By BRIAN PORTER | The Rocky Mountain Voice
PUEBLO — It was an early Friday morning and a long day here for some residents of Eastern Colorado.
Countless Republican Party delegates from the far reaches of Colorado’s 4th Congressional District woke before daylight Friday, driving as far as four-plus hours to reach the State Fairgrounds, with the task to decide those who will appear on the primary ballot in a pair of offices.
“It is not lost on me how important process is,” said 4th District Chair Tom Weins, opening the assembly of delegates. “I know you share that belief, or you wouldn’t be here.”
As he introduced the business of the moment, Weins reflected on President Ronald Reagan, a theme which has always played well in the district.
“Freedom is no more than one generation from extinction,” Weins said, referencing a popular Reagan speech. “We have the courage to say to our enemies there is a price we will not pay, there is a point from which they will not advance.”
He encouraged delegates to consider the past, Reagan’s “rendezvous with destiny”, as they considered the future of the 4th District and Congress.
“Today, we are here to exercise our God-given right to self government,” Weins said. “A right that men and women throughout our history have literally died for.”
Ultimately, he said, the 4th District would make a decision that is best for America.
“We are here to do this job and to remind Congress that Congress works for us,” Weins said. “We want it fixed and we want it fixed now.”
The assembly opened with 527 credentialed delegates from a delegate population of 753. The district is dominated by Douglas County, which holds 223 of the delegates, with almost half the district’s counties holding 10 or fewer delegates. The county with the second-largest delegate count is Larimer with 52.