Holtzman v Beauprez

Following the lead of state party chairman Bob Martinez, 31 sitting Republican state legislators and 9 Republican candidates for state legislative office sent a letter today to Marc Holtzman asking him for the sake of party unity (about which he spoke eloquently at the Assembly) to withdraw from the race.

While these kind of things don't happen every day, at least
Republican leaders from Routt County agree.

And so does a first-time delegate from Boulder County, who has brought up an excellent point about the Holtzman campaign's earlier spin, which frankly disappoints me to see in retrospect:

Holtzman estimated that more than 2,500 Holtzman delegates were elected to state and county assemblies in the statewide caucus proceedings Tuesday night. “We will clearly reach our stated goal of sending at least 30 percent of the delegates to the Republican State Assembly in Colorado Springs on May 20th, assuming we receive fair treatment,” said Dick Leggitt, Holtzman’s Campaign Manager.

I have yet to see any real evidence to show Holtzman received anything but "fair treatment" at the Assembly - I was there. And let me tell you, 902 is nowhere near 2,500.

I hope it isn't true, but with each recalcitrant response to voices of reason from all over the state party it appears the Holtzman campaign is becoming more about Marc Holtzman than anything else. He can prove otherwise, doing the party and its principles, platform, and policy priorities a favor by stepping down and running in the future.

This recent Holtzman-delegate blogger was one of the very first to ask him to do just that.

Cross posted at Mount Virtus

Posted by Ben at 09:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Last week's rumors were true - the decision was made official this morning: Republican gubernatorial candidate Marc Holtzman has again bolstered his campaign with the announcement that former Speaker of the House Lola Spradley will be his running mate.

Spradley, who has been welcomed to the team with open arms, expressed her support for her new running mate's vision and philosophy. Among other things, she brings the credentials of a highly-respected term of legislative service and a strong base of popularity in the region of Pueblo and southeastern Colorado. There is excitement and enthusiasm among grassroots supporters across the state for Holtzman's decision and for the direction his campaign is headed. Following in the wake of last week's favorable poll numbers from an objective and reliable source, the Holtzman campaign is gaining some real momentum heading into the March caucuses.

Cross posted at Mount Virtus

Posted by Ben at 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Karen Crummy of The Denver Post reports this morning that the Marc Holtzman campaign is courting former House Speaker Lola Spradley as his gubernatorial running mate. The salient observation from the article is that Spradley does not fit the campaign's recent anti-establishment tone. Republican consultant Katy Atkinson astutely observes that Holtzman "could be trying to balance the ticket."

To me it appears that Holtzman may be backing off the strident attack footing that resulted in some bad press last week. Floating Spradley's name as a potential running mate might refocus and stabilize the direction of his unconventional, heavily grassroots campaign. Spradley, who hails from tiny Beulah north of Pueblo, was Colorado's first-ever female Speaker of the House. While she has her conservative bona fides with a solid legislative record and open opposition to last fall's Referendum C tax increase, she may be most regarded in some circles for joining Democratic Congressman Mark Udall to lead the charge in the 2004 campaign to mandate the use of renewable energy. As such, Spradley was an articulate spokesperson for an overwhelmingly successful statewide ballot initiative.

Although we have yet to hear the names of any other potential Holtzman running mates, his campaign could do a lot worse than to add Lola Spradley to the ticket. The news Colorado political insiders would wait to hear is whether she would accept such an offer.

Meanwhile, in other campaign news, Pueblo School District 60 Superintendent Joyce Bales (a reported "education adviser" to the Holtzman campaign) has accepted a new job in California, according to today's edition of the Pueblo Chieftain. Bales will be noted for trying to buck the status quo on some matters and bring creative efforts toward academic improvement in Pueblo.

Cross posted at Mount Virtus

Posted by Ben at 08:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)