Mandy Connell 2026 Election Guide

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PLEASE DON’T BE AN UNINFORMED VOTER You may not agree with me on some issues, but make sure you REALLY understand what you’re voting on before you vote. PLEASE. Now here’s what I think about the fourteen ballot initiatives we all will be voting on.

THERE ARE MANY, MANY LOCAL BALLOT INITIATIVES So many it is impossible for me to have an educated opinion to give you on most of them. I only say this because you need to know it may take you a few minutes to fill out your ballot this year so don’t wait until the last minute to fill yours out. If you don’t understand what the ballot initiative means, put the language into your search engine and ask for a balanced and fair analysis. It’s better than nothing.

PROPOSITION NN- THIS IS AN ABSOLUTE HARD NO.

Propositon NN is a nightmare and it’s being sold as more money for schools when it is clearly NOT. Proposition NN would permanently increase the TABOR limits and allow the state to keep a crap ton more of OUR money that we should have gotten back. THIS IS A TAX INCREASE. Legislative Council currently projects the state would eliminate $329.9 million in TABOR refunds in FY2026-27 and $521.0 million in FY2027-28 that taxpayers would otherwise receive under current law. That's about $851 million over the first two years. And about the “it’s for the chilllldrreeen” nonsense. For ten years this will go into education. After that it becomes a slush fund for the Legislature. Please vote no on this money grab.

AMENDMENT 81 - YES

Amendment 81 would require law enforcement to call the Department of Homeland Security is someone is arrested for a violent crime or has a prior felony, and is in the country illegally. This does NOT force law enforcement to act as ICE agents. How is this not happening already?

AMENDMENT 82 - YES

It’s absurd we are having to vote for the right to buy and use natural gas in our homes and businesses but here we are. This is a direct pushback to increasingly intrusive edicts by government about electrification and whatnot. I hope this passes in a landslide to send a message.

AMENDMENT 83 - YES

Another “I can’t believe we have to vote on this” amendment. It’s a vote for the right to hunt and fish in Colorado, and this one pushes back against all the animal rights nuts on the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission who hate both hunting and fishing. It leaves in place all the rules and regulations we currently have, but makes sure we still have the right to hunt our own food.

AMENDMENT 84 - YES

I don’t care if you think every election is the MOST SECURE IN THE WORLD, this will make it better. And it will help those who don’t have such confidence have a little more by requiring voters add either their CO Real ID Drivers License number or the last four of their social to their ballots for better verification. Everyone has one of those two things. EVERYONE.

AMENDMENT 85 - YES

This will require that ballot initiatives be written at an 8th grade level in clear language. No more sneaky ballot measures written in legalese would be very helpful.

AMENDMENT 86 - YES

This is a citizen response the games some Colorado Democrats were trying to play by trying to override our VERY popular Fair Districting system by engaging in political mid term gerrymandering. This amendment prevents any such mid term redistricting unless approved by the independent redistricting committee and the Colorado Supreme Court. Another “we shouldn’t need this” but here we are.

AMENDMENT 87 - HELL NO

This is the graduated income tax pushed by progressives who say it will “attack income inequality” by taxing the rich at a higher level. Except it doesn’t do that at all. Four of the top five states with the GREATEST income inequality have a progressive income tax. If you aren’t currently rich, don’t worry, they will come for you. If this passes I fully expect the income tax bracket creep that happens with federal income taxes to happen here. Back in 1913 when the Federal Income Tax was created, it ONLY taxed the RICH! Here is what that looked like:

And how did that work out for us now? If this passes we will no longer be arguing about a progressive income tax, we’ll be arguing about raising the rates on YOUR bracket. They never get tired of coming for our money.

PROP 132 - YES, BUT…

Another unfortunate needed bill because the Legislature doesn’t think selling deadly fentanyl is that big a deal. In 2019, Colorado lawmakers weakened penalties for drug possession. Within a year, the state’s overdose rate had increased by more than 800%. In 2022, lawmakers reversed course, restoring many—but not all—of the penalties they had eliminated. Proposition 132 would address many of the remaining gaps and impose tougher sentencing requirements. I am voting yes, but if you’re the sort to vote against mandatory minimums you want to vote no on this. I am making an exception because fentanyl has changed the game in a very serious way. This is a you pick.

PROP 133 - YES, BUT…

This is another mandatory minimum bill, hence the BUT. We know that people who suffer abuse are more likely to become abusers themselves, so we MUST stop the cycle of sexual abuse of children. MUST. This bill will impose a mandatory sentence of life in prison for anyone who buys or sells a minor child for sex in Colorado. I struggle with any bill that overrides and a judge and jury, but if you sell a child for sex you need to be removed from society. Period.

PROP 134 - YES!

This bill protects girls sports. It simply says that school or association based sports may be divided into three categories, girls, boys, and coed. No boys can play on girls teams, and girls are only allowed on a boys team if that sport is not offered for girls. It also defines what is a girl very elegantly. The feelings of a tiny fraction of boys who believe they are girls should not supercede the feelings of the rest of the girls. Period. This must pass.

PROP 135 - YES!

This ballot iniative would prevent medical personel from making permanent, life altering physical changes to a child to deny their biological gender. It does nothing to stop or prevent an adult from seeking such changes. As the medical community has abandoned evidence based medicine in the pursuit of lucrative lifetime medical patients, I believe this is necessary. Additionally, we have more and more studies showing that medically affirming kids does NOT help with mental health outcomes, it actually seemed to correlated with WORSE outcomes.

PROP 136 - YES

The initiative would cap our income taxes at the current 4.4% so they can never go higher. If this passes AND the Amendment 87 tax increase passes, whichever one gets the most votes becomes law, so it is SUPER important that you vote no on 87 and YES on this one!

PROP 137 - NO

This is another TABOR grab. We already fund wildfire mitigation and this is would just give our TABOR refunds to special interests who don’t need them. It exempts more taxes from TABOR limits. They have enough of our money. PERIOD.

GOVERNOR: PHIL WEISER V VICTOR MARX V GREG LOPEZ

I am not giving a position on this race. You know how I feel about the GOP candidate and I can’t vote for Weiser because he’s wrong about literally everything. Lopez is a reliable if uninspiring conservative. Do what you want here. I’m not taking a position because when Marx gets his ass handed to him on a platter I’m not taking the blame, and you know there will be plenty of fingers pointing at everyone but him.

YOU PICK

US SENATE: SENATOR JOHN HICKENLOOPER V MARK BAISLEY V BOB CHEW

I think this is a lock for Hick. I’m voting for Bob Chew, who is not the most inspiring candidate either, but I like the possibility of an outsider making a run for it from the Forward party. Mark Baisley is a staunch pro-life Republican who has also been attached to Tina Peters, which makes him entirely unelectable in a statewide race in Colorado.

MY PICK: BOB CHEW

1ST CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: MILAT KIROS V CHRISTY PETERSON V DR SHIMON BLAU

This is a pretty solid Democrat district and Milat Kiros is the Democratic Socialist nominee so I’m afraid she’s going to win. Christy Peterson has the wrong letter behind her name to have a chance in this HARD BLUE district, so I’m throwing my support behind Dr. Shimon Blau, a Jewish man who was so horrified that Kiros won he jumped into the race to try and stop her. And she needs to be stopped.

MY PICK: DR. SHIMON BLAU

2ND CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: REP. JOE NEGUSE V KELLY DENNISON

This is a solid blue district so it won’t matter if we vote for Kelly Dennison, Neguse is practically a lock.

MY PICK: KELLY DENNISON

3RD CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: REP. JEFF HURD V DWAYNE ROMERO

This district remains Republican +5 so Hurd should win handily and he deserves to, he’s done a good job representing the district.

MY PICK: JEFF HURD

4TH CONGRESSONAL DISTRICT: REP. LAUREN BOEBERT V EILEEN LAUBACHER

I’ve been critical of Lauren Boebert in the past but she’s done a good job keeping her head down and working for the people of the 4th since she switched districts. I think this is still a relatively safe seat but nearly as safe as it used to be.

MY PICK: LAUREN BOEBERT

5TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: REP. JEFF CRANK V JESSICA KILLIN

This race is going to be very close I think. First off, Crank has both a Libertarian and a Constitution party to pull from his vote totals. Second, Killin is a formidable candidate with a strong background as a veteran and local. Crank has done a good job so far and deserves to go back. Don’t sit this one out.

MY PICK: JEFF CRANK

6TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: REP. JASON CROW V JASON CLARK

As I had literally never heard Jason Clark’s name until I looked it up for this voter guide I’m betting the only way he wins is if someone thinks they are voting for Jason Crow and mark Jason Clark instead. He’s got no positions on his website to speak of.

MY PICK: IT WON’T MATTER, JASON CROW WILL WIN.

7TH CONGRESSIONAL RACE: REP. BRITTANY PETERSON V TIM BENNETT

I wish this district were competitive for a Republican because I really like Tim Bennett. But Peterson won by 14.5% in 2024 so this is a fairly safe seat for her. But if you’re in the 7th, vote for Bennett.

MY PICK: TIM BENNETT

8TH CONGRESSIONAL RACE: REP. GABE EVANS V MANNY RUTINEL

Manny Rutinel hated ranching until he wanted to run in this district. He advocated veganism until he needed rancher votes. He’s had every position known to man so we have no idea what he’s really about. Gabe Evans has done a good job focusing on the needs of the voters in the 8th and I hope they send him back to Congress but this one is going to be a squeaker.

MY PICK: GABE EVANS.

STATE HOUSE AND SENATE PICKS:

I am urging you all to just vote Republican for any and all state House and Senate races. We’ve got to restore some sense of balance to the Legislature before they make us even more unaffordable and overregulated. I don’t care what any Democrat candidate says, they will NOT lower costs on ANYTHING. They simply don’t know how.

ATTORNEY GENERAL: JENA GRISWOLD V MICHAEL ALLEN

DA Michael Allen is the ONLY choice with experience and competence. Griswold is both corrupt and incompetent and has demonstrated that over and over again.

MY PICK: MICHAEL ALLEN

SECRETARY OF STATE: AMANDA GONZALEZ V JAMES WILEY

James Wiley is a total longshot here. Gonzalez wants business as usual with elections while Wiley wants to do away with mail in ballots. He won’t win, but here.

MY PICK: JAMES WILEY

TREASURER: JEFF BRIDGES V KEVIN GRANTHAM

Kevin Grantham is a straight shooter and and a stand up guy. He would be an excellent Treasurer.

MY PICK: KEVIN GRANTHAM

THE IDIOTIC COCO TRAIN - NO!

If you are one of the Special Few who gets to vote on whether or not to spend gobs of money on Front Range Passenger Rail, please read this column before you vote NO on this dumb and very expensive plan to move a tiny fraction of people up and down the Front Range. You bought the lies about FastTracks, don’t get fooled again. If it were a good idea, private business would already be doing it.

DOUGLAS COUNTY MILL LEVY OVERRIDE - NO

I voted yes on the last one of these, but the school board is flirting with allowing the union back into the fold for a collective bargaining agreement and so I am a no on this one. The union will not be getting more of my money.

DOUGCO 3 TO 5 COMMISSIONERS - YES

I usually don’t vote for bigger government. I’m making an exception. The way the current county commissioners are running things like their little fiefdom has convinced me more representative voices are needed on the board. The county has grown exponentially and covers too much territory to leave decision making up to three.

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