A tale of two very different swing districts

Good morning, Colorado.

Whether or not you are looking forward to cooler temps, it’s hard to argue how majestic Pikes Peak looks with a fresh dusting of snow. Even after five years in Colorado Springs, I still find myself whispering “wow” as I catch a glimpse of the snow-capped mountain on my drive to the grocery store on the city’s west side. We sure do live in a beautiful state.

But without any more dilly-dallying, or distracted driving, let’s get to the news.

P.S. We are one week away from Election Day. Don’t forget, The Colorado Sun Voter Guide is here to help.

THE NEWS

POLITICS & GOVERNMENT

Voters in two swing districts will help decide the Colorado legislature’s future. The races have little in common.

One is a Senate district on the Western Slope, where Republican Marc Catlin and Democrat Cole Buerger are racing to the middle to court unaffiliated voters. The other is a House district in Colorado Springs where outspoken progressive Rep. Stephanie Vigil is taking on Rebecca Keltie, a far-right defense contractor who went door-to-door with an election denial conspiracy group in 2020. Brian Eason breaks down how the results of these districts will swing the future of the legislature.

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IMMIGRATION

A day in immigration court in Aurora is filled with desperate pleas: “I’m asking you with all my heart”

Inside a concrete-walled courtroom at the ICE detention center in Aurora, Judge Matthew Kaufman decided the fates of people from Venezuela, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Belize, Mexico and Pakistan in a single morning. Jennifer Brown reports from inside the courtroom in part 2 of The Long Road to Asylum series.

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BUSINESS

Tri-State won $2.5 billion to close coal plants, get new renewable energy for rural customers

The embattled electric co-op won the financing to support its aggressive plan to build clean and renewable energy sources while retiring the existing coal plants that currently provide the lion’s share of its power, Tracy Ross reports.

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MORE NEWS

• Jane Fonda visits north Denver, urges locals to continue fighting air pollution. Elyria-Swansea activists and state health experts hosted the two-time Oscar winner and author, who urged locals to fight ozone and fracking. 
• Colorado Springs Airport gets $8 million grant to modernize interior. No taxpayer money is being used, according to the project’s website, and most of the funding is coming from the Federal Aviation Administration. 

THE COLORADO REPORT

• The last Denver e-bike rebates of 2024 are here. So far, Denver has spent $8.6 million to help buy 9,169 e-bikes for residents with the vouchers that were claimed in a minute flat during the most recent release in August. Today’s drop starts at 11 a.m.
  — Denverite
• Data reveals which neighborhoods cash in Denver’s e-bike rebates. If you take a look at the neighborhoods that have redeemed the e-bike vouchers the most, you’ll find it mostly fits a very familiar pattern in Denver maps.
  — Denver Business Journal 🔑
• Aurora lawmakers hold off on reversing expected repeal of city’s $2 employee tax. Two years after deciding to repeal the $2-per-employee-per-month “head tax” in the city, a last-minute proposal to keep the tax and use it to fund new fire stations has turned into a contentious fight between factions of the city council.
  — Sentinel Colorado
• Stowaway “Halloween crab” discovered at DIA relocated to Denver Zoo. An orange-and-black moon crab was discovered in the cabin of a flight from Costa Rica to Denver and will soon live at the zoo’s Tropical Discovery indoor aquatic animal display.
  — The Denver Post 🔑

🔑 = source has article meter or paywall

THE OPINION PAGE

COLUMNS

• Colorado’s ballot is overwhelming. Don’t let that stop you.  If voting starts to feel like too many tough decisions, voting a little might be better than not voting at all.
  — Trish Zornio 

The Colorado Sun is a nonpartisan news organization, and the opinions of columnists and editorial writers do not reflect the opinions of the newsroom. Read our ethics policy for more on The Sun’s opinion policy and submit columns, suggest writers or provide feedback at opinion@coloradosun.com.

SunLit

REVIEW

In “To Die Beautiful,” an incremental evil dusts WWII Amsterdam

In her work of historical fiction that might be more of a cautionary tale than we’d like to admit, Buzzy Jackson pulls from the real-life story of Hannie Schaft, one of the rare women who took up arms in the Dutch resistance to the Nazis in World War II. In this excerpt, narrator Schaft describes in chilling detail how the persecution of Jews was carried out in small steps.

READ AN EXCERPT

• Interview with the author. Though a trained historian, Jackson realized early on that World War II was one of her blind spots. So she set about soaking up all of the era’s history that she could to ground her novel in realism. 

Before you go, here’s another friendly reminder that our Colorado Sun Voter Guide was made with you in mind. We hope it helps inform you on the issues at stake as you fill out your ballot. See you tomorrow.

— Olivia & the whole staff of The Sun

Corrections & Clarifications

Notice something wrong? The Colorado Sun has an ethical responsibility to fix all factual errors. Request a correction by emailing corrections@coloradosun.com.

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