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New strategy for Ref C foes

Group pulls TV ads in favor of targeting divided Republicans

Lynn Bartels, Rocky Mountain News

Published October 27, 2005 at midnight

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A group opposing Referendum C canceled TV ads and instead is targeting Republicans by mail and radio after internal polling showed those voters will decide the election.

The poll shows that generally Democrats favor the tax measure, unaffiliated voters oppose it and Republicans are torn, said Rep. Joe Stengel, R-Littleton, who is overseeing the group If C Wins, You Lose.

"We'll get a better bang for our buck by going directly to Republican households," he said.

Both sides of Ref C are working around the clock, calling, walking and mailing Coloradans to tell them their vote counts on Tuesday.

Supporters have statewide, streetside honk-and-wave rallies planned today to kick off the final push before Election Day.

"We're just ramping it up to get ready for the final days," said Sheila MacDonald, campaign manager for the pro Ref C group.

"We have people who have worked so hard to get this thing passed."

In Denver, supporters waving Ref C signs will stand on Speer Boulevard between Colfax Avenue and Blake Street from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

At the same time, honk-and- waves will also be going on in Grand Junction, Colorado Springs, Trinidad, Durango, Greeley, Fort Collins and other Colorado locations, MacDonald said.

Republican Gov. Bill Owens, who supports the measure, will campaign today in Hayden, Pueblo and Grand Junction, his office said.

Owens' support is the reason Republicans are divided, Stengel said. If C Wins, You Lose had planned to spend about $350,000 for a final TV blitz, but changed its strategy after it got poll results.

"Putting an ad up on TV, you're talking to everybody," Stengel said. "We wanted to energize our Republican voters, talk directly to them."

The mail piece describes Ref C as a tax grab, he said. The radio spot will play during programs that attract conservative listeners, including talk shows hosted by Rush Limbaugh, Mike Rosen and Peter Boyles.

The radio commercial features GOP gubernatorial candidate Marc Holtzman blasting Referendum C, and its companion measure, Referendum D. He says the state needs to look at other options to solve its budget problems.

"At the end of the day, C and D mean less money in your pocket," Holtzman says. "And whatever you call it, that's a tax increase. That's the worst choice we can make in our uncertain economy."

Holtzman also starred in the TV spot paid for by If C Wins, You Lose.

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