opponent, Michael Sheperek, is worse on every question we ask. Every candidate's record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

On the ballot: Michael Sheperek, Lesley Smith.

The candidates

• Lesley Smith (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: mixed · Antiwar: strong · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Yellow Scene's guide, summarizing her interview: "I do not support military aid or weapons to Israel for its actions in Gaza and Lebanon. I have never been approached by AIPAC or another foreign-policy group, but would not accept their support." Also: "I support getting out of the Middle East and stopping the war with Iran". (Yellow Scene, 2026 Election Guide)
  • 🚩 On Jun 20, 2024, while she was a regent, the CU Board of Regents voted 9-0 for a resolution condemning Students for a Democratic Society-Denver, a group demanding divestment from Israel, over protests at two regents' homes. It said: "Calls for 'Intifada' are calls for violence and murder against the Jewish people, are antisemitic, and are racist in nature." (Colorado Newsline, Jun 20, 2024)
  • 🚩 On Apr 16, 2026 she voted Yes on SB26-121, which sets farmworker overtime at 56 hours a week for certain workers. It passed the House 33-32. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB26-121)
  • On May 6, 2025 she voted Yes on SB25-005, removing the Labor Peace Act's second election before a union security agreement. It passed the House 43-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB25-005)
  • On May 5, 2026 she voted Yes on HB26-1272, extreme-temperature protections for workers. It passed the House 43-22. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, HB26-1272)
  • On May 3, 2025 she voted Yes on SB25-276, which bars jails from delaying release for immigration enforcement. It passed the House 42-21. (Colorado General Assembly, House floor vote, SB25-276)
• Michael Sheperek (Republican)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: mixed · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 On Israel: "They are attempting to provide a balance in the Middle East. They are attempting to survive as a nation. Right now their image is tarnished for the ongoing wars, which means they are loosing the propaganda war. They need to chill a bit." (spelling his own) (iVoterGuide questionnaire)
  • 🚩 "I barely support legal immigration anymore due to the flood of immigration into the country." (iVoterGuide questionnaire)
  • 🚩 His campaign site attacks HB26-1276 and SB25-276, the immigrant-protection laws, saying Democrats "want your state to be open to all illegals, and at the Colorado taxpayers expense. Enough!" (his campaign site)
  • 🚩 On the minimum wage: "it should be kept to a minimum. These are typically high school working jobs, that if too high, prices the kids out of work. Let's let capitalism work". (iVoterGuide questionnaire)
  • 🚩 "Sharia law is NOT compatible with Western Civilization values." (iVoterGuide questionnaire)
  • Yellow Scene's guide, summarizing his interview: "I am anti-Flock camera." He says police need a warrant to use license-plate readers. (Yellow Scene, 2026 Election Guide)

RTD Director, District O

Our pick: Jack Rosenthal

DSA's pick: Jack Rosenthal

Labor's pick: Jack Rosenthal

Progressives' pick: Jack Rosenthal

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

RTD runs the buses and trains that working people across the region depend on, and the people who run them have chosen their candidate: ATU Local 1001, the union for RTD's operators and mechanics, endorses Jack Rosenthal. When the workers endorse a candidate, we stand with them. Neither candidate has a record on our other questions. Both candidates' records are below.

On the ballot: Jack Rosenthal, Audrey DeBarros.

The candidates

• Jack Rosenthal (nonpartisan) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • A software engineer and daily RTD rider who calls himself a transit advocate. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 7, 2026)
  • Endorsed by ATU Local 1001, the union for RTD's operators and mechanics, and by the Boulder Progressives. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 7, 2026)
• Audrey DeBarros (nonpartisan)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Executive director of Commuting Solutions, a transit policy group. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 7, 2026)
  • Endorsed by Rep. Joe Neguse, Boulder Chamber CEO John Tayer, and current and former RTD board leaders. The transit workers' union endorses her opponent. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 7, 2026)

County Commissioner, District 3

Our pick: No on Ashley Stolzmann

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Ashley Stolzmann

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Ashley Stolzmann is unopposed, and we say no. Stolzmann cast the only vote against rolling back the county minimum wage, and we credit that. But when county workers formed a union, the board sued to shrink it, held raises to what Stolzmann called "as high as we believe we can go," and, by the union's account, refused to negotiate protections for workers detained by ICE. Stolzmann endorsed Edie Hooton, and we found nothing on Gaza or divestment. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the candidate.

On the ballot: Ashley Stolzmann.

The candidates

• Ashley Stolzmann (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Cast the only vote against the county's Nov. 20, 2025 rollback of the minimum wage, which had been on track to reach $25 an hour by 2030: "Increasing minimum wage is the most powerful thing we could do to thwart a recession." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Nov 20, 2025)
  • 🚩 The county minimum wage the board passed unanimously in 2023 keeps a lower wage for tipped workers: $13.80 against $16.82 in 2026. (Boulder County)
  • 🚩 After county workers unionized in 2025, the board authorized a lawsuit to keep Public Health and Housing Authority employees out of the union. Individual votes were not reported. (Boulder Weekly)
  • 🚩 On the county's 4.3% raise offer to the union: "it's as high as we believe we can go." The union accused the county of stalling talks during layoffs. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Nov 30, 2025)
  • 🚩 A county worker told the commissioners the union proposed protections for employees detained by ICE "and the county red-lined every single line, refusing to negotiate." (The union's account.) (Yellow Scene, Apr 8, 2026)
  • Co-signed a March 2026 resolution calling for "an end to lawless actions" by ICE and CBP and asking Congress to withhold DHS funding without guardrails such as judicial warrants and no masked agents. (Boulder County, Mar 10, 2026)
  • 🚩 Endorsed Edie Hooton for CU Regent. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jun 11, 2026)
  • We found no Stolzmann statement on Gaza, Israel Bonds or divestment. (Boulder County, Jun 2, 2025)

County Clerk and Recorder

Our pick: Molly Fitzpatrick

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: Molly Fitzpatrick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Molly Fitzpatrick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Molly Fitzpatrick is unopposed, and we endorse her. She has said plainly that Colorado "has not, and will not, hand out confidential voter information," and her office publicly tracks federal attacks on voting. Her record is below.

On the ballot: Molly Fitzpatrick.

The candidates

• Molly Fitzpatrick (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Clerk since 2018. On federal requests for voter data: "Colorado has not, and will not, hand out confidential voter information." And: "The role of the federal government in elections is clear: there is none." (Yellow Scene, 2026 Election Guide)
  • The clerk's office tracks federal moves against voting and says it is "concerned" that the SAVE America Act would "expose confidential voter data." (Boulder County Clerk & Recorder)
  • We found nothing from the clerk on ICE at voting centers or on sharing motor-vehicle data. (Yellow Scene, 2026 Election Guide)

County Treasurer

Our pick: No on Rachel Friend

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Rachel Friend

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Rachel Friend is unopposed, and we do not endorse her. The Treasurer decides where the county's money is invested, and asked whether to exclude weapons makers she made no commitment, saying only that county investments already avoid them, which no one can check. She is endorsed by the Colorado Jewish Action Alliance, formerly Stop Antisemitism Colorado, and by three people on our Boulder Zionists list. Her record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against her.

On the ballot: Rachel Friend.

The candidates

• Rachel Friend (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • 🚩 Asked whether county investments should exclude weapons makers or human-rights violators, she made no commitment, saying "County investments already avoid weapons manufacturing and similar human-rights concerns" and proposing an advisory panel. (Yellow Scene, 2026 Election Guide)
  • 🚩 That claim cannot be checked: most county money sits in investment pools holding corporate paper from issuers the county does not name. (Boulder County 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report)
  • 🚩 Endorsed by the Colorado Jewish Action Alliance, "formerly Stop Antisemitism Colorado," which also endorses Brockett, Marquis, Schuchard and Winer. (Colorado Jewish Action Alliance)
  • 🚩 Her endorsers include Mayor Aaron Brockett and councilmembers Tara Winer and Tina Marquis, all on our Boulder Zionists list, and Edie Hooton. (her campaign site)
  • She served on City Council from 2019 to 2023, before the council's ceasefire fights, so she cast no vote on them. (Boulder Reporting Lab)
  • Her campaign site says she has represented "immigrants in detention facilities here in Colorado." (her campaign site)

County Assessor

Our pick: No recommendation

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Cynthia Braddock

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Unopposed. We found no public record on our four questions, so we make no recommendation. What we found is below.

On the ballot: Cynthia Braddock.

The candidates

• Cynthia Braddock (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Assessor since 2017, and in the assessor's office since 1995. We found no record on our four questions. (Boulder County)

County Sheriff

Our pick: Curtis Johnson

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Curtis Johnson

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Curtis Johnson is unopposed, and we endorse him. His office will not take part in immigration enforcement, refuses ICE detainers and requires a judicial warrant, and that stand drew a congressional investigation in 2026. We flag the jail's heavy use of long-term solitary for people with serious mental illness, the years without in-person visits, and plate-reader cameras and drones with no published limits. His record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against him.

On the ballot: Curtis Johnson.

The candidates

• Curtis Johnson (Democrat) · our pick

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • "Our office will not participate in immigration enforcement." (Boulder County Sheriff's Office statement, June 2025)
  • He told the Daily Camera deputies will not notify ICE of anyone's status or hold people on immigration detainers: "In Boulder County we are not interested in immigration enforcement." People in the jail are told they can refuse an ICE interview. (Daily Camera, Feb 7, 2025)
  • "There must be a judicial warrant for a person's arrest for us to act." (Yellow Scene, 2026 Election Guide)
  • In May 2026 House Judiciary chair Jim Jordan demanded his office's ICE records, accusing it of having "restricted information sharing with ICE and refused to honor ICE detainers." (U.S. House Judiciary Committee letter, May 20, 2026)
  • 🚩 But the jail answers ICE's questions when the information is public: "We don't provide information to ICE, but we are responsive when they ask questions if the questions pertain to information that is publicly available." The Camera reported that this lets ICE learn a release time and wait outside. (Daily Camera, Feb 7, 2025)
  • 🚩 A June 2026 investigation found Boulder County filed 42 of at least 61 petitions statewide to hold people with serious mental illness in solitary confinement for more than 15 days, "and every one was ultimately approved." (Boulder Reporting Lab and Bolts, Jun 23, 2026)
  • 🚩 The jail had offered no in-person family visits since 2020 as of May 2025; he blamed staffing. (Boulder Weekly, May 2025)
  • 🚩 The Sheriff's Office uses Flock license-plate readers, and in 2024 started a drone program. We found no published limits on either. (EFF Atlas of Surveillance)
  • Deputies are covered by a collective bargaining agreement with the Fraternal Order of Police. (Boulder County FY26 budget)
  • We found no statement from him on Gaza, and no reporting on how his office has policed pro-Palestine protests. (Boulder Reporting Lab)

County Surveyor

Our pick: No recommendation

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Kayce D. W. Keane

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Unopposed. We found no public record on our four questions, so we make no recommendation. What we found is below.

On the ballot: Kayce D. W. Keane.

The candidates

• Kayce D. W. Keane (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • A licensed land surveyor and director of surveys at a private Boulder firm. We found no record on our four questions. (NCEES)

County Coroner

Our pick: No recommendation

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Jeff Martin

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Unopposed. We found no public record on our four questions, so we make no recommendation. What we found is below.

On the ballot: Jeff Martin.

The candidates

• Jeff Martin (Democrat)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Appointed coroner in February 2024 after the previous coroner resigned over a toxic-workplace investigation; 22 years in the field. (Boulder Reporting Lab)
  • A former deputy sheriff (1991-2000) who wants the coroner's office to give "law enforcement and public health" more real-time data on drug deaths. (Boulder Weekly)
  • We found no reporting on how the office has handled deaths in jail custody or police shootings. (Boulder County)

Mayor (ranked choice)

Our pick: 1 Adams, 2 Smith, 3 Jacobs, 4 Goldstein, 5 La Grave, 6 Brockett

DSA's pick: Adams first, Brockett second

Labor's pick: Adams first, Brockett second

Progressives' pick: Brockett first; consider Adams

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Taishya Adams answered our question by saying Boulder should divest from all six companies, and her record on council matches the answer. In February 2024 she was one of only two members who supported taking up a Gaza ceasefire resolution. In August 2025 she was the only member who supported revisiting the city's investments. In July 2025 she cast the only vote against the new limits on public comment. The Boulder County DSA has endorsed her as its first choice too.

How to rank

Boulder elects its mayor by ranked choice: you may rank up to six candidates. Our ranking:

1. Taishya Adams, our endorsement.
2. Fred Smith ("Grateful Fred Instead"): calls Israel's war, "with American armaments," "the most unfair fight," would divest five of the six companies, and proposes a city tax on high incomes for housing, child care and mental health.
3. Lisa Ann Jacobs: almost no public record, but nothing in support of Israel.
4. Jamo Goldstein: would end Boulder's Flock contract and backs firefighters' bargaining rights, but opposes an investment standard that singles out Israel.
5. Aquiles La Grave: the Colorado Jewish Action Alliance names him its "Community Ally," and he told the Intermountain Jewish News he "cannot endorse" investment criteria that "single out Israel," and now says he does not support divesting from the companies that break Boulder's own investment rules.
6. Aaron Brockett, last. He is on our Boulder Zionists list, is endorsed by the Colorado Jewish Action Alliance, has "no desire to revisit" the city's investments, and says the council "should have no role in international affairs."

Rank all six. Candidates who back Israel go to the bottom. With ranked choice, ranking someone low can never help them against anyone you rank above them, and ranking everyone keeps your ballot counting to the final round.

Below is each candidate's record on our four questions; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

Two Boulder issues behind our picks

The city's investments. Boulder's Socially Responsible Investment rules exclude fossil fuels, weapons not used in national defense, tobacco, and firms tied to mass incarceration, private prisons and detention centers (city investment report). A Daily Camera op-ed by Guy Benintendi on September 23, 2026 identified six of the city's twelve corporate holdings (Caterpillar, Cisco, Microsoft, State Street, PepsiCo and Toyota, about $66 million by the city's own figures) as breaking those rules or going against what Boulder voters have decided. We asked every candidate whether Boulder should divest from them; each record below shows the answer.

Tipped workers' pay. Boulder lets restaurants pay tipped workers $3.02 an hour less than the minimum wage. In 2026 the council weighed widening that gap, which by the city's own estimate would have cost most tipped workers $500 to $3,000 in 2027 (Boulder Reporting Lab). On July 30 it took no action, so the raises go ahead, but it could return next year (Boulder Reporting Lab). We support shrinking the gap. Where a candidate's position is on the record, it is below.

Where we differ: the DSA ranks Aaron Brockett second; we rank him last. The DSA's guide also calls this Boulder's first direct mayoral election; it is the second (Boulder Reporting Lab).

On the ballot: Lisa Ann Jacobs, Taishya Adams, Aaron Brockett, Jameson (Jamo) Goldstein, Grateful Fred Instead, Aquiles La Grave.

The candidates

• Taishya Adams · we endorse

  Anti-genocide: strong · Antiwar: strong · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: Boulder Humans. Our divestment question: divest from all six companies.

  • In February 2024 she was one of two councilmembers, with Lauren Folkerts, who voted in an informal "nod of five" to open a process for a Gaza ceasefire resolution; seven were opposed and it failed. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Feb 16, 2024)
  • In February 2025 she asked the council to reconsider the city's investment policy to potentially exclude a broader range of weapons manufacturers; the informal vote failed, with only Adams, Folkerts and Schuchard in favor. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Feb 6, 2025)
  • In August 2025 she asked the council again to revisit its investments, saying it should hold itself accountable "by removing Caterpillar and Microsoft from our investment portfolio"; on an informal show of hands she was the only member in favor. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Aug 21, 2025)
  • On Flock cameras she wrote: "I do not support the use of automated license plate readers at this time due to documented cybersecurity issues and corporate misconduct." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate questionnaire, Sep 29, 2026)
  • 🚩 In October 2024 she voted against an amendment to set Boulder's minimum wage 15% above the state minimum, which failed 5-4; she said, "The gold standard is not Denver." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 11, 2024)
  • Before the July 30, 2026 meeting on tipped workers' pay, she supported leaving the tip credit unchanged, so that tipped workers' scheduled raises go ahead. (Boulder Reporting Lab)
• Aaron Brockett

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: weak · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: Boulder Zionists. Our divestment question: no response.

  • 🚩 He is endorsed for mayor by the Colorado Jewish Action Alliance (formerly Stop Antisemitism Colorado), which says it "defeated harmful ceasefire and BDS resolutions in Denver and Boulder." (Colorado Jewish Action Alliance)
  • 🚩 In February 2024 he was among the seven councilmembers opposed, in an informal "nod of five" vote, to opening a process for a Gaza ceasefire resolution, saying, "We have so many huge problems right here in our town of Boulder." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Feb 16, 2024)
  • 🚩 In October 2026 he told the Intermountain Jewish News, "I'm comfortable with our current investment policy and have no desire to revisit it," and that the council "should have no role in international affairs." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 2026)
  • 🚩 In February 2025 he opposed reconsidering the city's investment policy to potentially exclude a broader range of weapons manufacturers (informal vote), citing the staff and council time it would take. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Feb 6, 2025)
  • 🚩 On Flock cameras he wrote, "I wouldn't end them unilaterally," saying data is shared with some Colorado law enforcement agencies "and never with the Federal government." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate questionnaire, Sep 29, 2026)
  • In October 2024 he voted for the amendment to set Boulder's minimum wage 15% above the state minimum, saying, "I would like to lean on the side of getting more money to those who are struggling to get by." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 11, 2024)
  • 🚩 At a June 6, 2026 candidate forum he said he remained open to slowing raises for tipped workers. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jun 7, 2026)
  • On July 30, 2026 he said he did not support slowing them, and council took no action, so the raises go ahead. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jul 30, 2026)
• Jameson "Jamo" Goldstein

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no response.

  • 🚩 On city investments he told the Intermountain Jewish News, "The city should not create one standard for a politically unpopular country or company and another standard for everyone else." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 2026)
  • He said he "would generally reserve Council action on international affairs for situations with a clear connection to Boulder," while adding that the city must respect free speech, "including criticism of Israel or any other government." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 2026)
  • On Flock cameras he wrote: "Yes. I would end Boulder's Flock automated license plate reader contract." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate questionnaire, Sep 29, 2026)
  • He told Boulder Reporting Lab he would vote yes on 2L (collective bargaining rights for firefighters) and yes on 2J (the vacant-home tax), and no on the $400 million bond (2K). (Boulder Reporting Lab ballot-measure chart, Oct 6, 2026)
  • He said he "would examine a tiered excise tax on large corporate rental portfolios to fund targeted rent assistance." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
• Lisa Ann Jacobs

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: divest from Toyota only.

  • She did not answer Boulder Reporting Lab's candidate questionnaire. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 6, 2026)
  • The Intermountain Jewish News reported that she could not be reached for its mayoral questionnaire. (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 2026)
  • On the $400 million bond (2K), which lists $170 million for a police and 911 center, she said, "I did focus groups and not a single person wanted higher taxes." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Sep 29, 2026)
  • Her campaign site lists "Housing people can afford" and "Tenant rights" among her priorities but gives no specific policies. (Jacobs campaign site)
• Aquiles La Grave

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: implied yes in September, then a hard no on October 21. It seems strange that his tone changed after he knew these investments were linked to Israel's military and its war on Gaza.

  Close

  Aquiles La Grave to the author of our survey question, September 2026

  A Facebook message, forwarded to us by the author of our survey question, whose first message to him set out the city's noncompliance company by company; that first message could not be copied. The salutation is omitted. Below it is the first paragraph of the author's reply; the rest, on another subject, is omitted. La Grave did not answer it.

  This one found me! I’m so glad it did. First thank you for the kind words, and for taking the time to lay this out.

  I’m not an investment advisor, so when it comes to individual investments I don’t know what I’m talking about. I am a Boulderite though, so I believe we must lead by our actions and make sure they align with our values. It’s why, for example, I oppose Flock surveillance. I don’t believe it aligns with our designation as a sanctuary city, and those commitments have to mean something or they mean nothing.

  The way you laid this out is pretty neat from that angle. We should follow the policies we’ve adopted, and residents deserve an explanation when they raise concerns, it’s something I’ve been pretty vocal on when it comes to Alpine-Balsam for example.

  We owe voters the care to distinguish what they’ve actually approved from what any of us might interpret it to mean.

  For me, the responsibility is straightforward. We must always put Boulder first. That means taking care of the public’s money, honoring our commitments, and keeping our attention on the people we’re elected to serve.

  Aquiles

  The survey's author replied:

  OK, then I'm assuming you're for divestment from all those corporations that are noncompliant with the will of the voters and City's rules for socially responsible investing. If that's incorrect let me know.

  • 🚩 He told the Intermountain Jewish News, "I cannot endorse the use of investment selection criteria to single out Israel, Israelis or any other country or group of people for political purposes." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 2026)
  • 🚩 Told the Intermountain Jewish News that a values-based investment policy is legitimate only if the values "are consistently applied to all investments," but on October 21 wrote that he does not support divesting from the companies that break Boulder's own investment rules. We think it very likely his answer changed once he saw that five of these six holdings are tied to Israel's military and occupation, including its genocide in Gaza. (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026; his email to us, Oct 21, 2026)
  • 🚩 Writing to us, the group advocating divestment, about our divestment question, he brought up "the coded language that allows [antisemitism] to circulate under the cover of political advocacy," and said "these concerns apply directly to how divestment is framed and advocated in our community." He was implying that our advocacy is antisemitic. Our view: calling a group that is working to end a genocide against an indigenous people antisemitic is itself a form of racism, and this email shows he is not fit to be mayor of Boulder. (his email to us, Oct 21, 2026) Read his email
    Close

    Aquiles La Grave to First Justice Then Peace, October 21, 2026

    In full, as received. Only the salutation is omitted. Subject: "Remove my name and any association with your divestment position immediately."

    It came to my attention today that you run the website firstjustice.org - Please remove my name and any suggestion that I support your divestment position from your website immediately. I neither hold nor promote that position, and I have never endorsed it or authorized you to represent otherwise. I find it shocking that I have been included.

    My position and leadership against antisemitism and hate has been clear for years so I am at a loss for how your representation could be a simple mistake. I have stood, stand and will continue to stand with our Jewish neighbors and have spoken out against the insidious and dangerous antisemitism in our community and the coded language that allows it to circulate under the cover of political advocacy. Jewish neighbors and our community deserve to participate in the civic life of this city without intimidation, collective blame, or hatred. These concerns apply directly to how divestment is framed and advocated in our community.

    You are entitled to express your views. You are not entitled to attach my name to them. Doing so misrepresents my convictions and undermines the trust I have worked to build with neighbors who deserve an honest account of where I stand.

    Please remove the association immediately and correct any accompanying materials identifying me as a supporter. If you have circulated that claim elsewhere, I expect a correction to reach those same audiences.

    Aquiles

  • 🚩 The Colorado Jewish Action Alliance (formerly Stop Antisemitism Colorado) lists him as its 2026 "Community Ally" for mayor. (Colorado Jewish Action Alliance)
  • His written plan would "prevent the sharing of locally-collected surveillance data with federal immigration enforcement unless there is a valid court order." (La Grave campaign plan, "Decide to Deliver" (image PDF, read by OCR))
  • On Flock cameras he said he would put "the current program on hold until council creates specific policies" on data retention and outside access. (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate questionnaire, Sep 29, 2026)
  • His campaign site says: "Safety is government's first responsibility. Let's fund it accordingly." (La Grave campaign site)
  • He told Boulder Reporting Lab he would vote yes on 2L (collective bargaining rights for firefighters) and yes on 2J (the vacant-home tax), and no on the $400 million bond (2K). (Boulder Reporting Lab ballot-measure chart, Oct 6, 2026)
• Fred Smith ("Grateful Fred Instead")

  Anti-genocide: mixed · Antiwar: mixed · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: divest from five of the six; keep PepsiCo.

  • 🚩 His campaign site quotes him: "The situation in Palestine is beyond terrible," and "Most animals have a better standard of living than a Palestinian"; the same section says the mayor "does not set foreign policy." (Smith campaign site)
  • In the same statement he says of Israel's war, "Especially with American armaments, which of course pushes the apple cart even further over — it is the most unfair fight." (Smith campaign site)
  • 🚩 On the $400 million bond (2K), which lists $170 million for a police and 911 center, he said, "I have no problem with the tax... But we should be looking for more revenue." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Sep 29, 2026)
  • He proposes a 10% city tax on household income above $184,500 to pay for mental health care, permanently affordable housing and child care. (Smith campaign site)
  • He calls Amendment 87, which would replace Colorado's flat income tax with a graduated one, "a must win for this campaign." (Smith campaign site)

City Council (vote for up to five)

Our pick: Lynn Segal

DSA's pick: Jamillah Richmond (endorsed); also yes on Fuqua, Schuchard, Grano

Labor's pick: Jill Adler Grano, Rachel Rose Isaacson, Ryan Schuchard

Progressives' pick: Fuqua, Grano, Isaacson, Marquis, Richmond, Schuchard (pick five)

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Lynn Segal is the only City Council candidate who answered our question by saying Boulder should divest from all six companies. Throughout the war in Gaza she has protested at council meetings, demanding a ceasefire resolution and divestment from companies that contract with the Israeli military. On Boulder's Flock license-plate cameras, which can feed data to ICE, her answer was two sentences long: "End it. Losses outweigh benefits." (Boulder Reporting Lab)

You may vote for up to five. We endorse one; below is each candidate's record on our four questions; 🚩 marks the positions we count against them.

Two Boulder issues behind our picks

The city's investments. Boulder's Socially Responsible Investment rules exclude fossil fuels, weapons not used in national defense, tobacco, and firms tied to mass incarceration, private prisons and detention centers (city investment report). A Daily Camera op-ed by Guy Benintendi on September 23, 2026 identified six of the city's twelve corporate holdings (Caterpillar, Cisco, Microsoft, State Street, PepsiCo and Toyota, about $66 million by the city's own figures) as breaking those rules or going against what Boulder voters have decided. We asked every candidate whether Boulder should divest from them; each record below shows the answer.

Tipped workers' pay. Boulder lets restaurants pay tipped workers $3.02 an hour less than the minimum wage. In 2026 the council weighed widening that gap, which by the city's own estimate would have cost most tipped workers $500 to $3,000 in 2027 (Boulder Reporting Lab). On July 30 it took no action, so the raises go ahead, but it could return next year (Boulder Reporting Lab). We support shrinking the gap. Where a candidate's position is on the record, it is below.

Where we differ: the DSA calls Lynn Segal “vocally anti-war, pro-Palestine” and still recommends against her, while recommending Ryan Schuchard, who is on our Boulder Zionists list.

On the ballot: Lee Gilbert, Sam Fuqua, Ryan Schuchard, Jamillah Richmond, Benita Duran, Tara Winer, Rachel Rose Isaacson, Dave Martus, Scott Rendleman, Jill Adler Grano, Ryan Jamieson, Lynn Segal, Tina Marquis.

The candidates

• Lynn Segal · our pick

  Anti-genocide: strong · Antiwar: strong · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: divest from all six companies.

  • She calls for a council resolution for Palestinian justice: "there should be one because it's the right thing to do." (Intermountain Jewish News candidate questionnaire, Oct 1, 2026)
  • She says the council should "consider the impact of war on the locality," and that growth built on debt is "no longer feasible with the war and national debt." (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire, Sep 2026)
  • On Flock: "End it. Losses outweigh benefits." She warns it could be used with ICE, and ties migration to US foreign policy "utilizing 800 bases all over the world." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile and questionnaire)
  • She opposes the Downtown Development Authority ("No on DDA, the Deeper Debt for All") and says "Let the developer pay." (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire, Sep 2026)
  • She opposes building more housing as a way to lower costs: "Building more does not lower costs in the saturated inelastic market of Boulder." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile and questionnaire)
• Benita Duran

  Anti-genocide: mixed · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: divest from Caterpillar only.

  • 🚩 She told the Intermountain Jewish News that council resolutions are "an important tool" when there is "a connection between the topic and the city of Boulder's people." On open comment she said: "If that setting isn't civil, then it should not occur." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • Asked whether she would end Boulder's use of license plate readers, she answered yes: "The benefits to policing do not justify creating a system that records the movements of people suspected of no crime." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
  • She praised the police: "our Police Department's alignment with the District Attorney and others to help see that our community members are safe from ICE is really important." (Richard Valenty interview, Sep 2026)
  • At a June 6, 2026 candidate forum she opposed letting tipped workers' base pay rise more slowly than the minimum wage. She and Grano were the only candidates there who backed extending the vacancy tax to commercial spaces. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jun 7, 2026)
  • 🚩 She backs a Downtown Development Authority: "I would want to see the DDA return to the table." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
• Sam Fuqua

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no divestment.

  • 🚩 He told the Intermountain Jewish News: "I am not in favor of resolutions on international affairs." He also backs the council's public-comment rules. On investments he said policy should rest on companies' conduct, "not on specific nations." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • He would end Boulder's use of license plate readers: "There is too much potential for misuse and abuse of the data collected by ALPR systems." But if the community and the council want them, he would push for "very tight restrictions" instead. (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
  • 🚩 He supports ballot issue 2K, the $400 million bond for city facilities. (Boulder Reporting Lab ballot-measure table, Oct 6, 2026)
  • 🚩 On policing downtown he wrote: "I support the staffing goals in the plan, including hiring additional officers." (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire)
  • He is "open to reconsidering the DDA" (Downtown Development Authority), but wants to "genuinely engage opponents" first. (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire)
• Lee Gilbert

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no response.

  • He did not answer the Intermountain Jewish News questionnaire, which asked about investment policy and resolutions on international affairs. (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • He did not answer Boulder Reporting Lab's questionnaire, which asked about Flock cameras and the 2K bond. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Sep 29, 2026)
  • He is running on a single issue, opposing transportation projects such as the Baseline Road redesign. He said at a forum that he was "not as well acquainted with a lot of the local issues." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
• Jill Adler Grano

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no response.

  • 🚩 She told the Intermountain Jewish News: "I do not support BDS... I do not believe now is the time to re-litigate Boulder's investment portfolio." She also does not support council resolutions on international affairs. (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • In the same answers she said: "Criticism of the Israeli government is not inherently anti-Semitic." She added that no one should lose the right to protest because their views make officials uncomfortable. (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • On Flock: "I would not renew our contract with Flock" until there is a community conversation about privacy. She opposes the $400 million bond "as presented." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
  • 🚩 She supports fully staffing the police department to the levels in the Reimagine Policing Plan, and "More competitive pay to recruit and retain officers." (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire)
  • At a June 6, 2026 forum she opposed letting tipped workers' base pay rise more slowly than the minimum wage. She and Duran were the only candidates there who backed extending the vacancy tax to commercial spaces. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jun 7, 2026)
• Rachel Rose Isaacson

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no response.

  • 🚩 She told the Intermountain Jewish News she "would be concerned about an investment policy that singles out Israel or Israeli companies while ignoring comparable conduct elsewhere." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • She would not support routine council resolutions on international conflicts, but "would not establish an absolute prohibition." One exception she named is "an exceptional human-rights crisis with significant local impacts." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • On Flock she answered: "Yes. No sanctuary city should rely on Flock or broad AI-enabled surveillance." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
  • 🚩 She supports ballot issue 2K, the $400 million bond for city facilities. (Boulder Reporting Lab ballot-measure table, Oct 6, 2026)
  • A barista, she told the council in April 2026 that "The real lived experience of tipped workers is not as glamorous as you're imagining, not even close." She spoke for keeping tipped workers' raises in step with the minimum wage. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Apr 5, 2026)
• Ryan Jamieson

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no divestment.

  • 🚩 He told the Intermountain Jewish News: "The only value I care about when it comes to an investment fund is the rate of return." That rules out every values-based screen, not only one aimed at Israel. (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • 🚩 On council resolutions about other countries: "I'm against them. Foreign affairs don't belong in city business, period." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • 🚩 Wants to limit 1st Amendment rights based on the content of speech. (text messages and emails between First Justice Then Peace members and his campaign, October 18–21, 2026) See the text
    Close

    

    The exchange continued by email, October 20–21, 2026

    After the texts above, a second member wrote to his campaign, attaching those screenshots. In full, as sent and received; only greetings, signatures, the screenshots and email boilerplate are omitted.

    A First Justice Then Peace member, Oct 20, 5:07 PM:

    It has come to my attention via a local voter that you seem to be endorsing limits on free speech at city council. From the conversation I read, I can only assume you are supportive of removing video broadcasting based on the content of what the speakers were saying and that there are limits on what speakers could talk about, stating that they are free to redress each other but don't need to take up council's time to do it.

    I'd like to remind you: In the Tenth Circuit, which covers Colorado, this was confirmed in Shero v. City of Grove (2007). Once a council opens the floor to “any subject,” it cannot pick and choose which subjects are acceptable.

    Colorado’s Open Meetings Law (C.R.S. § 24-6-401 et seq.) requires that meetings be open to the public, and Boulder’s own code guarantees an open comment period, on any subject not scheduled for public hearing, at every regular business meeting.

    These statements not only seem to violate colorado law but the first amendment as well.

    While it is not the obligation for Council to broadcast speakers, taking it away based on their speech would be a violation.

    Could you clarify?

    Jamieson campaign (campaign@rjforboulder.com), Oct 20, 5:56 PM:

    A question in response: In your view, would it be acceptable for speakers to use the open comment period to speak about matters not related to city governance to the extent that it prevented discussions which were relevant to the governance of the city?

    A First Justice Then Peace member, Oct 20, 7:04 PM:

    The City Council already has rules around speaking time limits, obscene behavior, etc. The city has also created a lottery system allowing anyone with any topic an equal opportunity to speak.

    The Constitution requires that this opportunity be equal for all people, regardless of their topic. The First Amendment protects “the right of the people … to petition the Government for a redress of grievances” because the founders had just watched the Crown ignore them, and they wrote in the Declaration of Independence that “Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury.” They made sure no government here could shut its door on the people it answers to.

    It would seem to me that whether someone is talking about the South Boulder Rec Center or a rash on their leg, this is the exact right the First Amendment protects.

    If multiple people showed up week after week to speak about unrelated personal matters, I would think the Council should probably look into better mental health care in the city. However, if several people have been speaking at Council about the same subject week after week over the course of years, then I believe it is the Council that needs to re-examine whether that issue is really not a city issue.

    I would hope you can appreciate why the latter group might feel as though the Crown was ignoring them.

    Jamieson campaign (campaign@rjforboulder.com), Oct 20, 7:42 PM:

    Look dude, I know how much war sucks because I fought in one. I don’t know your history so I don’t know if you did too, but most people here can’t comprehend what happens there. I understand you want more people to mobilize against the conflict and you want to use council meetings as a way to draw attention to the conflict. But man, the city has its own shit to deal with. We’ve got a shaky budget, a bunch of buildings way overdue on maintenance, finances that are about as clear as mud, etc, etc.

    I’m not running for this job to opine on global affairs, I just want to make sure the town I live in doesn’t go bankrupt and doesn’t burn down.

    So please, let council focus on the fundamentals of running the city and pivot your activism towards our federal representatives which have way more power to change the things you care about than anybody at the municipal level.

    A First Justice Then Peace member, Oct 21, 1:19 PM:

    I agree that all of these topics are important. However, as we in agreement that time is short, think of how much time would be freed up during public comment, answering e-mails, etc. by addressing the issues being brought up.

    A peace resolution is nothing more than a written statement.

    Identification of SRI could be offloaded to a financial advisor.

  • 🚩 He did not give a yes or no on Flock, but wrote that "Flock systems have been used to track Hispanics without cause at the behest of ICE." He also wants "more officers on foot on Pearl and the creek path." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
  • 🚩 He backs a Downtown Development Authority: "I supported the Downtown Development Authority... and I'd bring it back built right this time." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile)
  • 🚩 He opposes ballot issue 2J, the tax on homes left vacant most of the year. He also opposes the 2K bond. (Boulder Reporting Lab ballot-measure table, Oct 6, 2026)
• Tina Marquis

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: Boulder Zionists. Our divestment question: no response.

  • 🚩 On Feb 6, 2025 she opposed reconsidering the city's investment policy to exclude a broader range of weapons makers. This was an informal vote, not a roll call; it failed 3-6. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Feb 6, 2025)
  • 🚩 As a candidate she pledged: "I will continue the changes we made almost a year ago, including limiting public comment to one hour and not having video of public comment." (Intermountain Jewish News, Oct 1, 2026)
  • Her campaign site says: "I support pausing our use of Flock while we identify alternatives." In BRL's questionnaire she gave no yes or no on ending Flock. (Tina Marquis campaign site)
  • 🚩 In October 2024 she voted against a higher minimum wage, $16.58 in 2025 with the goal of matching Denver by 2027. That amendment failed 5-4, and she backed the smaller 8% increase instead. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 11, 2024)
  • On Aug 6, 2026 she cast a recorded vote against sending a Downtown Development Authority to the ballot. It failed 4-4. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Aug 6, 2026)
  • 🚩 At a June 6, 2026 candidate forum she said she remained open to slowing raises for tipped workers. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jun 7, 2026)
  • On July 30, 2026 she said she did not support slowing them, and council took no action, so the raises go ahead. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jul 30, 2026)
• Dave Martus

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no divestment.

  • 🚩 On city investments, he told the Intermountain Jewish News a values-aligned policy "should not become a vehicle for selectively targeting Israel or any other particular nation." He also said he "would generally oppose Council resolutions on foreign conflicts." (Intermountain Jewish News candidate questionnaire, Oct 1, 2026)
  • He says he would end Boulder's use of Flock license-plate readers, and that any future system should have "no immigration enforcement access." He is also a "no vote" on 2K, the $400 million bond, citing the debt it would add. (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile and questionnaire)
  • 🚩 He backs extending police patrols downtown and "strict enforcement of the ban on rough sleeping." (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire, Sep 2026)
  • 🚩 Asked by the Boulder Chamber whether, as a tie-breaking vote, he would have voted against raising the tipped minimum wage for 2027, he answered "Yes," saying "Restaurant margins are already very low." (Boulder Chamber candidate questionnaire (posted on his campaign site))
  • He says he would have voted no on sending the Downtown Development Authority to the ballot, but only over poor coordination: "I support reconsidering a DDA." (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire, Sep 2026)
• Scott Rendleman

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no divestment.

  • 🚩 He told the Intermountain Jewish News: "I do not support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement." He added that he is "opposed to Boulder City Council becoming engaged in international affairs." (Intermountain Jewish News candidate questionnaire, Oct 1, 2026)
  • 🚩 On public comment, he said "Open Comment has often crossed the line of political speech into verbal intimidation, especially for our Jewish community and Israel." (Intermountain Jewish News candidate questionnaire, Oct 1, 2026)
  • 🚩 On Flock: "At this moment, no, I am not ready to end Boulder's use of automated license plate readers." He would bar its use "as a monitor of political engagement or immigration enforcement," and he opposes the $400 million bond. (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile and questionnaire)
  • 🚩 He celebrates council's 2020 creation of the Police Oversight Panel. The council decision he most regrets is its rejection of an arbitrator's 6% police pay raise in favor of the city's 4%. (Better Boulder candidate questionnaire, 2026)
  • 🚩 He backs the Downtown Development Authority: "I support reconsideration of the DDA." (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire, Sep 2026)
• Jamillah Richmond

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed. Our divestment question: no response.

  • She did not answer the Intermountain Jewish News questionnaire, which asked council candidates about city investment policy and international resolutions. We found no public statement from her on Gaza. (Intermountain Jewish News candidate questionnaire, Oct 1, 2026)
  • 🚩 She told a member of our group in person that she would not deal with national investment issues. (account of a First Justice Then Peace member)
  • Explaining her No on Amendment 81, which would require police to report some people to Homeland Security, she wrote: "I am PRO abolishing ICE. There are no exceptions to this for me." (Richmond campaign site)
  • "Yes, I would end the use of automated license plate readers like Flock Safety." She would also decline further contracts with firms that "use AI technology to surveil or monitor drivers." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile and questionnaire)
  • She told BRL she will vote No on 2K, the $400 million bond, and Yes on 2L (firefighters' collective bargaining) and 2J (vacant-home tax). (Boulder Reporting Lab ballot-measure table, Oct 6, 2026 (Datawrapper 8rbqq; snippet is the table row))
  • On the Downtown Development Authority: "I support the reconsideration of the DDA." She said the plan "lacked community engagement, transparency and buy in." (Downtown Boulder Partnership candidate questionnaire, Sep 2026)
• Ryan Schuchard

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: mixed · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: Boulder Zionists. Our divestment question: no divestment.

  • 🚩 In an informal "nod of five" on Feb 15, 2024, he was among the seven councilmembers generally opposed to opening a process for a Gaza ceasefire resolution. He said he feared it would "exacerbate tensions." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Feb 16, 2024)
  • 🚩 In February 2025 he backed revisiting the city's investment policy, but in an informal show of hands in August 2025 he did not back reopening it when Adams sought to drop Microsoft and Caterpillar. He cited the resources it would take. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Aug 21, 2025)
  • 🚩 He told the Intermountain Jewish News: "I don't support the city's involvement in the BDS movement, which is specific to Israel." He also said he "helped craft the 2025 reforms" that capped open comment. (Intermountain Jewish News candidate questionnaire, Oct 1, 2026)
  • "Yes, I would end Boulder's use of automated license plate readers," he says, and he supports Boulder as a sanctuary city. He also backs 2K, writing "Pass the $400 million bond to fix 15 failing facilities." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile and questionnaire)
  • He voted to raise Boulder's minimum wage, supported keeping scheduled raises for tipped workers, and opposed creating a Downtown Development Authority. (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile and questionnaire)
• Tara Winer

  Anti-genocide: weak · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: weak · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: Boulder Zionists. Our divestment question: no response.

  • 🚩 In an informal "nod of five" on Feb 15, 2024, she was among those generally opposed to opening a Gaza ceasefire resolution: "Even after Oct. 7, people did not come up to me and asked my opinion on the Middle East." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Feb 16, 2024)
  • 🚩 Asked about a values-aligned investment policy, she told the Intermountain Jewish News: "I refuse to allow the targeting of one or two nations on my watch." (Intermountain Jewish News candidate questionnaire, Oct 1, 2026)
  • 🚩 She defends Flock: "Automatic License Plate Readers perform an important public safety function." She acknowledges Border Patrol searched Boulder's Flock data "more than 100 times" and calls for "heavy guardrails." (Boulder Reporting Lab candidate profile and questionnaire)
  • 🚩 In October 2024 she voted against a higher minimum-wage schedule (15% above the state minimum), which failed 5-4. She said: "We're asking the small and the micro-businesses to make up for the failure of the state and the county." (Boulder Reporting Lab, Oct 11, 2024)
  • 🚩 On Aug 6, 2026 she voted to send a Downtown Development Authority to the ballot. The referral failed 4-4. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Aug 6, 2026)
  • She had appeared likely to support slowing raises for tipped workers, but on July 30, 2026 said she favored keeping them on schedule; council took no action. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jul 30, 2026)

Supreme Court: Justice William W. Hood III

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Found to meet performance standards, 9-0. Justice Hood was in the majority that kept Trump off the 2024 ballot and wrote that police need probable cause for drug-dog sniffs. We flag his opinion upholding a Google keyword "dragnet" warrant and his dissent against jury trials for tenants facing eviction, but on balance his record is with us. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• William W. Hood III (Colorado Supreme Court)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: weak

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 9-0. A justice since 2014, appointed by Gov. Hickenlooper; earlier ten years a prosecutor. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • Was in the 4-3 majority that ruled Trump disqualified from Colorado's 2024 ballot for the January 6 insurrection. (NBC News)
  • Wrote the ruling that a drug-dog sniff is a search under the Colorado Constitution, so police need probable cause. (Colorado Supreme Court, People v. McKnight (2019))
  • 🚩 Wrote the 2023 opinion letting police keep evidence from a Google "reverse-keyword" warrant, which collects everyone who searched certain terms. (Colorado Supreme Court, People v. Seymour (2023))
  • 🚩 Dissented in 2024 from the ruling that tenants can get jury trials in some eviction cases: "It seems implausible that the General Assembly would have expected a jury trial to occur within ten days." (The ruling was later withdrawn.) (Colorado Politics, Oct 21, 2024)

Court of Appeals: Judge Rebecca Rankin Freyre

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Judge Freyre was a public defender for 24 years before joining the court and wrote a ruling for injured gig workers. We flag the judge's opinions upholding a broad phone-records warrant and a prosecutor's strike of a Black juror. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Rebecca Rankin Freyre (Colorado Court of Appeals)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 9-0. A state public defender for 24 years before joining the court in 2015. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • Wrote the 2025 ruling that an injured gig worker is not limited to the $15,000 workers' compensation cap. (Colorado Politics)
  • 🚩 Wrote the 2025 opinion upholding a warrant for six months of a man's cell-phone records, over a colleague's objection that it was unconstitutionally broad. (Colorado Politics)
  • 🚩 Wrote the 2025 opinion upholding a prosecutor's strike of a Black juror, one of whose stated reasons was the juror's experience of unfair treatment by police. (Colorado Politics)

Court of Appeals: Judge Elizabeth L. Harris

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

A former federal public defender who upheld a jury verdict against a Denver police officer and joined the ruling forcing Lakewood to release police body-camera footage of a teenager's killing. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Elizabeth L. Harris (Colorado Court of Appeals)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 9-0; lawyers and judges noted slow opinions as a weakness. A former federal public defender. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • Wrote the 2025 opinion upholding a jury verdict for a pedestrian run over by a Denver police officer. (Colorado Politics)
  • Joined the 2025 ruling requiring Lakewood to release body-camera footage of police killing a 17-year-old. (Colorado Politics)

Court of Appeals: Judge Katharine E. Lum

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Wrote the ruling that Colorado's equal-pay law protects workers who complain about wages from retaliation, and threw out convictions that came from an illegal traffic stop. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Katharine E. Lum (Colorado Court of Appeals)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 9-0. Appointed by Gov. Polis in 2022. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • Wrote the 2026 ruling that Colorado's equal-pay law protects workers who complain about wages from retaliation. (Colorado Politics)
  • Wrote the 2025 opinion overturning convictions and a 25-year sentence because police extended a traffic stop without reasonable suspicion. (Colorado Politics)

Court of Appeals: Judge Pax Moultrie

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Wrote the ruling that a sheriff cannot use a 287(g) deal with ICE to hold people against Colorado law, the strongest anti-ICE record of any judge on the ballot. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Pax Moultrie (Colorado Court of Appeals)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 9-0. Appointed by Gov. Polis in 2024; formerly a Denver Juvenile Court judge. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • Wrote the 2024 ruling that the Teller County sheriff could not use a 287(g) deal with ICE to hold people against Colorado law: "it was the legislature's prerogative to require immigration officials to put forth that effort in Colorado". (Colorado Politics)

Court of Appeals: Judge Karl L. Schock

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Wrote separately that a six-month phone-records warrant violated the Fourth Amendment, and joined two rulings for workers. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Karl L. Schock (Colorado Court of Appeals)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 9-0. A former federal prosecutor, appointed by Gov. Polis in 2022. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • Wrote separately that a six-month cell-phone records warrant was an "all encompassing search" that violated the Fourth Amendment. (Colorado Politics)
  • Joined the 2026 equal-pay retaliation ruling and the 2025 gig-worker ruling for workers. (Colorado Politics)

Court of Appeals: Judge Grant Sullivan

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Joined the ruling upholding Boulder's camping ban after calling it "pretty plainly targeting the unhoused," wrote the opinion dismissing a suit over a suicide in the Denver jail, and joined the majority upholding a six-month phone-records warrant. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Grant Sullivan (Colorado Court of Appeals)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: mixed

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 9-0. Appointed by Gov. Polis in 2024; formerly an Assistant Solicitor General who represented Secretary of State Griswold in the Trump ballot case. (Governor's Office)
  • 🚩 Joined the 2026 ruling upholding Boulder's camping and tent bans against unhoused people, after saying at argument the law was "pretty plainly targeting the unhoused." (Colorado Politics, May 14, 2026)
  • 🚩 Wrote the 2026 opinion upholding dismissal of a suit over a detainee's suicide in the Denver jail, adopting the federal "deliberate indifference" standard. (Colorado Politics)
  • 🚩 Joined the majority upholding the six-month cell-phone records warrant. (Colorado Politics)

District Court: Judge Michael Kotlarczyk

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Found to meet performance standards, 10-0. He refused to make the CU South residents who sued the city pay its $46,000 in legal fees. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Michael Kotlarczyk (20th Judicial District)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 10-0. A former Senior Assistant Attorney General and Assistant Solicitor General; appointed October 2024; mostly civil cases. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • In the CU South flood-project suit, he denied the City of Boulder's request that the resident plaintiffs, Save South Boulder, pay $46,000 of the city's legal fees. He had earlier dismissed their case, which is on appeal. (Boulder Reporting Lab, Jan 25, 2026)

District Court: Judge J. Chris Larson

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

Found to meet performance standards, 10-0. He ordered the DA to hand over evidence the defense asked for and held to it when the DA objected. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• J. Chris Larson (20th Judicial District)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 10-0. Appointed in 2024 after a career at the U.S. Justice Department, including senior posts in the U.S. Attorney's Office for Colorado; mostly civil cases. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • In a Boulder jail-assault prosecution he ordered the DA to turn over evidence the defense asked for and "did not reverse his order" when the DA objected. (Colorado Politics, Apr 3, 2026)

District Court: Chief Judge Nancy Woodruff Salomone

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

A former public defender, found to meet performance standards, 10-0, with praise for her "balanced concern for both victims and the accused." We flag a 2022 forced-medication order that was reversed on appeal. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Nancy Woodruff Salomone (20th Judicial District)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Chief Judge. Found to meet performance standards, 10-0, citing her "balanced concern for both victims and the accused" and her treatment and competency dockets. A former deputy state public defender. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • Presided over the state case against the Pearl Street attacker and sentenced him to life without parole in 2026. We found no ruling on protest or speech in that case. (Law Week Colorado (AP))
  • 🚩 In 2022 the Court of Appeals reversed her order to forcibly medicate a college student because she refused to let him testify. (Colorado Politics, Feb 4, 2022)

County Court: Judge Elizabeth House Moulton Brodsky

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

A former legal-aid lawyer who has said of her eviction docket, "It's in all of our interest to keep people housed." The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Elizabeth House Moulton Brodsky (Boulder County Court)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: strong

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 10-0, citing her "attentiveness to the stressful experience of appearing in court for litigants." A former managing attorney of Boulder County Legal Services. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • On her eviction docket: "It's in all of our interest to keep people housed." Her courtroom gave tenants information on legal aid and mediation. (Boulder Weekly, Feb 27, 2020)

County Court: Judge Monica Haenselman

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

County Court hears evictions and misdemeanors, so how a judge treats ordinary people matters most. The commission found Judge Haenselman meets standards, but only a third of the non-lawyers surveyed, the people who appear before her, agreed, with low marks for compassion. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Monica Haenselman (Boulder County Court)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: no record · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 10-0, and chosen Presiding Judge by colleagues. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • 🚩 Her 2026 survey score is the lowest of the six local judges, 2.5 of 4 and falling. Only 33% of non-attorneys said she meets standards and 47% said she does not, with low marks for compassion and for explaining her decisions. (2026 Survey Report)

County Court: Judge Zachary Ilya Malkinson

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Read the evaluations

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Review the evaluations

RMPJC's pick: no pick

A former public defender who enforced Colorado's police body-camera law against a sheriff's deputy. The record is below; 🚩 marks the positions we count against the judge.

All the official evaluations are at judicialperformance.colorado.gov.

The candidates

• Zachary Ilya Malkinson (Boulder County Court)

  Anti-genocide: no record · Antiwar: no record · Anti-imperialism: strong · Pro-worker: no record

  Our boycott list: not listed.

  • Found to meet performance standards, 10-0. A former public defender in Oakland, California, and criminal defense lawyer. (Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation)
  • Enforced Colorado's 2020 police-accountability law against a sheriff's deputy who began investigating without turning on his camera, excluding the deputy's unrecorded observations. (Colorado Politics, Sep 12, 2024)

Amendment 81

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Requires state and local police to try to determine whether a person charged with a violent crime, or with a prior felony, is lawfully present, and to notify federal immigration authorities within 72 hours if they cannot. (2026 Blue Book, p. 15)

It hands people to ICE at the point of a charge, before any conviction.

Amendment 82

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Creates a constitutional right to buy natural gas for cooking or heating, and for utilities to sell it. (2026 Blue Book, p. 19)

It writes the gas industry's market into the constitution and could stop local governments limiting gas in new buildings.

Amendment 83

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Creates a constitutional right to hunt and fish, and makes hunting and fishing the preferred way to manage wildlife. (2026 Blue Book, p. 21)

It locks wildlife policy into the constitution and sets a precedent against future conservation.

Amendment 84

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Requires voters to give identification information, in addition to their signature, for a mail ballot to count. (2026 Blue Book, p. 24)

It adds a hurdle to mail voting that risks costing eligible voters their votes.

Amendment 85

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Requires ballot titles to be written at no more than an eighth-grade reading level, and overrides laws requiring specific language in them. (2026 Blue Book, p. 27)

It could make it harder to put measures such as taxes on the wealthy before voters.

Amendment 86

Our pick: Personal choice

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: Neutral

Amendment 86 would require any change to Colorado's congressional map between censuses to go through the independent commission voters created in 2018, after at least three public meetings, with the state Supreme Court's approval. It bans maps that purposefully favor one political party. We compared its text with the 2018 amendment: apart from that new rule, it is the same, word for word (2026 Blue Book, pages 30 and 71).

The commission is genuinely independent. Politicians, party officials, campaign staff and lobbyists are barred from serving. Retired judges from different parties and a random drawing choose its twelve members: four Democrats, four Republicans and four unaffiliated voters. No map passes without eight votes, including two of the unaffiliated members, and nonpartisan staff draw the maps. Its limits: legislative party leaders nominate the pools for four of the seats, and voters outside the two big parties are represented only through the unaffiliated seats.

The measure is backed by Advance Colorado, and one of its committees took $250,000 from a PAC created by House Speaker Mike Johnson (Colorado Sun). The motive is partisan: other states are redrawing their maps mid-decade to add Republican seats, and this stops Colorado answering in kind.

• Yes keeps map-drawing with the independent commission. It is the more democratic choice, but the other side may gain power in Congress while Colorado cannot respond.
• No leaves Colorado free to redraw its own map mid-decade. The side we support may gain power, but you are voting to suppress the other side's vote.

Where we differ: the DSA picks the option that keeps more power for its own side. We do not pick a side on fair maps; we leave it to you.

Amendment 87

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Yes

Labor's pick: Yes

Progressives' pick: Yes

Working Families' pick: Yes

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Yes

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Replaces the flat state income tax with graduated rates: lower rates on incomes up to $100,000, the same rate from $100,000 to $500,000, higher rates above that. The new money goes to K-12 education, health care and early childhood care and education. (2026 Blue Book, p. 33)

The wealthy pay their share and most working people pay less.

Proposition NN

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Yes

Labor's pick: Yes

Progressives' pick: Yes

Working Families' pick: Yes

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Yes

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Lets the state keep revenue that TABOR would otherwise refund, up to what it spends on public education, and spend it on K-12 education and programs for children. (2026 Blue Book, p. 41)

More money for public schools and children.

Proposition 132

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Increases penalties for possessing or distributing fentanyl, and removes reduced penalties in mitigating circumstances. (2026 Blue Book, p. 48)

Longer sentences expand prisons without treating addiction.

Proposition 133

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Mandates life without parole for child sex trafficking convictions and widens the crime to include buying sex with a minor. (2026 Blue Book, p. 52)

It expands the prison system without the accountability or healing it claims to deliver.

Proposition 134

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Requires school and college sports teams to be designated male-only or female-only by biological sex. (2026 Blue Book, p. 55)

It targets transgender students.

Proposition 135

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Bans surgeries on minors that alter sex characteristics in response to their perception of sex or gender, and bars public funds and insurance from paying for them. (2026 Blue Book, p. 59)

It targets transgender young people and their care.

Proposition 136

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: No

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Caps the state income tax rate at 4.4 percent. (2026 Blue Book, p. 62)

It would undercut Amendment 87's higher rates on the wealthy: if both pass, the Blue Book says the outcome is unclear and generally goes to whichever gets more votes.

A note on the DSA's guide: it says Proposition 136 would make “Proposition NN (graduated income tax)” unenforceable. The graduated income tax is Amendment 87 (2026 Blue Book).

Proposition 137

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: No

Working Families' pick: Yes

Boulder County Democrats' pick: No

RMPJC's pick: Neutral

What it does: Directs part of existing sales tax on sporting goods to conservation, wildfire mitigation and outdoor recreation, and exempts it from the TABOR limit. (2026 Blue Book, p. 64)

It takes money that would otherwise be available for health care and education. This is our weakest no.

Boulder County Issue 1A

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Yes

Labor's pick: Yes

Progressives' pick: Yes

Working Families' pick: Yes

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Yes

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Raises Boulder County property taxes by $30 million a year, by a mill levy of 2.579 mills, to fund early childhood care and education. (Boulder County sample ballot)

Childcare that working families can afford, and better pay for the people who provide it.

Boulder County Question 200

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: Yes

Labor's pick: No

Progressives' pick: No position

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Increases the Boulder County Board of Commissioners from three members to five. (Boulder County sample ballot)

Two more commissioners would cost the county an estimated $300,000 to $500,000 a year (Yellow Scene, Boulder Reporting Lab), at a time when it has eliminated about 130 positions and is trimming its budget. That money belongs with the workers and services the county is cutting back, not with more people at the top. Better representation matters, but adding bosses while laying off the people who do the work is the wrong order.

The campaign for it, Big Tent BoCo, took $45,000 from a trust of Kent Thiry, who this year also gave $35,000 to the Colorado Conservative Leadership Fund (Colorado Secretary of State filings).

Boulder County Question 201

Our pick: Personal choice

DSA's pick: Option 2

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: Option 2

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Neutral

Only matters if Question 200 passes. We say no on 200; if it passes anyway, this decides how the five are elected.

If Question 200 passes, Question 201 decides how the five commissioners are elected.

• Option 1: all five elected by district, each only by the voters who live there. Every part of the county has its own commissioner, and a campaign only has to reach one district, which keeps running for office within reach of ordinary people. You vote for one of the five. It is the more democratic choice, but candidates we oppose may win some district seats.
• Option 2: three elected by district, plus two elected by the whole county. You vote for three of the five, but the two countywide seats are decided by the countywide majority and cost the most to campaign for. The side we support may gain power, but you are voting to suppress the votes of communities that are a minority countywide. Courts have struck down at-large systems under the Voting Rights Act for diluting exactly those votes (Thornburg v. Gingles, 1986). The DSA's guide picks Option 2, in part because the countywide seats "could potentially make it possible for BCDSA to run a candidate to contest one of those seats."

Where we differ: the DSA picks the option that gives it more power at the cost of fair representation. We leave it to you.

City of Boulder Issue 2J

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Yes (endorsed)

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: Yes

Working Families' pick: Yes

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Taxes homes left empty for more than half the year, about $4,000 a year each, rising with inflation to a cap of $7,000. The money goes to general city services. (City of Boulder)

Housing is for living in, not for speculation. One caution: the money goes to the general fund, not to housing.

City of Boulder Issue 2K

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: Yes

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Lets the city borrow up to $400 million for city facilities, repaid by a property tax increase (City of Boulder). The largest project on its list is a new police and 911 headquarters, estimated by the city at $170 million (City of Boulder).

We support fixing the city's community buildings, but not by tying them to a new police headquarters. Separate them and ask again.

City of Boulder Question 2L

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Yes

Labor's pick: Yes

Progressives' pick: Yes

Working Families' pick: Yes

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Yes

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Writes into the city charter a guaranteed right for full-time firefighters to bargain collectively. Today the right exists only in their contract and a city ordinance. (City of Boulder)

Workers' right to bargain should be permanent, not a contract term.

City of Boulder Question 2M

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: No

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: Yes

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Neutral

What it does: Changes the city's debt limit to be calculated on the actual value of property rather than its assessed value, allowing the city to borrow more. (City of Boulder)

Until the city shows it can fund working people's needs on a stable budget, it should not expand its borrowing.

Front Range Passenger Rail Issue 7A

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: Yes

Labor's pick: Yes

Progressives' pick: Yes

Working Families' pick: Yes

Boulder County Democrats' pick: Yes

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Creates a 0.333 percent sales and use tax, about $295 million a year, for the Front Range Passenger Rail District. (2026 Blue Book, p. 100)

Sales taxes fall hardest on working people, but public rail along the Front Range is worth it.

Lafayette Issue 2A

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Extends an existing property tax that expires at the end of this year, about $713,000 a year, for running and maintaining Lamont Does Park. It is not a new tax and not an increase. (2026 TABOR notice)

A park that is free to everyone, paid for by a tax people are already paying. Letting it lapse would cost the upkeep and save nobody anything.

Longmont Issue 3A

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Raises taxes to maintain and expand police and fire services. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

We would vote for firefighters on their own, and say so plainly: the equipment, the staffing and the wildfire work all need paying for. This measure ties them to expanding a police department that has pushed hardest for Flock and Axon surveillance cameras, and nothing in it stops the money going there. Split it and we are a yes.

Longmont Question 3B

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Amends the city charter so that Longmont open space cannot be sold without a vote of the people. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Land that is public stays public unless the public agrees otherwise. That is the whole measure.

Longmont Question 3C

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Amends the charter to allow ranked choice voting in Longmont elections. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Ranked choice ends the trap where voting for who you actually want helps who you least want. It was put on the ballot by Longmont residents, not by the council.

Longmont Question 3D

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Changes the election cycle so ward seats and at-large seats are elected in alternating years instead of mixed together. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Housekeeping that makes 3C work properly: all the at-large seats would be ranked in one election rather than split across two.

Louisville Issue 2B

Our pick: Personal choice

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Neutral

What it does: Continues a sales tax for historic preservation and the Louisville Historical Museum. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

A sales tax falls hardest on people with the least, and this one pays for something real but small. Louisville residents are better placed than we are to weigh that trade.

Louisville Question 2C

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Widens the range of subjects the city council may discuss in closed executive session, including property deals and "defenses against terrorism". (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Every subject moved behind a closed door is one the public stops hearing argued. Property deals and anything filed under terrorism are exactly where the public should be listening.

Louisville Question 2D

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Lets elected members take office at the first council meeting after results are certified, rather than the first meeting after election day. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Certification can take three weeks. This stops somebody sitting on the council before the count that put them there is final.

Louisville Question 2E

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Raises the signatures needed for a citizen initiative from 5 to 7.5 per cent of registered voters, and for a referendum from 2.5 to 5 per cent. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Doubling the cost of putting a question to your neighbours is not a technical fix. The initiative is the one tool a resident has when the council will not act.

Louisville Question 2F

Our pick: Personal choice

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Neutral

What it does: Allows city bodies to meet outside public buildings, provided every location is accessible to the public. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

The accessibility condition is the part that matters and it is written in. Beyond that this is Louisville’s own arrangement to make.

Louisville Question 2G

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Requires anyone proposing a ballot initiative to submit the text to the city manager and attend a review and comment hearing with staff before filing it. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

It hands the administration advance notice of a measure that may be aimed at the administration, and adds a step a resident has to clear before the clerk will even take the paperwork.

Louisville Question 2H

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Removes gendered pronouns from the charter, replaces "citizen" with "members of the public", and updates "television" to "virtually". (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Replacing "citizen" with "members of the public" is the substantive one: a city serves the people who live in it, whatever their papers say.

Erie Issue 3E

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Creates a town lodging tax on hotel stays and short-term rentals, paid mostly by visitors, with law enforcement and security named among the top uses. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

A tax on visitors rather than residents is a reasonable way to raise money, and we would back it. We will not back new money earmarked for more policing. Swap that line for social services and this is a yes.

Erie Issue 3F

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

What it does: Raises the sales tax and authorises debt to expand and renovate the Erie community centre. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

A sales tax is regressive, which is the cost. What it buys is a place that is open to everyone in a town where demand already exceeds the building.

Niwot Issue 300

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: Incorporates Niwot as a town with an elected council, instead of being governed by Boulder County. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Incorporation grew out of a Niwot business owners’ campaign against Boulder County’s minimum wage. The organisers’ own history says the “key insight” was that “if Niwot incorporated, the town would have the authority to set its own minimum wage” (Niwot Incorporation Committee). Business owners back it because the county’s raises have made it “harder for them to compete with nearby Longmont, where the minimum wage is $1.66 lower” (Boulder Reporting Lab). The county wage is $16.82 an hour in 2026 and rises with inflation each year after (Boulder County). We stand with the workers: keep Niwot under it.

Also worth knowing: the committee expects a new town to repay the $94,500 its backers loaned the campaign (Boulder Reporting Lab).

Niwot Issue 301

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: If 300 passes, forms a home rule charter commission to write the new town’s charter. The commission members are elected on the same ballot. (Boulder County, 2026 ballot issues)

Only takes effect if 300 passes. We recommend No on 300.

If 300 passes anyway, vote No here too: the charter is the next step in building a town we oppose.

Niwot Issue 302

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: If 300 passes, imposes a 2.5 percent town sales and use tax from January 1, 2028, estimated at $2.8 million in the first full year. (2026 TABOR notice)

Only takes effect if 300 passes. We recommend No on 300.

If 300 passes anyway, vote No here too. Sales taxes fall hardest on people with the least: the measure’s own supporters put the cost at about $39 a month for a typical household. Only groceries are guaranteed exempt; the council decides everything else. The use tax adds 2.5 percent to building materials, so a new roof or furnace costs more. And although the money is pitched for roads, the measure lets it be spent on “any lawful municipal purpose.” (2026 TABOR notice)

Niwot Issue 303

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: If 300 passes, imposes a town property tax of 4 mills, estimated at $900,000 in the first full year. (2026 TABOR notice)

Only takes effect if 300 passes. We recommend No on 300.

If 300 passes anyway, vote No here too. The levy is exempted from the state’s 5.5 percent cap on property tax growth, so revenue climbs as values rise without another vote. Commercial property is assessed at more than four times the residential rate, and most Niwot shop leases pass property tax through to the tenant, so much of it lands on the people running small businesses rather than on the owners of the buildings. (2026 TABOR notice)

Niwot Issue 304

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: If 300 passes, imposes a 3 percent special sales tax on retail marijuana from January 1, 2028, on top of the town’s general sales tax, estimated at $60,000 a year. (2026 TABOR notice)

Only takes effect if 300 passes. We recommend No on 300.

If 300 passes anyway, vote No here too. We don’t support new marijuana taxes: stacking tax on tax pushes people back to the illicit market, which is the opposite of what legalization was meant to do.

Niwot Issue 305

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: If 300 passes, lets the new town keep and spend all the revenue it collects, without the TABOR limit. (2026 TABOR notice)

Only takes effect if 300 passes. We recommend No on 300.

If 300 passes anyway, vote No here too: it asks for the TABOR limit to be given up before anyone has seen a budget.

Niwot Issue 306

Our pick: No

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: No

What it does: If 300 passes, authorizes up to $15 million of borrowing for roads, with a total repayment cost of up to $28 million, repaid from the sales and use tax in 302. (2026 TABOR notice)

Only takes effect if 300 passes. We recommend No on 300.

If 300 passes anyway, vote No here too. The town’s own plan assumes 4.7 percent interest, but the ballot allows repayment that works out to about 7 percent — a gap of roughly $4.8 million. A brand-new town with no credit history or audited accounts would borrow at the high end, and the payments would take from about 42 percent to more than half of the projected sales tax. Debt can go back to voters once the town exists and has a real project list. (2026 TABOR notice)

Eldorado Springs Issue 6A

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

What it does: Lets the Eldorado Springs Public Improvement District borrow up to $1,000,000, repaid up to $1,440,000 from special assessments on the properties inside a new local improvement district, to pay for improvements to the Eldorado Springs wastewater system. (2026 TABOR notice)

Sanitation, paid for by the households it serves. On the ballots of Eldorado Springs voters only.

Sombrero Ranch Issue 6B

Our pick: Personal choice

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

What it does: Forms the Sombrero Ranch Public Improvement District and raises property taxes there by $185,000 in 2027, up to 14.47 mills, to resurface the county roads inside the district. (2026 TABOR notice)

A few dozen households deciding to tax themselves to fix their own roads. Theirs to decide; on their ballots only.

Summerlin Issue 6C

Our pick: Personal choice

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

What it does: Forms the Summerlin Public Improvement District and raises property taxes there by $60,000 in 2027, up to 17.34 mills, to resurface the county roads inside the district. (2026 TABOR notice)

The same question as 6B, in a different place, and the same answer: theirs to decide.

Timberline Fire Issue 7B

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

What it does: Raises Timberline Fire Protection District property taxes by $1,200,000 in the first year, an extra 6 mills, to hire firefighters, keep its wildfire mitigation service running, rebuild reserves and fund operations. (2026 TABOR notice)

Firefighters and wildfire mitigation in the mountains west of here, including the free home assessments that keep a fire from reaching the next house. This is what a fire levy should look like, and nothing is bundled into it.

Allenspark Fire Issue 7C

Our pick: Yes

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: no pick

What it does: Raises Allenspark Fire Protection District property taxes by up to $331,000 in 2027, an extra 5.3 mills, for fire, EMS and rescue, including rebuilding depleted reserves and staffing the station on Red Flag days. (2026 TABOR notice)

A volunteer district asking to have crews already at the station on the worst fire days, instead of ten minutes away. Same reasoning as 7B.

Walsenburg Measure 2A: an ICE detention center

Our pick: Yes, if you vote there

DSA's pick: no pick

Labor's pick: no pick

Progressives' pick: no pick

Working Families' pick: no pick

Boulder County Democrats' pick: no pick

RMPJC's pick: Yes

Nobody in Boulder County votes on this one. It is on the City of Walsenburg’s ballot, in Huerfano County, about three hours south. Colorado’s 2-series numbers are local, so the 2A on your ballot is a different question, or none at all — Boulder’s own city measures this year are 2J to 2M.

Walsenburg sits beside the former Huerfano County Correctional Center, a private prison closed since 2010 and owned by CoreCivic. Federal planning documents reported in 2025 listed it as a site for an ICE detention facility of about 1,400 beds, and city and county officials said they had no power to stop the owner using the property as it liked. Residents answered with a citizen initiative that amends the city’s zoning code so that federal immigration detention is not an allowed use in the districts where the prison stands. The mayor opposes it. The Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center endorses it, and calls it the most consequential local measure in Colorado this year — a town that can zone an ICE facility out is a precedent every other town can copy.

What you can do from here: the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition is canvassing Walsenburg on Saturday, October 24, from 10 to 1. It is on our calendar.

We have not seen the certified ballot. The wording above is from reporting in the Walsenburg World Journal and from the Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center’s 2026 voter guide, which is where the number 2A comes from as well. The Huerfano County Clerk prints the official title. (World Journal, Colorado Public Radio on the proposed ICE sites)