It looks like the most polarizing figure on the Denver City Council is headed to a runoff election after failing to capture 50% of the vote.
At the Denver Democratic Socialists of America watch party Tuesday, Candi CdeBaca told supporters she thought she could win without a runoff.
But Wednesday afternoon, she was still trailing challenger Darrell Watson by 220 votes for the north 9th District race.
By Thursday afternoon, she pulled ahead by 200 votes, but with more votes still to count.
From Westword:
That race could end up having major implications, as CdeBaca has been the most left-leaning member of council by far since taking office after she ousted incumbent Albus Brooks in 2019. Watson is much more to the center politically.
Meanwhile, Denverite reports:
In a brief statement, Watson said he was thankful for the support and he’s looking forward to continuing the work “for everyone in our community.”
Watson currently serves on the Housing Stability Strategic Advisors board. He’s also the board chair of the Denver Park Trust. Watson previously ran twice for council, losing in 2007 against Carla Madison and dropping out of the race in 2011 due to a cancer diagnosis. Watson is focused on housing, healthy living and public safety.
CdeBaca described her campaign as a strategic movement to make her two opponents work harder than her supporters, which probably explains why she lost the first round to Watson.
“What you see here are people who recognized that we were going to be a target, our movement was going to be a target and the only way to disperse that fire, that force, is to bring in more people do it together and force the opposition to spread out their attention. Spread out their resources, and make them work for this shit,” CdeBaca said.
Last night in between ballot drops, I made a special announcement ✨. And I have a message for #Denver: We are ready for whatever’s next in this race as the votes keep coming in.
Watch/read my speech here: https://t.co/A318WoWnxv pic.twitter.com/WkcCY90bcR
— Candi CdeBaca for District 9 | Denver City Council (@CandiCdeBacaD9) April 5, 2023
But the big reveal came when CdeBaca announced she’s been pregnant for the last seven months.
She didn’t explain why she thought being pregnant was something she needed to keep secret from her pro-abortion supporters in the socialist Democrat movement.
We wish her and her baby good health.