May 25, 2007 08:59 AM UTC

Nevitt upsets Hickenlooper

• 7 Comments
• by: TheDeminator

With only 700 votes in so far from 7…  I would not want to have hick jump in for watters if i was chris.

Mayor: Candidate flier misleading
By George Merritt
Denver Post Staff Writer
Article Last Updated: 05/24/2007 05:14:55 PM MDT

Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper delved into the City Council races for the first time today, calling out District 7 candidate Chris Nevitt for “misleading voters.”

Nevitt’s campaign used a picture of Hickenlooper on its latest flier.

Prompted by a question, Hickenlooper told a group gathered for a press conference on water conservation that not only had he not endorsed Nevitt, but he was “disappointed” in the campaign.

“He has used our name several times,” the mayor said. “I think he is misleading Denver voters.”

The flier, which Nevitt has said was intended to be light and Dr. Seuss-themed, contained a rhyme with the mayor’s name: “Denver parents and teachers think his plans are just super, and hopefully so does Mayor John Hickenlooper.”

Hickenlooper said his office has received a dozen calls from people wondering whether and why he endorsed Nevitt.

“That’s a lot for City Council (races),” the mayor said about the number of calls. “That’s more than we got on the first day of the snowstorms” in December.

Nevitt enjoyed a comfortable lead in the May 1 general election, winning nearly 47 percent of the vote in a four-person race. But City Council seats in Denver must be won with more than 50 percent of the vote. Nevitt is in a runoff mail-ballot election with Shelly Watters. The election culminates June 5.

Watters said she too was unhappy about the flier.

“I appreciate the mayor setting the record straight,” she said.

Nevitt could not be reached for comment this afternoon.

He said in an earlier interview that he did not intend to imply an endorsement.

“A couple people called and said, ‘You are implying that John Hickenlooper endorsed you,'” he said.

“I actually called them back and said, ‘Nothing could be further from the truth.'”

Staff writer George Merritt can be reached at 303-954-1657 or gmerritt@denverpost.com.