Colorado election redistricting attracts national attention
Groups with ties to Democratic Party are funding efforts to redraw maps
Groups with ties to the national Democratic Party are funding efforts to redraw Colorado’s congressional election maps to favor Democratic candidates.
Colorado currently has an even split of Democratic and Republican representatives in the U.S. House – four from each party. But Democrats want to ask voters to approve new maps that would give the party a good chance to take seven of the eight seats in 2028 and 2030.
The redistricting effort has raised nearly a quarter of a million dollars this year, mostly from two groups that have ties to the national Democratic Party but don’t disclose their donors, according to a recent public filing that the Colorado Sun first reported.
Colorado’s current map was drawn by an independent redistricting commission that voters approved in 2018. The Democratic redistricting proposal would change the maps for the 2028 and 2030 elections, before returning to the independent system.
The campaign funding revelations highlight Colorado’s place in a broader national fight over election maps, which entered a new phase last week after the U.S. Supreme Court made it easier to draw maps that dilute the power of racial minority voters. Republicans in Colorado and other states have also been trying to redraw maps to favor their party.
Need to Know
👶 A controversial plan to shore up state childcare aid was voted down on Wednesday by a legislative committee. The bill would have allowed state-run businesses to put money in riskier investments with higher potential returns, directing the profits to bolster aid programs that have frozen enrollment and left thousands of families without childcare. Opponents argued the plan could violate state laws against investing public money in corporations. (Denver Post, May 6 newsletter, read the bill)
⚕️ Lawmakers are looking for new ways to fund a program that helps Coloradans afford health insurance on the individual market, after dropping a proposal to charge health insurance companies $40 million in fees that they would pass onto consumers. The program needs to raise about $140 million to avoid thousands of people potentially losing coverage. (Sum & Substance, May 5 newsletter)
Feedback, tips or questions? Reply to this email or send a WhatsApp, Signal or text message to 720-355-1474.
Something Good
🐕🦺 My co-working companion (aka my dog Maya) is happy to be back in the office after a snowstorm-related Internet outage disrupted our normal routine. She has been doing a great job covering the urban wildlife and delivery worker beats for The Blanket, and we’re working on setting up a live feed of her barking news alerts. We’ll report back with an update soon.
