DenverGOP.org
chairman@denvergop.org
720‑441‑4092
June 23, 2022
In this issue:
Ray Elliot
Meet Your County Officers
Ray Elliot became involved with the Denver GOP in 1986, where he participated in the county and state assemblies.
He talks about Denver back in the mid-1980s: "It wasn't like it is today.
The party was significant in Denver County back then.
There were PCPs (precinct committee persons) for most of the precincts.
There were red house districts inside of Denver County."
Ray moved to Jefferson County where he ran for Lakewood City Council in 1994.
He created a write-in campaign with the slogan "Write in Ray" printed on magnets,
which helped him received an impressive 40% of the vote.
Ray ran again for city council two years later, and again failed.
But in 1997 Elliot would go on to win and serve on the Foothills Recreation District.
He returned to the Lakewood City Council race in 1999 to win a seat and serve from 1999 until 2007.
After scaling back political volunteering for over a decade,
Ray decided to return to the Denver Republican Party to contribute his talents.
Ray stepped up to be the Third Vice Chair in May.
His focus is the 'get out the vote' effort (GOTV).
"I want to engage with younger voters. We need to find out what makes them show up to vote Republican.
What messaging does the GOP need to get the Millennial to become interested and then to vote Republican?
I know they don't want to hear about Democrats or Republicans.
They want the two sides to meet in the middle somehow."
Getting the younger vote for the Republican Party has always been difficult.
Ray recognizes this and goes on to say
"Many of these younger voters are unaffiliated.
We need to swing them to vote as an 'R.'
We need to get messaging out there to all the 'I's, the unaffiliated voters.
Then we need to reactivate all those 'R's who have given up and stopped voting.
We are going to need a big marketing campaign."
Do you have ideas about getting out the vote?
Ray would love to hear from you.
Connect with us at chairman@denvergop.org.
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Stephanie Wheeler for HD2
If I could assemble a room full of people my age who are voters in Denver County,
the three issues I would talk to them about are the three key issues of my campaign: children, cost, and crime.
Denver, Colorado is the city and state I have chosen to raise my family. I feel extremely fortunate to be able
to homeschool my children, but I know that this is not the reality for the majority of our population.
With over 60% of our K‑3 children in Colorado not reading at grade level, we are looking into a future
of mass illiteracy in our next generation. Core education of reading, writing, math, and civics has
been replaced by hyper‑liberal concepts of critical race theory (CRT) and diversity, equity,
and inclusion (DEI) concepts. The only way to guarantee equal opportunity is to hold our education
system accountable and ensure all Colorado high school graduates are excelling in reading, writing, math, and civics.
Having chosen to raise my family here in Denver as a single mother, cost is also a significant concern.
In addition to sky‑rocketing inflation at the grocery store and gas pump, the greatest threat to
my ability to provide a stable home for my children is cost of housing and the ever‑increasing
"fees" implemented to by‑pass the voter passed tax payers bill of rights (TABOR).
Finally, Colorado is leading the country in car theft, bank robberies, and more.
I have had multiple vehicles stolen, personally experienced smash and grabs,
and someone close to me was held at gunpoint by three teenagers downtown.
Catch‑and‑release measures for criminal behavior and policies that encourages
drug use only drives pervasive and dangerous criminal behavior further into our neighborhoods.
I would ask my peers, "Is this the Colorado in which you imagined to live and raise your family?"
The widely resounding answer would likely be, "NO!" My generation is the first in which my
prospects for the future will not be better than that of my parents’ generation.
We must take responsibility now for the sake of our own futures, and that of our children.
Stephanie Wheeler
Candidate HD2
WheelerForColorado.com
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Tabor Be Damned - Here Come the New Fees

Colorado has the 'taxpayer bill of rights,' referred to as TABOR.
TABOR, a voter passed amendment to the Colorado Constitution,
requires that all tax increases be approved by the voter responsible for paying the tax.
(TABOR has additional aspects. Read more here:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxpayer_Bill_of_Rights)
Democrats are all about changing the meaning of words.
It was not long after TABOR passed that legislators and
other government officials started to call tax increases "fees."
Government-types started using a variety of synonyms for the word 'taxes.'
They used this ploy to put less increases in government spending on the ballot for a public vote.
Chart 1A shows a new, yearly multi-hundred-million-dollar boondoggle for Colorado government coffers.
These fees add up to $3.8 billion in ten years or $381 million per year.
While the retail delivery fee is aimed at Amazon, FexEx, and UPS it applies to all business who offer delivery.
Ride sharing is aimed at Lyft and Uber but does not apply to taxis.
Not to be forgotten is the new 'Parks Fee.'
It is an additional $29 per year with vehicle registration,
garnering the government an extra $54 million expected revenue.
This 'Parks Fee' is an automatic fee unless you remember to opt out.
Chart 2A is an expression of the anxiety we are feeling in our checking accounts.
We do not need to go through the list of reasons this inflation is happening.
Economies are delicate and very complex organisms, and should not be managed by political ideologs.
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Happy Hour at Blackbird Public House
Join us on Thursday, June 23 at 6:00 p.m. at the Blackbird Public House.
The Blackbird has a private space for us to use.
There will be candidates dropping in to speak, but this is an informal, social event.
Guillermo Diaz (HD1),
Stephanie Wheeler (HD2),
Marla Fernandez (HD3),
Johnnie Johnson (HD5),
and
Hilleary Waters (HD8) are all likely to be in the house!
There is a small amount of parking in front of the restaurant for those who arrive early.
Blackbird Public House
305 South Downing Street
Denver, CO 80209
Thursday, June 23 @ 6:00 p.m.
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