DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. — Douglas County voters appear to have ended efforts to become a home-rule county, heavily rejecting an initiative to form a home rule commission and establish a charter, according to preliminary special election results.
Unofficial results after the polls closed at 7 p.m. show 71.85% of counted ballots (59,838) were marked "no," while 28.15% (23,448) were marked "yes." At 9 p.m., results showed 71.43% of counted ballots (63,226) were marked "no," while 28.57% (25,294) were marked "yes."
- Denver7's Claire Lavezzorio talked with supporters and opponents of the measure in the video player below
"I think the public in Douglas County is very smart, I think they saw through it, and they voted no," said Kelsey Alexander, former chairwoman of the Douglas County Republicans.
Stop the Power Grab, a group against home rule, celebrated the ballot results in Lone Tree on Tuesday at Paradise Tavern.
"Republicans and Democrats and unaffiliated voters have all come together to put a stop to this and say this is not what we want," said Barrett Roth with Stop the Power Grab. "We’re collaborating, it’s really truly incredible."
After polls closed, Douglas County Commissioner George Teal told Denver7 he wasn't entirely surprised by the preliminary results, saying home rule often fails its first go-around. However, the commissioner said he's going to continue to advocate for home rule and see where the interest goes in the future.
"Listen, to the 80% who voted to not move forward on home rule, I would like to still continue the conversation," Teal said. "I didn't hear from them that they don't want to have the conversation. I heard they need more time. I heard they need more information."
The votes will be certified on July 8, according to county officials.
Read our previous coverage below
- Douglas County Board of Commissioners starts process to become a home rule county
- Lawsuit accuses Douglas County commissioners of violating Colorado's open meetings law in home rule effort
- Douglas County judge allows election to move forward, voters will decide on becoming home rule entity
- DougCo. Board of Commissioners hosts live town hall for voters to learn what a home rule county looks like
- Douglas County town hall heats up debate over home rule
- Denver7 researches viewer question about where money for DougCo. home rule special election is coming from
- Groups canvass Douglas County neighborhoods ahead of Tuesday's home rule special election
Denver7 has been following this story since the Board of County Commissioners began the process in April.
According to the Colorado General Assembly, a home rule charter is defined as follows:
"Ordinances addressing local matters supersede state law. However, in matters of statewide or mixed concern, state laws may take precedence over conflicting home rule ordinances. Without a home rule charter, local governments are strictly subject to the laws of the state."
Colorado law provides 43 topics around which home rule counties can claim authority, including limits on debt, taxes and the use of parks and open space — just to name a few.
Supporters of the home rule initiative said the move will put power back in the hands of the county and allow local officials to make governing decisions that may contradict the state legislature, including on key issues such as taxation, immigration and gun control.
Opponents of the initiative, however, worried that becoming a home rule county would give county commissioners too much power. One resident told Denver7 in May, "The community does not trust these commissioners, so giving them more control and more power is frightening."
In the end, preliminary results show residents largely voted against efforts to form a home rule commission and establish a charter, effectively ending the initiative.
If the ballot measure had passed, it would have formed a 21-person home-rule commission, which would have been tasked with creating a home-rule charter for the county. Voters would then head to the polls again to approve the charter before home-rule authority could take effect.
