Colorado Republicans, fired up that two Democratic state senators were kicked out of office after supporting stricter gun regulations, now have their sights set on a bigger target: Gov. John Hickenlooper, the Denver Post reports. “The national story is about guns, but the story in Colorado really is about power, and what the Democrats have learned from this blowback,” said pollster Floyd Ciruli. “People thought they weren’t being listened to.”
The question now is whether recalls — never before used against a state lawmaker — will become part of Colorado’s landscape. “Once unsheathed, political weapons are rarely put back into storage,” political consultant Eric Sondermann said. Hickenlooper said he was “certainly disappointed by the outcome.” He added, “It’s worth saying Colorado has maintained people’s right to own a gun.” As both sides dissected the outcome, they agreed a late-game judicial ruling that resulted in clerks having to toss mail-ballot voting and open polling places hurt the losing senators. Gun activists were more motivated to go to vote centers to mark their ballots.