Colorado Voters Vote Early in Smooth ElectionsColorado’s Secretary of State Mike Coffman — who was elected on Tuesday to Tom Tancredo’s Congressional seat — had been ordered by a judge just days before the Election to stop purging voters from the system.
But despite his best efforts to purge voters from the rolls — voting rights groups who filed suit estimated 35,000 people were purged in violation of the federal Voting Rights Act and settled to get 20,000 back on the rolls just days before Nov. 4 — Colorado had record turnout and early voting, with few problems.
From the AP:
Colorado Common Cause, one of the groups that sued the state, and another watchdog group, Election Protection, said they received about 800 calls from Colorado voters, mostly about registration questions.“Compared to 2006, Colorado is doing fabulously,” said Jenny Flanagan, executive director of Common Cause.
Flanagan said there were some hiccups, such as provisional ballots being given out “wholesale” in some counties, including Arapahoe and Denver, at the first sign of trouble with a voter’s registration.
“I don’t know if election judges are overwhelmed or if it’s a training issue, but it’s something we’re going to be looking at in the coming days,” she said.