Elections Quick Reference Glossary

An eligible elector (or family member related by blood marriage, civil union, or adoption to the eligible elector) may request an absentee ballot, and receive a ballot within 72 hours of the DEO receiving a valid application, so long as they have filed by the Tuesday preceding the election.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1002

Ballot issues are those which involve fiscal matters ($$$). An example would be a mill levy increase, relief from the revenue and spending restrictions of TABOR, or other provisions.

CO Constitution Section Art. X, Section 20, 1-13.5-111(2), Zaner v. City of Brighton

These are ballot questions posed to voters that do not involve fiscal matters. They may be asked by any method of election.

C.R.S. Section 1-1-104(2.7)

Directors for a special district who collectively constitute the governing body.

C.R.S. Section 32-1-103(1.5)

75 to 100 days before an election special districts provide a notice of the Call for nominations. But the type of special district depends affects the required method of providing the notice. In any case, two ways of providing notice are now required.

Metropolitan districts organized after January 1, 2020

Between 75 to 100 days prior to the elections these metropolitan districts must:

• Email the Call for Nominations notice to all email addresses or mailing addresses (if no email address is given) found in the Clerk & Recorder list(s) of district electors registered as of 150 days prior to the election.

and one of the following

• Provide notice by publication, as defined at Section 1-13.5-501(2)
• Including the notice as a prominent part of a newsletter, annual report, billing insert, billing statement, letter, voter information card or other notice of election, or other information mailing sent by the metropolitan district to the eligible electors of the metropolitan district
• Posting the information on the official website of the official website of the metropolitan district
• For districts with < than 1,000 eligible electors in a county with a population of less than 30,000, posting the notice in 3 places within district boundaries and the clerk & recorder's office through the day the after the Call for Nominations closes.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-501(1.7)

All other Section 32-1 district types and metropolitan districts organized before January 1, 2000

Between 75 to 100 days prior to the elections these districts must:

• Provide notice by publication, as defined at Section 1-13.5-501(2)

and one of the following

• Mail the notice, at the lowest cost option, to each address at which one or more active registered electors of the local government resides as specified in the registration list provided by the county clerk and recorder as of the date that is 150 days prior to the date of the regular local government election (similar to >1/1/2000 metropolitan districts, but this is optional and by mail only).
• Including the notice as a prominent part of a newsletter, annual report, billing insert, billing statement, letter, voter information card or other notice of election, or other information mailing sent by the metropolitan district to the eligible electors of the metropolitan district
• Posting the information on the official website of the the district
• For districts with < than 1,000 eligible electors in a county with a population of less than 30,000, posting the notice in 3 places within district boundaries and the clerk & recorder's office through the day after the Call for Nominations closes.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-501(1.5)

The Canvass Board consists of one eligible elector of the district, one member of the governing body, and the DEO. Together they produce the Canvass Board’s Certificate of Election Results, which all sign. It is filed with DLG.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1305(1)

This is the document produced by the Canvass Board that is the official document deeming candidates elected and issues or questions passed/defeated. It is completed within 14 days of the election unless there is a recount.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1305

The election of any candidate or results of any ballot question or issue may be contested for reasons specified by 1-13.5-1401 (candidates) and 1408 (questions/issues).

Cases shall be tried and decided by the district court for the county in which the contest arises. If a district is located in more than one county, the district court of either county has jurisdiction.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1402(1)

A district may choose to have the county clerk and recorder(s) conduct their November special elections for them at the District’s expense. Districts still have responsibilities during these elections, but the election itself is conducted by the county clerk(s).

C.R.S. Section 1-7-116, SOS Rule 4.1.3

“Designated Election Official” means the person designated by the governing body of a local government or by court order to supervise election duties. Generally, the board of directors will both call an election and appoint the DEO by resolution at the same time. Because self-nomination & acceptance forms may be submitted to the DEO as early as January 1st, it is recommended that the board appoints a DEO by late fall in even years preceding a special district regular election, though there isn’t a specific date required by statute.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-103(2)

A member of the board. Most special districts have 5, though some have 7. Special District directors must be eligible electors of the district.

C.R.S. Section 32-1-103(3) & (5)

In addition to the chart above, the Division provides an election calendar on its website (also above) which lays out election steps in chronological order. The election calendar is available for all regular elections by late fall preceding the election, and is also generally available for November special elections.

DEOs appoint election judges no later than 15 days prior to the election. Election judges conduct the election itself, and count the ballots. As soon as the votes are tallied, the judges post an unofficial result (abstract) at the polling place, then make an official certificate of the complete results, which then goes to the Canvass Board.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-401, 613, 615

Any person may file an affidavit with the district attorney stating the name of any person(s) who has violated any of the provisions of the election code and stating the facts that constitute the alleged offense. Upon the filing of such affidavit, the district attorney shall investigate, and, if reasonable grounds appear, he/she shall prosecute the violator. The attorney general also has the prosecutorial powers of the district
attorney.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1601, 1-13-101

The most basic way a person may be an eligible elector of a special district, is to

1. Be a person who is registered to vote in the State of Colorado and either:
   1. resides in the district on the election date; or
   2. owns, or is the spouse or civil union partner of a person who owns, taxable real or personal property situated within the boundaries of the special district or the area to be included in the special district, whether said person resides within the special district or not. To qualify, the property must be in the person’s name, not a trust, LLC., etc.

Note that there are several other ways for someone to be eligible to vote in a special district election. They are, however, much less common:

• A person who is obligated to pay taxes under a contract to purchase taxable property situated within the boundaries of the special district or the area to be included within the special district shall be considered an owner.
• For all elections and petitions that require ownership of real property or land, a mobile home as defined in section 38-12-201.5 (2) or 5-1-301 (29), C.R.S., or a manufactured home as defined in section 42-1-102 (106) (b), C.R.S., shall be deemed sufficient to qualify as ownership of real property or land for the purpose of voting rights and petitions.

In the event that the board, by resolution, ends business personal property taxation by the district pursuant to subsection (8) (b) of section 20 of article X of the state constitution, persons owning such property and spouses or civil union partners of such persons shall not be eligible electors of the district on the basis of ownership of such property.

C.R.S. 32-1-103(5)

A mail ballot election is just that, an election where the only method of voting is via mail ballot. Every eligible elector receives a mail ballot.

A district may choose to conduct an independent (not conducted by county) mail ballot election for any election, but if there is a ballot issue (TABOR/$) being posed to voters, the election must be held by mail ballot, even for a regular election.

Mail ballots are sent 15-22 days prior to the election date.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1101 et seq.

For independent mail ballot elections (not coordinated with county), the DEO complete and have on file a mail ballot plan by the 55th day prior to the election date. A template mail ballot plan is available on the DLG election forms webpage.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1103

Special district elections are nonpartisan, meaning political parties are forbidden. Names are never affiliated with Republicans, Democrats, Greens, Libertarians, etc.

C.R.S. Section 1-1-104(23.3)

If by the 63rd day prior to the election (the day after the deadline for write-in affidavit submittal), or thereafter there are not more candidates than offices to be filled, and if instructed by resolution of the board of directors, the DEO may cancel the election.

The DEO provides notice by publication of the cancellation. A copy of the notice of cancellation is filed with DLG.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-513, 1-11-103(3)

Each director, within thirty days after his or her election or appointment to fill a vacancy, except for good cause shown, shall appear before an officer authorized to administer oaths and take an oath that he or she will perform the duties of his or her office as required by law and will support the constitution of the United States, the constitution of the state of Colorado, and the laws made pursuant thereto.

When an election is cancelled in whole or in part, each director who was declared elected shall take the oath required within thirty days after the date of the regular election (note: not the cancellation date; oaths taken prior to the election date are invalid), except for good cause shown. The oath may be administered by the county clerk and recorder, by the clerk of the court, by any person authorized to administer oaths in this state, or by the chairman of the board and shall be filed with the clerk of the court and the Division of Local Government (DOLA).

At the time of the filing of said oath, there shall also be filed for each director an individual, schedule, or blanket surety bond at the expense of the special district, in an amount determined by the board of not less than one thousand dollars each, conditioned upon the faithful performance of his duties as director.

If any director fails to take the oath or furnish the requisite bond within the period allowed, except for good cause shown, his office shall be deemed vacant, and the vacancy thus created shall be filled in the same manner as other vacancies in the office of director.

C.R.S. Section 32-1-901 (1), (2), (3)

In addition to the absentee ballot, an eligible elector may also apply for permanent absentee voter status. The district must maintain a list of permanent absentee voters.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1003

This is a traditional election with polling places. But districts holding these elections must also send absentee ballots, and maintain a list of permanent absentee voters. Those voters will automatically receive an absentee ballot.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-601 et seq.

Obtained from the county assessor(s). For elections held, the DEO orders the list by the 40th day preceding the election. The list is used to verify eligibility of an elector who votes on the basis of being registered to vote in Colorado and owning taxable real or personal property within the district.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-204

Printing one time in one newspaper of general circulation in the special district. Where geography dictates this is impossible, at least one publication is required in each county having at least 50 eligible electors.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-501(2)

DEO orders an automatic recount if the difference between the votes of the candidate with the lowest winning vote total and highest losing vote total is less than 0.5% of the highest vote total. This is actually extremely rare. For example, if winning candidate ‘C’ beats losing candidate ‘D’ by 92 to 90 votes, an automatic recount is not triggered. 92-90 = 2, 2÷92 = 2.17%, which is greater than 0.5%; no automatic recount is triggered. Candidates may ask for a recount at their own expense.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-1306(2)

Obtained from the county clerk and recorder(s). For elections held, the DEO orders the list by the 40th day preceding the election. The list is used to verify eligibility of an elector who votes on the basis of being registered to vote in Colorado and residing within the district.

C.R.S. § 1-13.5-203

A similar list is requested for the purpose of emailing or mailing notice.

Districts must hold regular elections on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of May in even-numbered years until 2022.

Regular elections will be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of odd-numbered years, starting with the 2023 election.

C.R.S. § 1-13.5-111(1)

If an election is canceled, candidates for director are considered elected by acclamation, so long as the election was properly noticed by the electors.

C.R.S. § 1-13.5-111(1), 1-13.5-513(1)

Regular Elections are for the purpose of electing directors to the board and for the submission of other ballot issues and questions, if any. Terms are for four years.

C.R.S. § 1-1-104(42), 32-1-103(17), 305.5(3)

Eligible electors who wish to be candidates for a special district’s board of directors must submit a Self-nomination and acceptance form/letter to the DEO (there are no petitions) by the 67th day prior to the election. A witness, who must be an eligible elector of Colorado must. Term length must be chosen at the time of submittal, if more than one exists. The earliest candidates may self-nominate is January 1.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-303

Title 32, Article 1, C.R.S., special districts include ambulance, fire protection, health service, metropolitan, park and recreation, sanitation, water, water and sanitation, and tunnel districts.

C.R.S. Section 32-1-301(2)(a)

Special elections may be held only on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in February, May, October, or December of any year.

Any special district election ordered pursuant to article 1 of title 32, C.R.S., by the district court having jurisdiction over such existing or proposed special district must be held on the date ordered by the court and conducted in accordance with this article.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-111(2)&(3)

For districts conducting independent mail ballot elections, at 30 days prior to the election date, a notice is required to be sent to “All registered voters”. Specific information about the ballot issue including fiscal information and a summary of pro and con statements filed with the DEO about the ballot issue are included in the TABOR notice.

CO Constitution Section Art. X, Section 20(b)

TABOR (issue) elections may be held only on the date of a state general election, biennial local district election, or on the first Tuesday in November of odd-numbered years.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-111(2)

Voters who are in the military and/or other citizens living abroad may claim residence in Colorado; they follow the requirements of this Act and are generally referred to as UOCAVA voters.

C.R.S. Section 1-8.3-103(1)(d)

Election judges produce the unofficial abstract outside their polling place and may remove it within 48 hours. They then produce a certificate of election returns for the Canvass Board, which the Canvass Board then certifies.

C.R.S. § 1-13.5-613, 615

Vacancies are filled by appointment by the board. An appointment is valid only until the next regular election at which time the remaining unexpired portion of the term must by filled by election. This may result in a two-year (partial) term being up for election at the next regular election.

The transition to odd year elections will require two regular elections in consecutive years, 2022 and 2023. Directors appointed prior to the May 3, 2022, election for a director elected to a 3-year term in 2020 will be elected to 1-year terms; those appointed after the May 3, 2022 will only serve until May 2, 2023 (less than one year).

C.R.S. Section 32-1-905(2)

Each candidate for office, or interested party in case of a ballot issue or ballot question, is entitled to appoint an eligible elector to act as a watcher in every polling place in which he or she is a candidate or in which the issue or question is on the ballot.

The designated election official may, by lot, reduce the number of watchers to one for and one against the ballot issue or ballot question for each location to be watched.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-602(1)

Generally, only last minute candidates will use the write-in affidavit. The affidavit is due the Monday after the Self-Nomination form is due and one day prior to the date a DEO may cancel the election (64th day). Write-in votes only count if they are for the person who has submitted an affidavit.

C.R.S. Section 1-13.5-305