Democrats control 100% of Colorado’s government and hold all statewide offices, with the exception of one at-large seat on the Democrat-controlled University of Colorado Board of Regents. Republicans hope to change the balance in November. The Gazette’s editorial board met with Colorado Republican Party Chair Kristi Burton Brown to discuss how her party hopes to win races.

Gazette: What made you interested in leading the Republican Party in a state that seems to be getting more Democratic all the time?

Brown: I’m a constitutional attorney, so I really care about policy in our state as well as the values of the Republican Party. I did work as a policy analyst in the state Senate. I helped negotiate the free speech on campus bill for Sen. Tim Neville and also have helped coordinate statewide campaigns like one for state treasurer, I’ve been a spokesperson for ballot initiatives in Colorado and then been a precinct leader. So, I’ve kind of done a whole variety of things in the party for issues, for elected officials and actually have worked in different capacities for Congressman (Doug) Lamborn, Congressman (Ken) Buck and Congresswoman (Lauren) Boebert over the years. So, I thought running for chairman would give me a good chance to help rebrand our party and get us back on track here in Colorado.

Gazette: How do you want to rebrand your party?

Brown: Our Republican commitment to Colorado is what we’re really running on, and I think it sets out how the Republican Party should be rebranded in Colorado, not compromising our principles. We’re still a constitutional conservative party, but really talking about those kitchen table issues that people and families deal with on an everyday basis, like public safety, affordability and educational options.

Gazette: Do you think Republicans can win back either the state House or the state Senate any time soon?

Brown: I do. Consider redistricting. It gave us actually a perfect opportunity to have a fair playing field, which we haven’t had in a decade. The Colorado state House became the most gerrymandered legislative chamber for Democrats in the entire nation. So that was erased in many ways through redistricting. I don’t think the redistricting gives us a particular advantage, but it creates fair lines, and that’s what we argued for. There are seven state Senate seats in play in Colorado. Two of those are seats we have to win again by defending those seats. And if we win three of the rest, we take back the Senate. It’s extremely possible, especially in a year like 2022. The state House would be a steeper climb. We’d have to win nine out of 15 competitive seats. It’s possible, but more difficult. So, the state Senate is our focus.

Gazette: What about the gubernatorial race? Do you think Republicans have a shot at that?

Brown: Yes. Is it probably the toughest statewide seat to take back? Yes, but I think we see in polling Coloradans are ready to restore balance. They are tired of the one-party control that’s happened over the last decade. But if you look at polling, Jared Polis always polls higher than the other Democrats around the state. (President Joe) Biden is in terrible territory. (Sen. Michael) Bennet is in dangerous territory. Whereas Jared Polis still polls ahead of Republicans.

Gazette: Recent polling shows him 6 points ahead of a generic Republican.

Brown: Yes, whereas Democrats statewide are underwater. So, he is doing better than the rest of them. I think that can change between now and November. So, we’re going to fight and give it everything we’ve got in all the races. I think winning back the treasurer, attorney general, U.S. Senate, the new (8th) Congressional District and Congressional District 7 with Ed Perlmutter’s retirement are probably our targets.

Gazette: Secretary of state?

Brown: Yes, that too. We can win that one.

Gazette: How do you feel about the attorney general’s race?

Brown: It’s extremely positive. I think it’s one of our top targets. Certainly, (Attorney General) Phil Weiser is good at raising money. But he’s not good at anything else. He claims to be Colorado’s top law enforcement officer. That’s his language, not mine. Yet, we see a 25-year high in violent crime, Colorado being number one in auto thefts, fourth in recidivism rates across the nation. And then you contrast that with our candidate, John Kellner (district attorney, 18th Judicial District), who has solved over half the cold cases. That’s in the biggest judicial district in the in the state, and he has an incredible record both in military and crime and I think can win against Phil Weiser.

Gazette: The law professor versus the prosecutor?

Brown: You got it. That’s what it’s going to be.

Gazette: Back to the governor’s race. We have a Democratic governor in Jared Polis who seems good at expressing a center-right and increasingly right-leaning agenda. He says he dreams of eliminating the state income tax, for example. What do you say to that? Do you buy any of it? Is he as moderate as he tries to appear?

Brown: Not at all. I mean, I think a perfect example of that is this year he’s talking about delaying the gas tax that he fought for and signed last year when he wasn’t up for reelection. Our job is to force Jared Polis to run on his record, not his rhetoric. If you listen to his State of the State address, you think he’s a Republican. He talks about saving us money, making Colorado one of the top 10 safest states, etc. But what has he actually been doing over the last three years? The complete opposite of what he’s saying. We have to point out the differences. We have to make him campaign on his record, which is very bad for the people of Colorado.

Gazette: OK, the Senate race. This seems like the Colorado GOP’s greatest opportunity to pick up a statewide office. Yet, we don’t see any A-list candidates running with solid name recognition.

Brown: We’ve yet to know who our absolute front-runner is. I don’t think it’s uncommon to not know that for a fact before the state convention (April 9). But I do think you’re going to see the primary severely narrowed down on April 9th. Only one candidate is fully petitioning on, and that’s Joe O’Dea. The rest are all going through the assembly, and no more than three can make the ballot. I think only two will make it. So, I think after April 9th, I think we will see the race narrowed down to three candidates and the front-runner will become very apparent. Because of this circumstance, Michael Bennet has not been able to zero in on any specific Republican and launch any effective attacks against them, whereas all of our candidates and our party are all focused on exposing Michael Bennet for the liberal, ineffective senator that he is. We will absolutely be able to defeat Michael Bennet.

Gazette: You can paint Bennet as a tool of an unpopular administration. But will you give voters something to vote for, instead of simply voting against Bennet?

Brown: You really hit on something important. Republicans have to be giving people something to vote for. I think that’s one of the ways we’re trying to rebrand the party. We’re not going to complain about how the Democrats have been wrong. We have to propose better solutions. So, I think our ideal candidate has to be a problem solver. And ideally, they will have shown through a business or other record in their life that they have solved problems that affect people’s everyday lives. We need someone who can effectively talk about solutions to inflation, crime and national security issues.

Gazette: What about new blood versus old blood? In other words, should retread politicians with name recognition seek office this year?

Brown: The field is full of new people, and I actually think that’s good for Colorado. I think people want new faces, new ideas and new solutions.

Gazette: Let’s talk U.S. House races. What about the competitive districts, or the theoretically competitive districts, including the new CD 8?

Brown: The 8th and the 7th are the two that we’re very focused on. Without question, the 8th is the most competitive. I mean, it’s pretty much a dead heat between Democrats and Republicans. President (Donald) Trump won it in 2016. It’s 38% Hispanic. With Ed Perlmutter’s retirement in the 7th, combined with the Democrats choosing Brittany Pettersen (CD & candidate) — who tried to bring heroin injection sites into Colorado — we are really strong.

Gazette: Do you think Rep. Lauren Boebert is strong for re-election in the 3rd District?

Brown: I do. I was a senior policy adviser on her campaign in 2020 and I know how her campaign works. I think she’s extremely strong. We’re not too worried there.

Gazette: With Boebert’s district redrawn, is it to her advantage?

Brown: It’s a safe Republican seat. I mean, she has to work — all of our candidates have to work — and she will. But it’s pretty safe.

Gazette: A lot of Republicans are trying to reexamine the last election and prove fraud, which seems problematic for your party. It doesn’t seem like a party looking forward. Are you worried about that?

Brown: Great question. This issue is waning. I don’t think people are losing concern with ensuring that elections are secure. However, I think people’s insistence on recounting and redoing the 2020 election is going away as I travel and talk to Republicans across the state. They are agreeing that we have to be a future-focused party and we have to put on the 2022 election. The 2020 election in Colorado happened exactly like it looks. It happened. We lost that race and Joe Biden is the president and he’s doing a terrible job.

Gazette: How’s your party doing with Hispanics? They are 20% of Colorado’s population and growing?

Brown: We absolutely believe that Hispanics comprise a key community for all of Colorado, certainly for our party. We have Hispanic candidates running for multiple seats in the state Legislature. I think we should ask Hispanics to be leaders in our party. It’s a personal goal of mine, and I think they represent us very well.

Gazette: What’s the message to Hispanics?

Brown: One of being that the value of the Hispanic community holds dear are exactly the values you find in the Republican Party. And we saw many of them vote with us in 2020. I mean, consider Commerce City. We made gains there among the Hispanic community. Hispanics are seeing that our values are their values.

Gazette: What about the Trump factor? CPAC in February was all Trump all day long. He won the straw poll in a landslide. He could easily get the nomination and then find it hard to win the general. That’s more than two years out, but is he going to be a problem?

Brown: I’m asked a lot about that and I tell people that my job is to focus on 2022 and I don’t think he’s a factor in Colorado in 2022. He’s not on the ballot. Joe Biden is in the White House and people across Colorado want to talk about Colorado and our state. When elections become personality focused, it’s not as good for the Republican Party in Colorado. But, when we can talk about local issues and finding solutions to problems, we can win. And so that’s my job. That’s what I’m focused on. I’ll tell you that Republicans across Colorado who really supported Trump in 2020 are telling me that they really don’t want to see him be the nominee in ‘24. They want Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla). Even though they love Trump — they loved his policies — they think someone like DeSantis would lead our nation better. I’m hearing that a lot from Colorado Republicans.

Gazette: Back to the Senate. Michael Bennet, when he ran for president, did not hit 1% in Colorado polling. He’s a very liberal member of Congress. Among the most liberal, advocating critical race theory, and he sounded supportive of all the violent protests in 2020. He supports leaving a baby to die on a table without medical care if it’s born alive before an abortion. He prides himself on running the most pro-marijuana bill ever in Congress. Unaffiliated voters in Colorado are not particularly doctrinaire. Can your party effectively use his words and record against him?

Brown: Colorado has often had one Republican senator, one Democrat senator, and now we have both Democrat senators. Both vote with (Senate Majority Leader) Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and (House Majority Leader) Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on almost everything. Yes. Colorado voters in polling are ready to restore balance to our state. And so, I do think we can talk about how complete Democrat control of this state has led to a liberal agenda being pushed on our voters way beyond how the unaffiliated voter actually feels things should be handled. Michael Bennet voted against sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Now we see the results of that on a worldwide scale. He has about 26% name ID and that’s terrible for someone in office for 13 years. We have a great shot at winning.

Gazette: Chairwoman Brown, thank you for your time and dedication to public service.