Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Jena Griswold

Griswold’s office response to GOP concern lacks detail requested by Williams
Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Griswold’s office response to GOP concern lacks detail requested by Williams

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice In response to an inquiry made by the Colorado Republican Party, the office of secretary of state Jena Griswold claims only partial passwords to certain components of the Colorado voting systems were improperly made available in a public area of the website she manages. "This does not pose an immediate security threat to Colorado’s elections, nor will it impact how ballots are counted," a statement from her office reads. The statement received by the Rocky Mountain Voice did not include comment from Griswold in a long explanation of election security measures, which never addressed how the passwords were placed in a public area of the website and by whom. In fact, the statement failed to address much of the concern from Colorado Republican...
Colorado GOP: Hundreds of voting system passwords were publicly shared by secretary of state’s office
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Colorado GOP: Hundreds of voting system passwords were publicly shared by secretary of state’s office

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice More than 600 BIOS passwords for voting system components in 63 of the state's 64 counties were publicly shared in a file on Secretary of State Jena Griswold's website, a news release email from the Colorado Republican Party reads. An unnamed state official "discretely removed" the passwords on Thursday, Oct. 24, the release states. "The passwords were not encrypted or otherwise protected – this means they were available for public consumption," the Colorado Republican Party's email reads. The file may have been posted publicly since August, with the amended file posted Oct. 24. BIOS passwords allow access for "knowledgeable users to fundamentally manipulate systems and data" and to remove trace evidence of doing so, the Colorado Republ...
‘Not the gold standard, a bit of fool’s gold’: Ganahl finds areas of election concern which must be addressed before Nov. 5
Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

‘Not the gold standard, a bit of fool’s gold’: Ganahl finds areas of election concern which must be addressed before Nov. 5

https://youtu.be/RgG-ysUlvq4 Ganahl talks about her concerns with Colorado's elections during a press conference outside the Capitol on Thursday afternoon. Lengthy analysis and research into one county’s 2022 election results has brought up some significant concerns, Heidi Ganahl, the Republican candidate for governor in 2022, announced Thursday in a press conference. “I’m concerned that Colorado’s elections are not the gold standard as proclaimed," Ganahl said, “but a bit of fool’s gold.” She is the founder and president of Rocky Mountain Voice, and a noted advocate for free and fair elections. “Verifying the integrity of election systems is not the exclusive role of law enforcement, but the right and duty of the citizens, and the delegated responsibility of...
Presidential debate, Taylor Swift, Meta credited for surge in Colorado voter registrations
Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Presidential debate, Taylor Swift, Meta credited for surge in Colorado voter registrations

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice A three-day period in September has led to a surge in voter registration, the office of Secretary of State Jena Griswold reports, and performer Taylor Swift may get to take some credit. More than 21,000 either registered to vote in the state or updated their registration during the period, which began Sept. 10 with Swift's endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris in advance of a televised debate that night between Harris and former President Donald Trump. It represents a 0.5% increase in voter registrations. “Registering to vote is the first step to making your voice heard in our democracy,” Griswold said. “It is exciting to see Coloradans registering to vote and getting involved in advance of this November’s election. Every voter has a vo...
Package addressed to secretary of state, containing white powder substance, under investigation
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Package addressed to secretary of state, containing white powder substance, under investigation

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice A package containing white powder addressed to the Colorado Secretary of State's office has been intercepted at a state mail facility. The package included a return address of “U.S. Traitor Elimination Army.” Similar packages have been received by several secretaries of state, first reported Tuesday, Sept. 17, the Colorado Secretary of State's office noted in a press release. Investigations by the FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Colorado State Patrol preliminarily indicate the powder included in the package is harmless. Often, investigations of such packages are found to be gypsum, a harmless white mineral common to chalk, drywall and plaster. “We cannot tolerate threats to election officials and public servants," said Colorado Sec...
‘I voted’ sticker art contest open to Colorado high school students
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‘I voted’ sticker art contest open to Colorado high school students

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice High school students throughout Colorado are encouraged to participate in a contest being offered by the secretary of state's office to create an "I Voted" digital sticker. “The digital ‘I Voted’ sticker is a great opportunity for students to engage with our democracy,” Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold. “I’m already looking forward to seeing the designs Colorado high schoolers come up with to encourage Coloradans to vote!” A selected sticket design will be sent to voters via BallotTrax once they have voted in the upcoming general election, a press release from Griswold's office reads. It will also be featured on the Secretary of State’s website, media channels, press releases, in media coverage and as part of digital effort to encour...
Campaign complaint dismissed against El Paso County commissioner running for state office
Approved, Colorado Springs Gazette, Local

Campaign complaint dismissed against El Paso County commissioner running for state office

By Savannah Eller | Colorado Springs Gazette Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold's office has officially dismissed a complaint against current El Paso County Commissioner Stan VanderWerf for comments made about his state Senate run in a May 9 Board of County Commissioners meeting.  The state Elections Division motion to dismiss was granted on June 7. Integrity matters, the resident watchdog group behind the complaint, said in the filing that VanderWerf violated fair campaign practices when he mentioned what he planned to do if elected to Colorado Senate District 12 this November during a meeting on a housing development approval application.  The development, which would bring 20 single-family homes to dead-end Hay Creek Road, faced opposition from the public during the...
Ballots to begin hitting mailstream for June 25 primary election
Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Ballots to begin hitting mailstream for June 25 primary election

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice Ballots will begin hitting the mailstream today, June 3, in the state's primary election, Secretary of State Jena Griswold has announced. Election Day is Tuesday, June 25. “Ballots are arriving to your mailbox soon,” said Griswold, in a press release. “There is still time to register to vote if you have not already, and I encourage every eligible Coloradan to do so.” Active voters must be mailed a ballot by Friday, June 7. The ballot will include party-related ballot items and a special election to select what has been termed a "placeholder" in Colorado's 4th Congressional District, completing the unexpired term of U.S. Rep. Ken Buck. In that election, there will be a choice of a Democrat, Republican and two minor-party candidates for the une...
Griswold certifies Presidential primary election, reports 38.7% turnout
Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State

Griswold certifies Presidential primary election, reports 38.7% turnout

By BRIAN PORTER | The Rocky Mountain Voice A little more than one-third of registered Colorado voters cast a ballot in the state's Presidential primary election, Secretary of State Jena Griswold reported Monday. She has certified the election, making the results official and final, a press release from her office reads. Certification follows each county’s bipartisan canvass board submitting their official abstract of votes to the Secretary of State’s Office. There were 1,464,836 ballots casts among 3,788,458 active, registered voters, resulting in a turnout of 38.67%. Unaffiliated voters cast 38.4% of all ballots, a total of 562,699 ballots. In the Democratic Party primary, there were 177,117 ballots cast, with 31.4% of those ballots cast by unaffiliated voters. In the Republican ...
Secretary Griswold ‘unfit’ and ‘lacks integrity’ House Republican letter reads
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Secretary Griswold ‘unfit’ and ‘lacks integrity’ House Republican letter reads

By BRIAN PORTER | The Rocky Mountain Voice A month has passed since Republicans in the Colorado House of Representatives first called upon Speaker Julie McCluskie to hear Articles of Impeachment for Secretary of State Jena Griswold. “Since being elected, the secretary of state has used her position as a platform for her partisan political ideology and has proven herself unfit for this elected position,” a new letter from Rep. Ryan Armagost and signed by 16 other Republicans reads. The letter, dated March 6, 2024, terms it imperative to have the matter placed on the legislative calendar. “The secretary of state has consistently been criticized for her lack of transparency and questionable bias,” Armagost’s letter continues. “Her partisan political beliefs are constantly the subj...