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Voting in this year’s primaries is nearing record levels in certain pockets of the state, such as Larimer County, where voter turnout is at its highest since at least 2004. One reason is that for the first time since 1974, the state has major contested primaries, points out 7News.
In the hot battle for U.S. Senate nominations, the anti-establishment factor is playing strongly in both the Republican Party (via Weld County prosecutor Ken Buck) and the Democratic Party (via former state House Speaker Andrew Romanoff), reminds The Washington Times.
The two primaries could “provide the best test yet” of how deeply anti-Washington sentiment is running this year, as Democratic Senator Michael Bennet fights to maintain his seat and former Lieutenant Governor Jane Norton struggles to win over the GOP, writes The New York Times.
Should Romanoff and Buck win their respective primaries Tuesday, “it would be a huge slam in both cases on the respective establishments,” says Denver pollster Floyd Ciruli.
In an article honed on the situation of local Republicans, the Los Angeles Times writes, “Colorado’s chaos reflects the corrosive nature of national politics during economic hard times.” Want in on the chaos? It’s not too late for unaffiliated voters to claim a party and cast a vote in one of the primaries. Westword explains how, noting that “voting tomorrow won’t stain your independence forever: You can unaffiliate the next day.”
Meanwhile, The Denver Post chronicles the final days of Colorado’s Democratic U.S. Senate campaigns, and The Associated Press takes a look at “tracking”—following candidates with video and audio recording devices, hoping to catch gaffes and bloopers—and how it has impacted Buck’s run this year.