Nancy Doty

As Arapahoe County Clerk and Recorder's office prepares for a recount in the state Senate District 26 race, Republican Lauri Clapp is reportedly ready to concede the race to Democrat Linda Newell.

With provisional ballots counted in Arapahoe County, Newell leads Clapp by 191 votes.

Reached by phone, Clapp wouldn't tell PolitickerCO.com her plans, but she said she would send out a press release soon detailing her future plans.

Sources close to the campaign of Secretary of State Mike Coffman have confirmed that if Coffman wins that Republican primary in the sixth district congressional race, Coffman intends to immediately resign as Secretary of State in August to facilitate Republican recapture of the office.

Coffman has been under pressure to give up quest for the 6th CD seat, because it would mean losing the Secretary of State’s office to the Dems. And this latest argument softens the blow a bit. GOP Party Boss Dick Wadhams is said to be livid that Coffman is running for the 6th CD because of what the loss could mean to the GOP. Sources have confirmed to us that Wadhams is actively working behind the scenes to prevent Coffman from fundraising effectively here in Colorado and around the country.

Coffman’s resignation would give Governor Bill Ritter the ability to appoint a Secretary of State -- likely a Democrat, perhaps ’06 candidate Ken Gordon.  But according to state  law, it would also trigger a November 2008 special election to fill Coffman’s unexpired term.  So while the incumbent Secretary of State would be a Democrat, he or she would have to run for office next fall.