March 12, 2012 09:02 AM UTC

Jeffco Line: Countywide Races

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• by: Colorado Pols

Despite Jeffco electoral gains in both houses of the General Assembly, representation at the county level is one nut Jefferson County Democrats have yet to crack.

Commissioner Kathy Hartman was the lone Democratic voice in elected government at the county level until her loss last cycle. In fact, Hartman was the first Democrat elected to the Board of Commissioners in 14 years. With Hartman’s 2010 loss to Republican Don Rosier, however, the Democrats lost their last connection to the Taj Mahal.

As things stand today, it’s unlikely the Democrats will be able to reverse that trend in 2012.

Commissioner Faye Griffin, elected in 2008, seems set to ascend to a second term. Griffin, of course, is the only sitting commissioner to have signed off on the now-infamous “Bridge to Nowhere” linking the Southwest Plaza and Bowles Crossing shopping centers. That’s a definite weakness which the right challenger could use in mail pieces to link Griffin with both wasteful spending and government corruption, two talking points that even conservatives in South Jeffco could get behind. Even with that veritable Achilles heel, however, the Jeffco Dems have yet to draft a candidate for the District 1 seat.

That’s no surprise. Longtime State Senator Sue Windels lost to Griffin in 2008, taking only 42% of the vote. If Windels, who from a decade of service in state government was popular in north Jeffco, couldn’t defeat Griffin for an open seat, it’s unlikely that there’s a candidate out there who could beat the former treasurer in a re-election fight.

Instead, it seems, the county Democrats have focused their efforts on District 2 Commissioner John Odom. Odom, a failed candidate for the State Senate, was appointed to fill the remainder of Kevin McCasky’s term after the latter took a now controversial post at the Jefferson Economic Council. Odom’s previous electoral difficulties and lack of resounding name ID throughout the candidate led attorney Casey Tighe to jump into the race.

Tighe is by no means a bad candidate. He’s served in senior positions at the Colorado Department of Transportation for a quarter-century and also chaired the Jefferson County Audit Committee. In short, Tighe’s got a great resume to make the case that he’s qualified to root corruption out of county government, once and for all.

Absent on Tighe’s CV, however, is previous elected service. Without it, the attorney is going to struggle to make voters remember his name. He’ll also have problems convincing donors to give him the amounts of money he’s going to need to take on an incumbent Republican in right-leaning Jefferson County. Tighe would be an incredible candidate for a competitive State House or State Senate seat – if he shows that he can put together the semblance of an effective campaign, he’ll set the stage for a future run. For county commissioner, we just don’t see him pulling off a surprise win against Odom.

As for the district attorney’s race? We doubt Republican Pete Weir will face any serious opposition. The former district judge served as executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Safety in the Ritter administration, a bipartisan resume bullet that even Democrats can get behind. He’s a good fit for the post, and barring any major campaign trail revelations, should cruise to the DA’s office. If anything, district attorney is too small for Weir: we could see him pivoting from the 1st Judicial District onto the short list for attorney general when John Suthers is termed out in 2014.