Denver Election Guide 2019: Here's Who's Running For Mayor

DENVER, CO – Denver's municipal elections will take place May 7, 2019. A crowded field of candidates in the non-partisan mayoral election are challenging two-term incumbent Mayor Michael E. Hancock. There are challengers for several city council and school board seats. Also on the ballot also are citizen petition questions: the legalization of Psilocybin "magic" mushrooms and a lifting of the so-called "urban camping" ban.

Registered Denver voters will receive their ballots in the mail starting April 26. Not registered to vote? You can still register online and in-person up to election day.

If no candidate earns 51 percent of the vote, top two vote-getters will run off in an election June 4, 2019.

Patch has compiled helpful links and info for the upcoming local elections.

Who's running for Mayor?

The final live Denver mayoral candidates debate will take place on Saturday, April 13, at 9 a.m. at the Southwest Improvement Council (SWIC) Sandos Hall 1000 S. Lowell Blvd., in Denver.

Michael Hancock (incumbent). Hancock served on the City Council from 2004-2011 and won his first election for mayor in 2011, followed by a landslide second election in 2015. As mayor during Denver's recent economic boom, Hancock's campaign this time around is focusing on his hardscrabble childhood as the youngest of 10 children and his "Equity Platform" budget and Denveright land use and transportation plan. Hancock suffered a hit to his reputation last year when he was accused by a former female security team member of sending unwanted sexual text messages in 2012. He apologized publicly for the incident. His son, age 22, was also caught on a cell phone insulting an Aurora traffic officer and threatening his job. Hancock's other achievements include raising the minimum wage for city employees to $15 per hour, funding an affordable housing commission and pushing the expungement of low-level marijuana convictions. Hancock has raised a total of $2.1 million between 2018-2019, by far the largest campaign revenue in this race.

Jamie Giellis is an urban development planner and served as River North Arts District from 2014 until she stepped down to campaign for mayor. Giellis told Westword she's running on behalf of "communities in this city who have felt ambushed by the impacts of unplanned development in their neighborhood and frustrated by the city’s lack of response to their concerns and lack of action to make things better." Giellis had raised $506,000. Supporters and Denver developers the Zeppelin family, led by son Kyle Zeppelin, are her biggest donors, having doled out tens of thousands of dollars for her campaign. She's endorsed by a handful of former city councilors and state lawmakers, as well as City Council Member Rafael Espinoza and State Rep. Dafna Michaelson Jenet.

Penfield Tate III, an attorney, served in the House of Representatives between 1997-2001, then in the State Senate between 2001-2003. He ran unsuccessfully for Mayor of Denver against John Hickenlooper in 2003. Tate told Colorado Politics he was spurred to come out of retirement to run for mayor because he believed that the city's development plan was “ignoring and steamrolling neighborhoods over the last eight years for the sake of development." Tate has made climate change a pillar of his campaign with a promise to power all city buildings with 100 percent renewable energy by 2014. Tate's campaign had raised $302,000 by the latest reporting deadline.

Lisa Calderón, a community organizer, has developed a reputation as a community fighter and has positioned herself as an affordable housing advocate who wants to protect neighborhoods from gentrification through "Resident-Directed planning." Calderón was formerly the director of The Community Reentry Project, helping inmates as they left jail. The city cancelled the organization's $650,000 contract, taking away her $54,000 per year, salary. She sued the city in federal court. Calderon called the contract's cancellation a retaliatory attack by Hancock in the Denver Post, which urged her to run to unseat him. She is professor of criminal justice at Regis University and a co-chairwoman of the Colorado Latino Forum. Calderón's campaign has raised about $122,000.

Candidates Kalyn Heffernan and Stephan "Seku" Evans have not raised significant amounts of money for their campaigns.

Ballot issues for Denver, as reviewed by the Denver League of Women Voters.

Initiated Measure 300:The Right to Survive Initiative

This provision would overturn most of the “Unauthorized Camping Ordinance,” often called the “camping ban,” which was passed by the City Council in 2012.

Major Provisions

Homeless people in Denver would have the right to:

• Rest and shelter in public spaces without blocking passageways.
• Eat, share, accept, or give free food in any public space where food is allowed.
• Occupy their own legally parked motor vehicle, or another’s with the owner’s permission.
• Expect safety and privacy for themselves and their belongings.

Those in favor say:

• Criminalizing homelessness does not address the underlying causes of the problem. Decriminalization is a first step to addressing the issue. Money spent on enforcement of the camping ban would be better used to fund solutions to the problem of homelessness.
• Nonpayment of the fines and fees that are the consequence of camping ban violations frequently result in time spent in jail and a criminal record, both of which create barriers to employment and housing.
• The camping ban has caused people without homes to shelter in scattered, dangerous places and made it more difficult for outreach workers to direct people to needed services.

Those opposed say:

• This initiative removes an important tool that police can use to move people without homes from inappropriate public spaces.
• Overturning the camping ban could hurt businesses by discouraging customers and discouraging citizens from using parks and oth erpublic spaces.

• The measure prohibits Denver from enforcing laws that are essential to protection of public health and safety.
• No funds are provided for increased cleanup of public spaces.
• Removing the camping ban does nothing to address the underlying causes of homelessness and will only exacerbate existing problems.

Initiated Measure 301: Psilocybin Mushroom Decriminalization

Background

It is currently illegal to possess or sell mushrooms which contain psilocybin, which is a Schedule I drug under federal law.

Major Provisions

• Make the personal use and personal possession of psilocybin mushrooms by persons twenty-one (21) years of age and older the city’s lowest law-enforcement priority,
• Remove criminal penalties for the personal use and personal possession of psilocybin mushrooms by persons twenty-one (21) years of age and older,
• Establish the psilocybin mushroom policy review panel to assess and report on the effects of the ordinance.

Those in favor say:

• There is no evidence of psilocybin being addictive and there has never been a death from overdose. It shows promise in treatment for dependence on drugs that are addictive and potentially fatal including nicotine and opioids.
• There is anecdotal evidence of beneficial effects in non-clinical settings.
• Problems associated with use are usually mild and temporary. Users experiencing adverse reactions have reported anxiety, fear, and disorientation. These effects typically last for a few hours and are treated by having the user rest quietly.
• Criminalization of low-level drug possession is a factor in mass incarceration and can have devastating consequences to the individual that are out of proportion to the seriousness of the offense.

Those opposed say:

• Psilocybin is a schedule I drug according to federal law, in the same category as heroin.
• Psilocybin mushrooms will not be available from controlled sources so there will be concerns about dose and purity. This is a bad idea in a state that is still adjusting to legal cannabis. This ordinance might make Denver a mecca for drug seekers.
• The therapeutic benefits of psilocybin were shown in carefully controlled clinical settings with subjects carefully screened for psychotic tendencies. This ordinance would make the drug more available to persons without screening. There have also been reports of seizures and hypothermia among children who have ingested mushrooms.
• Persons using this drug might have impaired judgment that could lead to behavior that causes injury to themselves or others.