July 23, 2013 08:43 AM UTC

Secessionist Suin' Sheriff Seeks State Senate Seat

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• by: Colorado Pols

Repeat that title three times fast while (mostly behind a paywall) the Greeley Tribune reports:

Weld County Sheriff John Cooke will leave law enforcement after 35 years to run for the state Senate in 2014. Cooke, the Weld sheriff since 2003, is a Republican who said Monday that he will run for the District 13 seat, which Sen. Scott Renfroe, R-Greeley, must vacate due to term limits.

The district incorporates most of Weld County, including Eaton, Greeley, Evans, Fort Lupton, Gilcrest, Johnstown, LaSalle, the northern half of Brighton, Milliken and Platteville.

Greeley resident Joe Perez, a Democrat, recently announced that he will run for state senator in District 13…

We've taken note of Weld County Sheriff John Cooke a few times now as his prominence has grown following passage of landmark gun safety legislation in the Colorado General Assembly this year. Sheriff Cooke is leading the lawsuit by Colorado county sheriffs against these bills, and also supports the repeal of many other gun safety laws in Colorado including 2000's Amendment 22–the post-Columbine initiative, passed with over 70% support, that closed the so-called "gun show loophole." According to Cooke's Rocky Mountain Gun Owners candidate questionnaire, Cooke wants to repeal all background checks, to include federal instant background checks.

On the matter of the proposed secession of Weld County and other rural plains counties to form a new state, Cooke tells the Tribune supportively that "if we can get a 51st state then more power to us," but acknowledges that is unlikely. Which explains his willingness to serve in the Colorado legislature instead of waiting for a new one.

Bottom line: Outgoing Sen. Scott Renfroe's seat is probably Cooke's for the taking. In addition to being a relatively safe Republican seat, Cooke has emerged as a folk hero on the hard right for his opposition to the gun safety bills. In the end, Cooke may fall to the right–perhaps spectacularly so–of Sen. Renfroe, and become a new source of nasty quotes for Democrats to use against the Republican brand all over the state.

But worry about that in 2015, right?