Well, that was fast. A whopping 30 minutes after U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter announced he was running for Governor, State Rep. Brittany Pettersen threw her hat in the ring for his seat. While everyone knew she was planning to run, her first-to-market approach was fast. At her campaign kick-off, Pettersen pledged to stand up to Donald Trump and fight for “regular” people.
Pettersen faces a crowded primary as State Sen. Andy Kerr plans to announce on Wednesday his bid for the seat and Dominck Moreno also is considering a run. Not only will the primary be crowded, but we expect nasty. Kerr is a teacher and deeply involved with the teachers union in Jeffco. Pettersen is head of the House Education Committee. We already have seen how ugly (and what liars) the teachers union in Jeffco can be during the Jeffco School Board recall effort. Which candidate will the teachers union support?
It’s also worth noting that ProgressNow Colorado is led by Pettersen’s fiance, Ian Silverii. Will ProgressNow come to her aid? Does that give her an advantage in terms of grassroots organizing? Where does Moreno fit in this intra-party fight?
Time will tell. All we can say is that we’re delighted that, for once, the Democratic Party will have a blistering primary.