Hello Denver Democrats!
Sometimes, a voter will say, “I’m not going to vote because my vote doesn’t make a difference.” That is not always true. Here’s what happened in Newport News, Virginia, in 2016:
The November 2016 vote for House District (HD) 94 in Newport News ended in a tie. After a December recount, the Democratic candidate, Shelly Simonds, was initially declared the winner by just one vote. Then, one ballot, which had marks for both candidates, was re-examined and the judges determined the vote should be counted for David Yancey, the Republican incumbent. It was then determined that each candidate had 11,607 votes, and the race was declared a tie. To break the tie, each candidate's name was put into a bowl, and Yancey’s name was drawn. This result meant that not only did the Republicans win HD 94, but now, they also had the majority in the House of Delegates, with 51 seats to the Democrats’ 49 seats. One more vote from a Democrat would have changed the results of the HD 94 race as well as control of the House of Delegates.
The City and County of Denver is deeply blue, so we are unlikely to end up in a similar scenario for a state house or senate seat. However, the additional get-out-the-vote effort we put into reaching one last voter could prevent such a scenario in a statewide or national race. That extra push could result in the one more vote needed for President Biden to carry Colorado instead of the Republican candidate.
I am proud to be a part of the Democratic Party of Denver and to do what I can to help preserve our democracy.
Warm regards,
Beth Turner
Assistant Treasurer
Democratic Party of Denver
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