Kerry Donovan, Drawn Out Of CD-3, Drops Out

17 Comments

by: Colorado Pols

Sen. Kerry Donovan (D).

As the Colorado Sun’s Jesse Paul reports, a top potential challenger to freshman GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert in the slightly reddened Third Congressional District is formally ending her campaign after suspending fundraising one month ago as it became clear her home would be drawn out of the district:

State Sen. Kerry Donovan, a Vail Democrat, ended her campaign to unseat Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District on Friday.

The decision comes after Donovan was drawn out of the 3rd District during Colorado’s once-in-a-decade redistricting process…

Donovan was seen as a top contender to win her party’s nomination and face Boebert, who lives in Garfield County, in next year’s midterm elections. Her exit from the race reshuffles the political dynamics in the Democratic primary field, which includes Pueblo activist Sol Sandoval and state Rep. Don Valdez, of La Jara.

While Donovan could technically still have run in CD-3 as there is no formal residency requirement for congressional seats, it would have been a significant messaging disadvantage for Donovan in a race where Democrats will need the wind fully at their backs to prevail. With Donovan’s departure, Pueblo’s Sol Sandoval is now the candidate to watch in the Democratic primary to take on Boebert. For Democrats, the road to unseating Boebert now as ever begins in Pueblo.

As for Kerry Donovan, she’s got a bright future and a nice ranch.

17 thoughts on “Kerry Donovan, Drawn Out Of CD-3, Drops Out”

MichaelBowman says:

November 5, 2021 at 10:16 am

Sorry this happened to Kerry. I was looking forward to further supporting a Donovan campaign. The silver lining is that as imperfect as our system seemed to be, it isn’t the gerrymandering shit-show ala North Carolina.

North Carolina is 40% non-white & 50/50 politically but GOP passed redistricting maps giving white Republicans 71-78% of US House seats

This is what gerrymandering looks like under gutted Voting Rights Act & without federal protection for voting rights

Log in to Reply
1. JohnInDenver says:
  
  November 5, 2021 at 10:36 am
  
  Of course, guessing future outcomes based on past performance doesn’t guarantee an outcome. In North Carolina’s last adjustment
  
  Another way to underscore this from 2018 is to point out that the districts where Democratic candidates won, packing enabled [Democrats] G.K. Butterfield, David Price and Alma Adams to carry 69, 72 and 73% of the vote, respectively. For comparison’s sake, Republicans, who were opposed, all won with between 51 and 59% of the vote.
  
  But if a partisan process tries to “pack” in a manner that leaves adjacent districts at a less than 5% margin for victory for their team, that adjacent district can be flipped. And with incumbency, there is an advantage that can easily be 5%, meaning once flipped, that district may stay flipped for the remainder of the apportioning cycle.
  
  Log in to Reply
  1. Colorado Pols says:
    
    November 5, 2021 at 11:12 am
    
    FYI, no relation to Alma Adams.
    
    Log in to Reply
JohnInDenver says:

November 5, 2021 at 10:40 am

Any announcement of what Donovan will do with the campaign funds she raised?

Log in to Reply
bullshit! says:

November 5, 2021 at 11:04 am

When Hick is tired of being a Senator, Rep. Neguse moves up and Kerry replaces him in CD-2.

Got this all worked out for you Pols, update the 2026 Big Line accordingly. 🙂

Log in to Reply
1. Meiner49er says:
  
  November 5, 2021 at 12:24 pm
  
  There will be a line out the door for CD2. That's going to be a wild primary.
  
  Log in to Reply
itlduso says:

November 5, 2021 at 1:37 pm

I got a donation request call from Debby Burnett running in CD3. Anyone know if I should donate to her campaign?

Log in to Reply
1. notaskinnycook says:
  
  November 5, 2021 at 3:15 pm
  
  Here you go, itlduso: https://www.burnettforcolorado.com/about
  
  Log in to Reply
2. kwtree says:
  
  November 5, 2021 at 4:04 pm
  
  Seems like a reasonable Democratic candidate. . In a less blood-red district, she might have a chance.I haven’t seen what the voter registration numbers look like in the new CD3, though.
  
  As an alternative, consider supporting moderate Republican Marina Zimmerman. Zimmerman doesn’t promote the Big Lie. She has some good ideas on water and ag issues. She’s pro-gun and pro 2A. She can embody the “tough gal” persona without being as trashy and scandal-seeking as Boebert. Konola likes her. Pols calls her “relatively sane”. The GOP is trying to discourage her, though.
  
  Log in to Reply
  1. 2Jung2Die says:
    
    November 5, 2021 at 4:45 pm
    
    Active registered voters for the new CD 3: R 31.8%, D 26.1%, Minor Party 1.8%, UA 40.3%. Guessing UAs would break right here but don't know.
    
    Log in to Reply
    1. kwtree says:
      
      November 5, 2021 at 5:24 pm
      
      There should be some data on how many UAFs requested R vs D primary ballots in 2020. That won’t tell the whole story, since UAFs can choose to receive all ballots but only send in one.
      
      I haven’t dug into it, but I’m sure that data is tracked somewhere.
      
      The Sun had a decent deep dive into UAFs in CD3. https://coloradosun.com/2021/06/01/lauren-boebert-unaffiliated-voters-colorado/
      One takeaway:
      
      Among unaffiliated and third-party voters, 36% said they have a favorable view of her[Boebert], while 42% have an unfavorable view of her
      
      Log in to Reply
      1. Diogenesdemar says:
        
        November 5, 2021 at 7:38 pm
        
        I don’t recall “requesting” a 2020 ballot. If I’m not mistaken, I was sent both and allowed to vote either one (but not both)? . . .
        
        . . . wasn’t that the way it was for everyone in Colorado’s open-primary system?
        
        Log in to Reply
        
        kwtree says:
        
        November 5, 2021 at 7:49 pm
        
        From the Sec State website primary elctions page:
        
        Q7. I am an unaffiliated voter. Do I have to choose in advance which party's primary ballot to vote?
        
        A7. No, but you can if you want to. You have several options:
        
        You may choose which party's ballot you want to get in the mail for the next primary election by selecting a party preference at govotecolorado.com or on any paper voter registration form.
        
        If you would rather receive a packet containing the ballots of all participating major parties, you can take no action or select this option when first registering to vote.
        
        You can also appear in person at any Voter Service and Polling Center in your county and choose the party's ballot you want to vote.
        
        The default for any new voter registering at a DMV, or getting any type of public assistance or registering with military recruiter in Colorado is Unaffiliated ( getting both ballots, voting one). To change that and affiliate, a voter has to take one of the steps listed above.
        
        Log in to Reply
        
        Diogenesdemar says:
        
        November 5, 2021 at 8:08 pm
        
        Good. I was hoping I hadn't lost any more of my mind . . .
        
        Log in to Reply
    2. RepealAndReplace says:
      
      November 7, 2021 at 6:29 am
      
      If anything, Trailer Park Barbie is going to have an easier time in '22 than last year:
      
      Election Results in Virginia Prove Things Can Get Worse for Democrats – The New York Times (nytimes.com)
      
      Log in to Reply
OpenSpace says:

November 5, 2021 at 2:07 pm

Can she please run for governor so us Dems can ditch Richie Rich Libertarian No-Taxes-For-Me Polis?

Log in to Reply
kwtree says:

November 5, 2021 at 4:38 pm

Boebert claimed she had a “video town hall”. In reality, this was a 12 minute taxpayer funded video promoting Boebert’s positions and “achievements”.

Not a single question or comment from a constituent was heard in the “townhall”.
Any rep that actually represents constituents would be an improvement.

Log in to Reply