While Colorado has proudly proclaimed its status as an all-mail ballot state since 2013, there are still those who choose to show up to vote in person, which is their right.
With the 2020 election day coming up Nov. 3, and in-person voting going on now, registered voters may want to be aware of their legal rights — and the rights of others — as they prepare to show up at voting locations.
First: show up at a voting site to interfere with other voters is illegal.
No one can block you from casting your ballot or impede your progress toward a voting location or voting device.
Colorado prohibits interference with a voter while voting. Under section §1-13-711 of the Colo. Rev. Stat.: “Any person who interferes with any voter who is inside the immediate voting area or is marking a ballot or operating a voting device or electronic voting device at any election provided by law is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished as provided in section 1-13-111.”
Second: Colorado also expressly prohibits voter intimidation.
The intimidation of voters is illegal.
Under Colo. Rev. Stat. § 1-13-713, “It is unlawful for any person directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person in his behalf, to impede, prevent, or otherwise interfere with the free exercise of the elective franchise of any elector or to compel, induce, or prevail upon any elector either to give or refrain from giving his vote at any election provided by law or to give or refrain from giving his vote for any particular person or measure at any such election. Each such offense is a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, the offender shall be punished as provided in section 1-13-111.
News media across the country are reporting rising concerns over violence at polling locations. If history is any indication, guns, protests, and elections do not mix. Today National Public Radio (NPR) aired a program outlining rising warning signs:
Third: News gathering at polling places is not just allowed, it is protected.
No state statute prohibits news gathering activities outside of polling places.
The Colorado Revised Statute § 1-5-105 states that “No election-related activity may be conducted within one hundred feet of any building in which a polling location or drop-off location is located except that of the conduct of the election at the polling location or drop-off location.” and under 8 CCR 1505-1, 8.18, “Media observers may witness all election activities.”
“I voted Chaffee County” 2020 buttons and stickers await voters at the Chaffee County Courthouse ballot box. Merrell Bergin photo
Fourth: State election returns come from the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office and for county returns, from individual County Clerk’s Offices.
Election results are available every weekday through Election Day; the results report the number of ballots returned to county clerks for the Nov. 3, 2020, general election.
Journalists that report daily polling returns, including Ark Valley Voice, get their numbers directly from the official county and state reporting offices.
On Election Day, results will begin to come in from the counties at the Secretary of State’s Office just after 7 p.m. MST. The final state results will be located on the Secretary of State’s website.
This year, even though Colorado has a smooth polling process, it is important for every voter to accept that results may not be known on the Nov. 3 election day. Turnout for the 2020 election is already at historic return levels, and if in-person voting is heavy on election day itself, ballot counting will go late into the night.
Additionally, with heavy voter turnout across the nation, including in many states where early ballots can’t even be opened or processed until election day itself, it is highly likely that the results of many state elections outside Colorado, and national results may not be known for a day or longer. States particularly impacted by this include Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio. This is expected this year and it is not a sign of anything except great care in counting our ballots.
That said, there are indications that there may be those attempting to make false claims of election winners before all ballots are counted. These days, social media rumors spread like wildfire. But they are just that — rumors — and not to be believed.
Anyone claiming victory before all legally-cast ballots are counted is circumventing the most sacred of democratic process of the United States of America — our right to vote and have our vote count.
Five: Ballots are public records open to inspection pursuant to Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-72-205.5(1)(a).
But, patience is required. That’s because the designated election official is not permitted to fulfill a request for the public inspection of ballots “during the period commencing with the forty-fifth day preceding election day and concluding with the date either by which the designated election official is required to certify an official abstract of votes cast for the applicable candidate contest or ballot issue or ballot question … or by which any recount is completed, as applicable, whichever date is later.” Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-72-205.5(3)(a)
Some first-time voters or candidates interested in taking a “Selfie” can do so. Ballot selfies are permitted in Colorado. Under Colo. Rev. Stat. § 1-13-712(b) (2017), “Any voter may show his or her voted ballot to any other person as long as the disclosure is not undertaken in furtherance of any election violation proscribed in this article 13.”
Six: Voter Rolls are Public Records
Voter rolls and Voter registration records are public records under Colo. Rev. Stat. § 1-2-227. Election records are expressly declared open public records by Colo. Rev. Stat. § 1-4-5
Seven: If Recounts are Required, the News Media Press can witness it
Initial and recount processes are covered under the Colo. Rev. Stat. § 1-10.5-102, “The Secretary of State shall notify the county clerk and recorder of each county involved of a public recount to be conducted in the county at a place prescribed by the Secretary of State. The recount shall be completed no later than the thirty-fifth day after any election. The Secretary of State shall promulgate and provide each county clerk and recorder with the necessary rules to conduct the recount in a fair, impartial, and uniform manner, including provisions for watchers during the recount. Any rule concerning the conduct of a recount must take into account the type of voting system and equipment used by the county in which the recount is to be conducted.”
While the press is always allowed to witness recounts, public access to recounts varies by county. Election-watchers in Colorado can observe a recount. All normal processes this year may have some impacts related to COVID-19, especially in county offices where small spaces and inadequate ventilation limits occupancy.
There are certain eligibility requirements watchers must comply with, according to the Colorado Secretary of State. For instance, for recounts, parties, candidates, or ballot initiative committees can appoint watchers to watch the recount.
Under 8 CCR 1505-1, 8.18, “Media observers may witness all election activities. A county clerk may, in his or her discretion, require a media observer to appoint a pool reporter and a pool photographer to represent all media observers. All media observers are subject to the guidelines established by the Colorado Press Association in conjunction with the Colorado County Clerks’ Association and the Secretary of State.” A media “observer” is defined as a member of the media who must have valid media credentials. It does not include private citizens interested in writing about or filming the voting processes.
Note: Ark Valley Voice is an accredited member of the Colorado Press Association.
I wish other newspapers would publish this exact article, both locally and throughout the entire state. There is so much voter intimidation going on other states. I’m not worried about Chaffee — YET. But I think there may be HUGE intimidation and that violence may break out at in-person voting on election day. Is there a central repository for newspapers where this could be submitted????
Thank you for the compliment. Ark Valley Voice is a member of the Colorado Press Association and the Colorado Media Collaborative, which includes the Associated Press (AP). We have submitted it to the AP Storyshare for the state of Colorado, and we do hope that it will be [icked up by other news organizations.