Jon Caldara, Boulder resident and president of the Independence Institute, casts a vote in the Senate District 11 recall election at in El Paso County. (Christian Murdock, The Gazette/AP)
When Gov. John Hickenlooper's spokesman expressed "growing concerns that some people would rather pursue political stunts than respect election law," it was clear he was referring to Jon Caldara switching his residency from Boulder to El Paso County and casting a blank ballot in a high-profile recall election.
The Independence Institute president's action last week was a stunt, all right. But did he "respect election law" or ignore it? That's the more interesting question.
If Caldara truly intends to make Colorado Springs his permanent residence — a roll of the eyes, please — then he followed the law. If he doesn't, then he broke the law, plain and simple.
So don't anyone get ideas. You can't legally vote in any local election in Colorado purely on a declaration that you have changed your residence. The statement must also be true. "I'll see what the town is like," Caldara said. "I've heard great things about it. I'm looking forward to checking out Colorado Springs."
Those aren't words you usually associate with someone relocating to a city twice as far from his office as his previous address.
But even stunts of dubious legality may prove a point — namely how easy it apparently is under Colorado's new election law to commit fraud. The same-day registration rules under House Bill 1303 are dismayingly lax, as we suggested in an editorial in April.
It is not enough for defenders of the statute to point out that it is illegal to mislead election officials, or that election fraud is relatively rare in Colorado. If it is easier than it used to be to skirt the law through an 11th-hour registration, that's disturbing.
We supported many elements of HB 1303 and have no desire to fan lurid claims regarding its weaknesses, such as El Paso County Clerk Wayne Williams' claim that he had "heard concerns from folks that busloads from Denver were coming down to vote." But Caldara's stunt — legal or not — does highlight an issue of real concern.