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May 28, 2010 09:39 PM UTC

Bennet Petition Drive Collects 20,000+ Signatures

  • 141 Comments
  • by: redstateblues

( – promoted by Colorado Pols)

The Spot reports:

Sen. Michael Bennet’s office says it has more than 20,000 petition signatures to get on the Democratic primary ballot in August. But the campaign will avoid turning them in to the secretary of state, in a mutual agreement with state officials, in order to save the money the state would be required to spend checking the petitions.

The decision by the Bennet campaign to start the signature drive came under heavy scrutiny when the decision was announced in early April. Jane Norton’s campaign even went so far as to say that they were being forced to do a petition drive of their own to compete with their potential Democratic opponent in fall’s US Senate election.

Norton’s own petition drive garnered 15,000 more signatures than Bennet–though the extra signatures likely came at the cost of hiring a private firm to gather 66% of the signatures. In the end both candidates will be on the ballot, so despite the heavy criticism from activists within their own respective parties, the petitions gathered could become useful grassroots tools for the primary, and if they make it that far, the general election.

Another point that can’t be ignored is the significance of 20,000 registered Democrats signing a commitment to vote for Bennet. That’s nearly six times the number of total delegates in attendance for last week’s State Assembly and only 2,000 less than the total number of voters in March’s precinct caucus.

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141 thoughts on “Bennet Petition Drive Collects 20,000+ Signatures”

  1. well, ….. uhhhh……  but….wouldn’t it … wait, didnt’ ….

    Aw, hell- AR is awesome and should have been appointed and  Bennet … well, he ….. I never heard of him before.  or something.

    Oh, and big money is evil and party insiders should decide our nominee- the rest of the D’s should do what we tell them to do because we told them to do it.

    Oh! And a bunch of stuff that couldn’t; have passed anyway -cramdown, single payer, Brown Kaufman. Also insert misleading pseudo analysis of some complicated financial transaction Bennet approved or knew about and …Anschutz.

    1. …and piss away hard cash on assembly efforts. What was the strategy for this dual effort.

      And speaking of strategy, just who in the hell was caught mouthing off about the Obama administration’s job offer to Romanoff?

    1. When you originally posted it last night in yesterday’s open thread. But you know, it’s kind of bad form to C&P your comment and do take 2–especially when it’s not even on topic.

      But hey sock puppet see, sock puppet do, right?

        1. It may reflect poorly on someone- but it had nothing to do with Bennet (or Perlmutter, DeGette, Markey, RItter, Hickenlooper).

          The only way it could reflect poorly on Romanoff is if it was a great gig he should have taken it.

          Where it does reflect poorly is the messageless, clues R opposition runnign around screaming about…. well, nothing.

          1. Don’t even bother. Only Libertad calls me “redstateblue” and thanks me for my vigilance before repeating the off-topic BS that prompted the reply.

          2. No way that the President offering a job to Romanoff is helpful to Bennet. If handled poorly it could be a disaster.  As for Romanoff

            he does not come off very well either.

            1. then let’s agree this only reflects poorly on Ken Buck and Jane Norton. If they handle this poorly, this could be a disaster. As for Scott McInnis, he does not come off very well either.

  3. Most people who sign petitions, especially candidate petitions, don’t realize they are saying they will vote for this person. Many (maybe most) view it as “anyone should be able to run who wants to” and they will sign for anyone.

    One this this causes is a lot of publicate signtures, especially when more than one person is petitioning for the same office.

    1. That’s still more than 3 times the number of delegates at the State Assembly. The Romanoff campaign has been touting their victory among 60% of the 3500 or so delegates who voted as saying that the people have spoken.

      1. Are you suggesting the people haven’t spoken?

        Oh noes! Stryker is going to have a new signature line where you don’t think he’s a real person either.

      2. I guess you must be implying that these are the only votes either will get?

        This is a foolish argument on any level. 60% of 3500 committed Democratic activists versus some percentage of some number (who really knows how many since they weren’t filed anyway) shows what exactly? That Bennet can get people to sign their name to a piece of paper indicating absolutely nothing while Romanoff can get larger numbers of people who will actually take significant time out of their lives to support his campaign than Bennet can?

        The petition is completely meaningless, except as a show of Bennet not having much support among rank and file party activists- you know, the people who work campaigns as volunteers, door knockers, phone bankers, that kind of thing…

        1. You’re not an idiot. I know you know there’s a thing called the VAN. It’s not that hard for the Bennet campaign to confirm that the sigs were real. A friend of mine who works in the field even told me that they over-petitioned in areas where there are high levels on invalid signatures.

          Try as you might to spin the signatures into meaning nothing, they do mean something, and a ton of volunteers and Bennet staff worked their asses off to get them.

          And as to your suggestion that they don’t have that many “rank and file”, I would say that you must not think much of the 40% of convention delegates that voted for Bennet. Are they not “real people”?

          1. I think…

            The point was what type of person signs a petition and does no more against the type of person who goes to caucuses and assemblies and conventions and does the grinding work of campaigns, all for free because they really believe in their candidate.

            That is not spin, it is fact. And it is in that category that Romanoff does better than Bennet and which could make all the difference in this campaign, money not withstanding.

    2. I think I got a vast total of 25 signatures. That said, the people that signed were absolutely voting for Bennet. They had no reason to sign just to make sure he got on the ballot. I had two folks who were AR supporters who flat out said they wouldn’t sign because it lessened AR’s chances. At least they were honest. I kind of appreciated that.

      I’m not saying all 20,000 signed are committed to voting for him but to pretend that 20,000 registered Democrats didn’t have a clue and just viewed this is “anyone should be able to run who wants to” is bit naive. If one third of these people show up and vote for him, that’s still double the amount of the total insider party faithful that showed up last Saturday.

      And let’s face it, since no one else seems to be saying this, if AR, who really is the ultimate party insider can’t keep Bennet off the ballot at an event that he should have owned last Saturday, then 20,000 signatures for Bennet’s campaign is just another nail in AR’s coffin.

      I mean, come on–is there anyone at State Assembly room he didn’t know and yet folks that have known him, worked side by side with him for 8 years and eaten rubber chicken with him couldn’t be convinced he should be our next Senator and voted nearly 40% for his primary opponent. How the hell do you spin that as a good thing? How do you spin gathering 20,000 signatures and building a huge potential voter database as a bad thing?

      1. If Michael Bennet, a sitting Senator with the support of the Democratic Governor, President, OFA, the DSCC, and the rest of the national party can’t keep and Romanoff off the ballot he should just quit now right?

        Bennet spent millions so far and got his ass kicked along the way — every time people had a chance to vote (which is, of course, the only poll that matters).

        Bennet’s loss is humiliating and I’m sorry you don’t see that.  The national press is picking up on it press quick.

      2. I guess you have Stryker join your campaign and monitor the blogs daily for any stories that might not be flattering to your campaign.

        Good job, Stryker. Your spin sucked and was sort of paper thin but at least you tried.  

    3. and both were very insistent that “it’s just to put more options on the ballot”.

      Last week when the two ladies outside of Safeway asked me if I was a registered Republican (I lied) I asked “who is it for?”, and with every petition I held, they got the name wrong. Like I said, they insisted it was only for more choice. No, I didn’t sign.

      1. It’s a petition to put on the ballot — it’s a really far cry from a supporter list — nice spin though.  whoop-de-do.  

        That said, since they aren’t being certified (and I think the state made the right decision telling him it was a waste of money), there’s no indication that the majority of them are even valid.

        So yeah…we have 20,000 signatures, mostly from people who don’t know what their signing, with no proof that ANY of them are even valid and not just an intern sitting in a back room writing names, and this is a story?

        Yeah there’s a big difference between this and assembly.  Romanoff’s 60.4% of delegates at state knew who they were supporting, were dedicated enough to spend hours sitting there to support Romanoff, and are members of the active democratic base who go out and knock doors, make phone calls, and otherwise work for candidates.

        But hey — you want to think that signatures from people who signed a petition outside King Soopers just to get the paid petitioner out of their way means something, more power to you.

        2. A paid petitioner would be paid to get valid signatures. Duh.

          I wasn’t a paid petitioner and I asked for Precinct numbers and voter card to verify my signers were registered Democrats.

          Then again, this isn’t my first time at the dance. From many of the comments you post here, I can assume you are brand new to politics.

          1. .

            I didn’t think anybody carried their voter registration card.  

            When I’ve gone through the line to vote in person, nobody in front of me ever had theirs, either.

            You just made clear to me that I don’t take this stuff seriously enough.  

            .

            1. Don’t hire me, dude. I obviously suck at this.

              And yeah, I do carry my card everywhere–mostly as ID–since I often seem to misplace my driver’s license for weeks on end.

        3. The last time I tried this, it was so disgusting; I swore it off.  I have to say though, “Sorry Andrew Romanoff, but I’m a real person too.”  I’m a regular person, not a long-time party insider, who took offense to the Romanoff sign at the state assembly that called Romanoff “the people’s choice.”  

          I don’t have a position in the Democratic Party.  I am not part of OFA.  I did my research, listened to both candidates, and made a choice to vote for Senator Bennet.  I resent party insiders who think they are in a better position than me to make this choice. Romanoff supporters who voted at the state assembly are not “the people,” you are a handful of the people.  I vote in every election, and I am capable of making my own choice.    

          1. I don’t quite follow actually…

            OFA is supporting Bennet for what it’s worth…

            Romanoff has always said that people have the right to choose who their senator is by voting — in fact that was one of his key points when asked why he was running.

            1. There are plenty of us Democrats that are grassroots activists and we are more than a little tired of being accused of being sell outs, and in the pocket of Wall Street, special interests, and corporate thugs.

              Or wait, I forget–we are being paid and soulless or that our pick for Bennet somehow makes us less worthy to be in the Democratic Party. I hate to break this to you, Stryker, but if your guy wins you are going to need us less worthy Democrats if you don’t want your ass handed to you on a platter in the general.

              And if you want proof of divisive language, you can start here: “A Senator for the Rest of Us”

              Gee, whatever does he mean by that?

              1. I would be inclined to think he means a Senator that isn’t beholden to special interests.  Gee, wouldn’t that be nice?

                Let’s look at an example: we’ve had a congress that takes a lot of money from BP and other oil companies and cuts them great deals to go drill wherever the hell they want.

                How’s that working out for us?

                Yeah — I think we need a senator for the rest of us.

                1. You are so much. Please promise me you’ll still blog here after primary season is over. Promise? Promise? Don’t go changing; I love you just the way you are.  

                    1. It suits him so well–he has a lovely habit of ignoring/not responding/dodging entire parts of comments that make him uncomfortable.

                      I don’t want him to change and I don’t want him to slither back off the blog when the election is over. You know how that one goes–90% of our single candidate shills magically disappear, never to be heard from again. I want Stryker to stay forEVAH.

                    3. The thought of not having your predictable spin to rely on keeps me up nights, don’t you know that, sweets?

              2. It seems that was a threat of no support if Romanoff wins. And all along I’ve been reading over and over how Bennet’s supporters will support whichever candidate wins the primary and it is only Romanoff supporters that show the passion to maybe not support Bennet after. So, is this a new line in the sand then?

                  1. “Or wait, I forget–we are being paid and soulless or that our pick for Bennet somehow makes us less worthy to be in the Democratic Party. I hate to break this to you, Stryker, but if your guy wins you are going to need us less worthy Democrats if you don’t want your ass handed to you on a platter in the general.”

                    1. That’s not a threat, a threat would be:

                      Quit behaving like a weenie or else I won’t vote for your candidate.

                      Me, I’ll vote for whatever candidate emerges victorious from the Primary, and I don’t suppose you are a weenie, but AR supporters should learn to support their candidate rather than attack their ‘opponent’ or else they may have difficulties winning the General, should AR win the Primary.

                      See, one is a threat and the other a prognostication.  

                    2. I just can’t picture MOTR ever saying “weenie”

                      Dill weed.

                      Aasshat.

                      Fuckwad.

                      Jerkweed.

                      SFB

                      Asshole.

                      and dozens more. But never “weenie”.

                      Though it did make me giggle- so thanks for that.

                    6. say things in the comfort of their anonymity which they would be appalled to say in public without the benefit of hiding behind their pseudonyms?

                      Really MADCO, it is a very telling phenomenon to me that people like you resort to cheap insults whenever they have nothing else to say and think their snark will sound oh so clever and witty. It doesn’t.

                    7. http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/i…

                      Jokes that need explaining are hardly ever funny.

                      But in a nutshell:

                      “This is Spinal Tap”, the name of the album is “Smell the Glove”

                      And it’s funny.  F U N N Y

                      I have told plenty of people in person to “Smell the Glove”

                       

                    8. That’s why I said what I said about posting a video.

                      Maybe JP is just a little too intense for your brand of subtle humor, MADCO.

                    9. You can pretty much tell if someone’s cool or not by asking them if they thought Spinal Tap was hilarious.

                      “Little people – called Druids…”

                    10. You can pretty much tell if someone’s cool or not by asking them if they thought Spinal Tap was hilarious.

                      “Little people – called Druids…”

                    12. If I have one more inadvertent double post in the next 30 days.

                      “Kevin and I will keep them out somehow — even if we have to redefine what the peer-review literature is!”  

                    13. I’m glad you’re on board!

                      🙂

                      You know, I really like almost all of you guys a lot.

                    17. Hence, the “kiss it”.  If I was truly angry I wouldn’t have responded at all.  Sometimes sarcasm is tough in the blogosphere.  My bad.  

                      It’s all good, homie.

                    19. I agree, I never said he wasn’t honorable.

                      I was trying to make a funny.  Maybe it failed…happens from time to time.

                    22. I’m glad you’re on board!

                      🙂

                      You know, I really like almost all of you guys a lot.

                      “Kevin and I will keep them out somehow — even if we have to redefine what the peer-review literature is!”  

                    23. Quadruple posts…

                      Oh – wait – I’ve just convinced two lefties what a bunch of BS AGW is!

                      Rock out!

                    25. I’m not sure which way is the cool clue, but Tap Into America!

                      And Thursday I’ll be gone bad – different band

                    26. If you don’t introduce yourself I’ll be pissed.  Plus, I’m playing Sanctuary earlier so I’ll be in my bliss. You might catch me in a really sweet moment!

                      🙂

                    28. But I was referring to the asshat, dickweed, etc comments, not the glove fits comment…

                      But thanks for the funny link!

                      🙂

                    29. are very sensitive it seems. The attacks against Romanoff and Romanoff supporters on Colorado Pols are incredibly more vitriolic than anything I’ve seen against Bennet, but most Romanoff supporters seem to stick to the issues rather than the ad hominem attacks. The same can’t be said for Bennetistas. Much quicker to go for the jugular (and the snarky name calling).

                    30. not all Romanoff supporters.  There are a few I have the utmost respect for and who argue for their candidate compellingly.

                      And there are a few ‘Bennetistas’ (an endearing term you’re using there I’m sure) who also engage in the muddying.  I have called some out myself.  As I’ve said, repeatedly, I like AR, I’ll support him in the General should he be the D on the ticket.  I have yet to see sufficient reason to dump the incumbent and yet to be convinced AR’s campaign can get across the finish line.

                      But, overall, I must have missed some diaries or something but I have the opposite impression.    

                    31. so let me show you what a threat really looks like. Your good buddy Christopher Scott seems to have it down pat.

                      I know you aren’t really good at reading comprehension as you have proved at this site time and again so please do allow me to help you out–skip all the big words and go to the last paragraph of his genius opus.

                      You’re welcome, lover.

                    35. But then, all of Scott’s work is. He’s had a beef with Bennet ever since he ran for and lost the election for DPS School Board. One very bitter dude there with a lot of background story that no one seems willing to call him out on.  

                    36. where on Earth does that come from? Never heard nor read the man’s writing until your link. But somehow you conflate his writings with mine?

                      That is another typical red herring on Colorado Pols from an avowed Bennet supporter. If you can’t take my words, use someone else’s and attribute them to me. Good one MOTR.

                    37. I could note

                      That is another typical paranoid fantasy on Colorado Pols from an avowed Romanoff supporter

                      But that would be a sweeping generalization, wouldn’t it?

                    38. Or is this pro bono work for you? You sure do jump in a lot in her defense it seems.

                      And calling him “My good buddy” sure does seem like a way to mis-characterize my support for Romanoff and link me to someone else’s views, not my own.

                      I’ll stand by my words, not someone else’s, thank you very much.

                    39. But why bother pointing out your many overblown statements?  You’ll just shift your position away to claim how unfair it is to hold you to your words.  

                      MoTR–my retainer check is due.  

                    41. I’m supposed to be paying you? Oh yeah. Uh no. Not happening. I’m still waiting on all my paychecks from the Bennet campaign because I’m a hired gun for their campaign, haven’t you heard?

                    44. I’m having a bit of difficulty recognizing how you are helping me here… ?

                    45. but not me, darling.

                      But if you ever want my help- just whistle.  You do know how to whistle, right?  You just put your lips together and blow.

                    46. Oh my God, Blackhawks just scored twice in like two minutes. Sweet.  

                    51. You are the greatest blogger to ever cross paths with this dark, sarcastic Jackass.

                    52. You just totally jinxed them. Thanks a lot for nothing. For the love of God, please don’t become a Cubs fan. We have enough problems as it is.

                    55. I take it all back. Apparently, your smack talk is nothing but good luck for my team so please, embrace the Cubs with all of your black heart.  

          2. I respect that you say you made a decision on research but I am a little surprised to hear you say that you are offended that Romanoff had a sign saying “The Peoples Choice.” He is hardly the first person to ever use a term like that. And it does seem accurate when you can choose to vote for him over someone The President, excuse me, I of course meant The Governor, chose for you.

        4. You are hillarious, Stryker. You remind me of my kids. 20,000 people signed Bennet’s petitions because they don’t support him. Maybe someone gave them candy.

        5. Took a while, it’s hard to be creative with 20,000 names, you know

          Duck, Daffy

          Duck, Donald

          Mouse, Mickey

          Mouse, Mighty

          Mouse, Minnie

          Stryker2-are you familiar with the term ‘self=parody’?  You embody it well.

  5. .

    This is just a guess, since the Bennet campaign won’t publish the petitions, and refuses to turn them over to the SoS without a subpoena.

    17,800 lines have some sort of entry on approved petition forms, including 42 persons named “Michael Mouse” or “Mickey Mouse.”

    13,200 are complete entries, with the name & address of an actual person, including intentional spoilers and folks who thought they were signing to legalize Meth.

    9,200 are signatures of registered Democrats.   What, did the petition circulators require signers to show proof of registration ?

    8,500 are AR supporters who felt that a primary would help him become a better candidate for the General Election.  

    Leaving

    700 committed Bennet supporters,

    672 of whom are paid members of his campaign staff.  

    < end snark >

    .

  6. Colorado is not considered one of the 15 States most likely to have a Governor of a different party next year.http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/the-line/-15-ohio-gov-ted.html#more

    A big Hick win might keep both the State House and Senate comfortably in Democratic hands.

    Bennet on the other hand seems to be getting bogged down and heads every list of endangered incumbents.  This flap over whether or not Romanoff was offered a job is not going to help.

    1. .

      Obama’s point man in Colorado, Michael Bennet, made the offer at Hick’s restaurant.  

      He offered to bow out of the race, if AR would bow out first.

      I never followed up to see if AR actually did bow out first, posts to the contrary notwithstanding.

      .

    2. No he doesn’t. Colorado is listed as a toss-up on most of the prognostication lists, unlike Senate seats in Nevada and Arkansas, where the incumbents are in more danger than Bennet. (Or Utah and Pennsylvania, where the incumbents have already lost.) But sure, if you repeat that often enough maybe some people will believe you!

  7. I mean, the picture that went out with the fundraising pitch showed a bunch of petition books, but not from the front view, which would show us there were signatures.  It was a stack of petition books from the side view.

    I smell bullshit.

    2. You’re probably familiar with it. Bennet’s people went through the sigs with a fine-toothed comb, cross-checking them with the VAN.

      I mean, I guess you could always go on believing that Bennet didn’t really get 20,000 signatures, but that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.

  8. for state candidate is a solid number. Any less would be abit dissappointing for the campaign I would imagine. The petition gathering was probably just something to fall back on just in case something strange happened and Bennet only rec’d 29% of the vote at state assembly.

    In 2008 I collected a little over 500 sigs myself for Will in CD2 primary (100% verified registered democrats). We collected 5,000 + total sigs (4,000 + valid dem signatures from CD2)

    In CD2 we had three candidates. If Will would have gone the assembly route. It is likely that Will and Jared would not have made 30% threshold. As it was, Joan reached 62% and Jared 38%.

    Bennet this year nearly reached 40% at assembly. And, we all know how the CD2 primary ended.

    Jared 42%  (roughly 20,000 votes)

    Joan 38% (roughly 19,000 votes)

    Will 20%(roughly 10,000 votes)

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