Caucus Interruptus?

It’s ironic that at a time when the Colorado caucus system is enjoying unprecedented attention that several big names have recently decided not to participate in the caucus process and have instead chosen to petition on to the ballot.

In the last several days Bentley Rayburn in the 5th CD and Wil Armstrong in the 6th CD have announced that they will not go through the assembly to gain their party’s nomination.

The Inside Edge has received a lot of breathless email from party activists suggesting that the caucus system is dying or no longer relevant. Today our PolitickerCo sources told us that the El Paso GOP Chair Greg Garcia has taken a stand against caucus turncoats by denying them access to the literature packs that the party hands out to precinct people running caucuses.

That means that if they want their literature at caucus, they have to run around to each precinct and drop it off.  

“I’m not sure that Garcia is on firm legal ground there,” said one state legislator. “The Party needs to be impartial at this point even if they don’t approve of bypassing the assembly. Colorado has specific laws regarding how the nomination can be obtained. Petition is just as legally binding as any other process.”      

To be sure to caucus or not to caucus has been a controversy that been around for a long time. Party activists like the caucus process because it makes them important. It also allows for those without a lot of money, like State Senator Ted Harvey, who only raised $35,000 so far in his run for Congress, to have a shot at the nomination.

So why are several high-profile candidates shunning the system?

“They’ve proven they can raise money,” said one GOP campaign consultant. “And the caucus system has not always rewarded the best message and money candidates. Why would I put my faith in people who may not give me a straight shot at the nomination? Especially if I’ve proven I can raise the money to be a real candidate.”

Numbers too are working against the caucus system. To make the ballot in the caucus system you need to appeal to 30% of the assembly delegates.

“If there are only two candidates the caucus system makes sense,” said the consultant. “If you can’t get 30% running against one other opponent, you are likely a bad candidate. Not always but more often than not. You add in another candidate and make it a three way race, and 20%-30% is looking respectable.”

He added that it looks like the trend is more a function of a multiplicity of candidates than it is a doomed system.

“One thing you could do to strengthen the caucus system is change the law to anticipate races of more than two candidates. Why not grant ballot access at 20% when there are three people in the race or 15% when there are four?”