2022 was a seismic year in Colorado politics, boasting a pair of consequential elections that reshaped coalitions in both parties and extended Democratic dominance, a legislative session that advocates say will reshape the state's efforts to combat the fentanyl epidemic, and plenty of weird, wacky or wonderful moments in between.
Here are some of the memorable quotes from the year.
"We must double down on our promise to help every business and family succeed. That means taking less of your hard-earned money in fees and taxes, and putting more in your pockets and paychecks.”
-Gov. Jared Polis, laying out his priorities during his State of the State address early in the 2022 session. Polis, who was entering the final year of his term and was seeking reelection with a disciplined affordability message, pledged to cut taxes, reduce or waive fees, and eliminate government-imposed financial barriers to starting a business.
"The Democrats are working very quickly to delay implementation of lots of new fees that they created just last year. I hope that voters pay attention to that"
-Senate Minority Leader Chris Holbert, R-Douglas County, in response to Polis' State of the State messaging centering on affordability. Republicans charged the root of Colorado's affordability crisis can be traced back to policies the governor and his allies in the legislature have adopted in the last few years.
Senate President Leroy Garcia, Minority Leader Chris Holbert deliver final opening day speeches
Senate Minority Leader Chris Holbert's opening day address
"While my time in the Senate is coming to a close, I am proud of all that we’ve accomplished together to move Colorado forward, and I am confident that whomever is selected to fill these vacancies will serve with the integrity and tenacity that Coloradans deserve.”
-Senate President Leroy Garcia, D-Pueblo, announcing he intends to resign his post to take a job with the Biden administration's Department of Defense.
"Leadership isn't about a title, prestige or power. It's about knowing what your role is and when it's the right time to step into that role."
-Sen. Steve Fenberg, D-Boulder, pledging to continue the work started by Sen. Leroy Garcia on modernizing the Senate shortly after being chosen by his colleagues to succeed Garcia as the Senate's leader.
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“This is about our right to make private medical decisions. This is ensuring access and affirms that people have the right to control their own bodies.”
-Rep. Meg Froelich, D-Greenwood Village, speaking on House Bill 22-1279, her legislation seeking to enshrine the unequivocal right to an abortion in state law as the measure cleared the House Health & Insurance Committee on a party-line vote.
"I'm confident that [the majority] will not let this debate go on for 50 days or even for two. For those who want us to go on for 50 days, it's not a matter of willingness ... We can't stop this process."
-Holbert, explaining that though people have pleaded with him to shut down the legislative process on HB 1279, the Colorado Constitution and legislative rules don't offer him an outlet similar to the U.S. Senate's filibuster.
"This bill codifies a person's right to make reproductive health care decisions free from government interference."
-Polis as he signed HB 1279 into law.
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"I’m a sponsor of this bill because any action is better than no action; and, while I’ll be in support of any legislation that tightens the penalties on fentanyl possession, this legislation scratches the surface of what actually needs to be done to prevent our kids from dying from overdoses at their desks."
-Rep. Mike Lynch, R-Wellington, in a Colorado Politics op-ed explaining why he was joining House Speaker Alec Garnett in co-sponsoring House Bill 22-1326, a sweeping measure to address the state's runaway fentanyl crisis. Lynch would ultimately ask to have his name removed from the bill and vote against the measure.
"History has taught us through the failed drug war, that the predominant – the dominant – criminal justice response to these public health crises has not lifted us out of the crisis."
-Justin Cooper, deputy director of the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition, to a crowd who had gathered at the west steps of the Capitol to advocate for a treatment-centered approach to the state's fentanyl crisis.
"The greatest failure of all is failure to act when action is needed, and action is desperately needed."
-Garnett, one of the bill's House architects, as Democrats in his chamber split on approving HB 1326.
"People are fed up with the pain this new and dangerous drug is inflicting. There are thousands of victims who deserve justice."
-Polis shortly before signing HB 1326.
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"There are clear differences between my vision for the office of Secretary of State and my opponents ... I will continue my fight for restoring the confidence of Colorado voters against the politicians or interest groups that seek to weaponize elections administration for political advantage."
-Former Jeffco Clerk and Recorder Pam Anderson after defeating indicted Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters in the GOP primary for Secretary of State. Moderate Republican candidates largely won out over those who campaigned on the belief the 2020 presidential election was stolen from former President Donald Trump, such as Peters, state Rep. Ron Hanks and Greg Lopez.
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“We are providing real relief when Coloradans need it most. Everyone in our state is feeling the impact of rising costs, and I refuse to let the government sit on taxpayers’ money when it could be used to make life a little bit easier for the people of our state."
-Polis, announcing the implementation of the Colorado Cashback Rebate, an expenditure of the 2023 Taxpayer's Bill of Rights refund paying back up to 85% of excess state revenue collected last year. The early disbursement of the rebate was created by Senate Bill 22-233, signed into law in May.
“We are glad to see our Democrat colleagues have finally come around to embrace TABOR, even if it comes as a response to the affordability crisis their overzealous policies have created. Thanks to the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, the people of Colorado will once again be reunited with their hard-earned tax dollars.”
-Joshua Bly, spokesman for the Colorado Senate Republicans, voicing Republican concerns that support of the Colorado Cashback Rebate is hypocritical, as the Colorado Democratic Party’s 2022 platform aimed to repeal TABOR.
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"I think that at this point, we stand ready to hear what the Lower Basin has in mind."
-Amy Ostdiek, a section chief with the Colorado Water Conservation Board, insisting other states in the Colorado River Basin should do the cutting to meet the Bureau of Reclamation's demand to conserve millions of acre-feet of water, a step needed to preserve power production in Lake Powell and Lake Mead.
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"I cannot continue to be part of a political party that is okay with a violent attempt to overturn a free and fair election and continues to peddle claims that the 2020 election was stolen."
-State Sen. Kevin Priola of Henderson, announcing he will leave the Republican Party to become a Democrat. While the move came as little surprise — he's been a backer of some Democratic-led proposals for the past several years — it represented a major setback for the GOP's chances of flipping the state Senate.
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"The door is now open. And for those who know me, I have shoes for days. I have boots. The door is not gonna close on my watch."
-Charlotte N. Sweeney, the first openly gay federal judge for Colorado, at her formal swearing-in ceremony at the Alfred A. Arraj U.S. Courthouse in downtown Denver.
"Judge Wang is really an American success story."
-U.S. District Court Chief Judge Philip A. Brimmer at Judge Nina Wang's formal swearing-in ceremony. Wang, who had been a magistrate judge on the court for seven years, is the first magistrate judge in Colorado to ever receive a lifetime appointment as a district judge.
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“We are going to beat Lauren Boebert. I’ve believed this since I entered the race, but this poll showing that we are tied makes it even more clear that voters in CO-3 want Boebert’s circus to stop and are looking for a better choice to represent their families, their businesses, and their communities."
-Adam Frisch, the Democrat challenging U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert Colorado's 3rd Congressional District, after an early October internal poll suggested he was in a statistical tie only weeks before voting was set to begin. While a National Republican Congressional Committee dismissed the poll results , saying Democrats "have zero chance of winning this district,” the pole would portend election results not only in CD3, but across the state.
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“I am a mad mom. I have a right to be angry and I represent a lot of parents.”
-Heidi Ganahl, the Republican candidate for governor, during the final debate with Polis in the closing weeks of the campaign.
"My opponent identified herself as a mad mom. I identify myself as a happy dad ... raising my kids in the best state of all the states. Great outdoors. We love our freedom. I will always protect our freedom.”
-Polis responding to Ganahl. The governor stuck with his message, maintaining that he's led the state through a difficult stretch, including a global pandemic and the battered economy left in its wake, social upheaval and historic wildfires and other effects of climate change. Ultimately, he declared victory roughly an hour after polls closed and defeated Ganahl by nearly 20 points.
"We fought hard. We competed. We stayed true to our core and our beliefs and our values. And it didn't work out, not this time. But I don't have any regrets at all."
-Republican U.S. Senate Candidate Joe O'Dea delivering a concession speech to a hushed crowd at a Republican gathering in Greenwood Village. Voters opted to return U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Denver, to Washington by a nearly 15-point margin.
“We’re way past sky blue. We’re a … sapphire or something like that."
-Eric Sondermann, a veteran independent political commentator who writes regularly for Colorado Politics and the Gazette newspapers, on Election Night results that saw Democrats sweep every statewide office, increase majorities in both chambers of the General Assembly, and take five of Colorado's eight congressional districts.
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"The likelihood of this recount changing more than a handful of votes is very small — very, very small. It would be disingenuous and unethical for us or any other group to continue to raise false hope and encourage fundraising for a recount."
-Frisch conceded to Boebert 10 days after polls close, saying that, while the race was close enough to trigger a mandatory recount under Colorado law, he didn't want to "raise false hope" by continuing with his challenge. The mandatory recount, wrapped up in mid-December, confirmed Boebert's victory.
“Come January, you can be certain of two things: I will be sworn in for my second term as your congresswoman and Republicans can finally turn Pelosi’s house back into the People’s House.”
-Boebert announcing Frisch's concession to her Twitter following with a pledge to focus on governance after a surprisingly close race.
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“He was a very loving, kind, thoughtful, fun person. You gained more energy by being around Hugh and working with him. He’s irreplaceable."
-Former state Rep. B.J. Nikkel of Larimer County on former House Minority Leader Hugh McKean who passed away on Oct. 30 of a heart attack at his Loveland home.
