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As presidential battleground state, Colorado is in full swing

Unlike 2004 race, this election is open warfare

By M.E. Sprengelmeyer, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published October 2, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.

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John McCain speaks at Wagner Equipment in Aurora last July. He's back in Denver Thursday and heads to Pueblo on Friday.

Matt Mcclain / The Rocky

John McCain speaks at Wagner Equipment in Aurora last July. He's back in Denver Thursday and heads to Pueblo on Friday.

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Sen. John Kerry flirted with Colorado in 2004.

This year, Sen. Barack Obama is here to dance.

In the first week of October four years ago, the Democratic presidential nominee and his campaign still were talking about turning the state from red to blue.

But the polls still put Kerry in the close-but-no-cigar category. He had not slipped ahead of President Bush all year.

By October, his campaign already had yanked some planned television ads off the air. Analysts, journalists and even some party insiders still wondered if all this talk of Colorado as a true "battleground" state was premature.

As Denver pollster Lori Weigel said at the time, there were parts of the state where a Democrat need not bother showing his face.

"Pigs flying. Hell freezing over," Weigel said at the time. "All those things come to mind when I think of Kerry winning rural Colorado."

Four years later, there's no doubt about the state's competitiveness. Just look at the travel schedules. This week alone, Obama spoke in Westminster - his second trip to Colorado since the Democratic National Convention. His wife, Michelle, spoke at a rally in Boulder on Wednesday.

Today, Republican Sen. John McCain is back in Denver for his second visit in recent weeks, and he heads to Pueblo on Friday. Running mate Sarah Palin makes her third recent visit on Saturday for a private fundraiser in Centennial.

"Obama and (wife) Michelle are doing rallies in Grand Junction. How amazing is that?" said Chris Gates, the former state Democratic Party chair who watched Colorado reach what he calls "the cusp" of battleground status in 2004.

Democratic consultant Rick Ridder said Kerry's flirtation with Colorado "wasn't quite a bluff, but it was perceived to be a long shot." And those hopes were never backed up by a poll showing Kerry pulling even with Bush.

Kerry ended up losing the state to Bush, short by about 100,000 votes. But back then, the Republican voter registration advantage over Democrats was about 150,000 voters. Since then, Democrats have narrowed the gap substantially at the same time the struggling economy and Bush's unpopularity have created challenges for Republicans all over the country.

"The dynamics are so completely different," Ridder said. "Obama is here. They're strong. They're active. They're putting more resources into the state instead of withdrawing resources."

As a battleground state, "2004 was our coming-out party," Weigel said. "In 2008, we're dancing with every guy at the dance."

Getting big attention for one election cycle does not guarantee a lot of attention next time. It depends on results and trends.

"If (Obama) wins Colorado and the election, the idea of starting off with the assumption the state is Republican-until-proven-otherwise will have to be adjusted," said Norman Provizer, political science professor at Metropolitan State College in Denver.

An Obama victory could turn Colorado "battlefield blue," meaning a Democratic state that Republicans still will fight to regain - more like Pennsylvania than Massachusetts.

If McCain and Republicans can hold the state, as they have in all but one presidential election (1992) over the past 44 years, then Democrats might think twice before getting their hopes up again.

Staff writer Sara Burnett contributed to this story.

Presidential candidate's visits to Colorado

* Sept. 29 - Obama Public event in Westminster

* Sept. 16 - Obama Public event in Golden

* Sept. 15 - Palin Public event in Golden

* Sept. 15 - Obama Public events in Grand Junction and Pueblo

* Sept. 6 - McCain and Palin Public event in Colorado Springs

* Aug. 27, 28 - Obama and Biden Democratic National Convention

* July 30 - McCain Public event in Aurora

* July 29 - McCain Private fundraiser

* July 25 - McCain Public event in Denver, private meeting with Dalai Lama in Aspen

* July 7 - McCain Public event in Denver

* July 2 - Obama Public event in Colorado Springs

* May 27 - McCain Public event in Denver

* May 2 - McCain Public event in Denver

* March 27 - McCain News conference with Mitt Romney in Denver

* Jan. 20 - Obama Public event in Denver

Totals so far:

McCain campaign 9 stops

Obama campaign 6 stops

McCain's visit

TODAY

* What: Women's town hall

* Where: Sheraton Grand Hotel, 1550 Court Place, Denver

* When: Doors open 2:30 p.m. Program scheduled to begin at 3:45 p.m.

* Tickets: Required, but free. Contact campaign headquarters at 6334 S. Racine Circle, Suite 200, Centennial, 303-952-4670, or jdubois@mccain08hq.com.

FRIDAY

* What: Town hall meeting

* Where: Massari Arena, Colorado State University, Pueblo

* When: Doors open 9 a.m. Program scheduled for 11 a.m.

* Tickets: Required, but free. Contact the Pueblo campaign office, 830 N. Main St., 719-543-1725 or anickel@mccain08hq.com.

Follow it live

* For live updates on John McCain's event today in Denver, go to RockyMountainNews.com

Comments

  • October 2, 2008

    6:26 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    LesterGovernment writes:

    It's true, Colorado is a blue state. We got here with the help of billionaire liberals, manipulation of the State Constitution in the name of 'campaign finance reform' and 30 years of incompetent public school teachers and administrators. Get ready for bread and circuses!

  • October 2, 2008

    7:31 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    cdawg writes:

    Yes, blame everything on the public school teachers! In many districts they can't even teach religion in science class! This is why America is in the sorry shape it is. God help us from our public school teachers and the billionaire liberals who support them!

  • October 2, 2008

    11:13 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    Mulligan writes:

    cdawg writes:

    Yes, blame everything on the public school teachers! In many districts they can't even teach religion in science class! This is why America is in the sorry shape it is. God help us from our public school teachers and the billionaire liberals who support them!

    Religion isn't science. I think it's great that teachers aren't allowed to teach religion in a science class. Keep 'em separate.

    Public school teachers deserve our respect. Obviously, they don't have yours.

  • October 2, 2008

    2:06 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    HopiMedicineMan writes:

    Go to Comaps.com and look at the gerrymandering from the court.
    Congressional 7, is a joke.

    Went to get my paper this morning and my McCain-Palin yard sign
    had been slashed. I think I'll leave up as a reverse tribute to liberalism.

  • October 2, 2008

    8:51 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    LesterGovernment writes:

    cynical_one writes:
    Wow, that's a huge stretch. Do actually think before you post?

    Okay, we may not actually see bread and circuses in our lifetimes, but other than that, what part is a stretch?

    Do you actually think? Ever?

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