Red County, Blue State

It hasn’t even been a week since election day!? In a historic win, the voters of Douglas County chose to expand to 5 county commissioners despite the current commissioners’s best efforts, which means big structural change is on the way, but not without a legal battle as to how those commissioners are elected. My guest today is a podcast favorite, Angela Thomas. Angela is the leader who spearheaded the 3to5/Yes on 200 effort, and she will shed new light on the lawsuit ahead and the timeline.

Bottom line, your commissioners are using county funds to defend their own confusing, poorly-written ballot measure, and they will continue to do so by paying their $900/hour attorney with taxpayer dollars.

Our local Dem candidates didn’t fare so well in the election, but never fear, it is Commissioner Abe Laydon who provides hope for the future. Hope to see these candidates on the ballot again soon.

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SHOW NOTES:

Douglas County election results:

https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/CO/Douglas/127427/web.345435/#/summary

Commissioners have spent $52k on legal fees in relation to 1A - source is former commissioner Lora Thomas’s Oct 24, 2026 newsletter

Donate to 3 to 5: Venmo and website.

Let’s show up, DougCo. Locusts rise up! See you on the other side!

How I voted/would vote the 2026 ballot.

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Prop 134 targets a tiny and vulnerable population: trans youth who play sports, specifically trans girls (assigned male at birth but identify as a girl). There are many problems with how Prop 134 is written, but the main one? Enforcement. The Christian right-wing group that backs this measure has not addressed this aspect. Will a birth certificate suffice (haha, Brigitte Macron and President Obama would like a word) or will physical inspections or DNA tests be required? We don’t know. That’s a problem for all girls, including cis-gender girls who might have their gender challenged.

My guest today is Matt, the dad of a non-binary kid who plays sports. Matt has a professional background in behavioral science and was raised in a home that was fairly conservative. How did he get from there to here? How do he and his child navigate participation in sports? Get ready for a generous perspective on connection and belonging.

Vote no on Prop 134 and 135.

The text of Prop 134

Logan Davis’s post on Protect Kids Colorado Instagram and Facebook. More reporting on the group by Colorado Times Recorder here and here.

https://www.thedadsfoundation.org/ : “The Dads Foundation is a national community of dads showing up for our transgender, nonbinary, and gender-expansive children through connection, storytelling, and action.” It also has a documentary short film on Netflix.

County commissioners announce support for Prop 134 and 135. The vote to support 135 (banning certain gender affirming care) was unanimous. The vote to support 134, was Kevin Van Winkle and George Teal voting to support, Abe Laydon abstaining. Abe Laydon identifies as a member of the LGBTQ community.

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Anti-trans measures (Propositions 134 and 135) are on the ballot this year, measures that claim to protect kids, but do they really? In this episode, we take a deeper look at Prop 135, which seeks to prohibit a surgery that doesn’t happen in Colorado and may in fact deny medical care to kids who aren’t trans. Why? How? We’re breaking it down in this episode.

My guest today is the mom of a transgender kid who went through gender-affirming care as an adolescent. She talks about the reality of treatment, the detailed standards, how these anti-trans measures endanger and dehumanize an already vulnerable population and are the first steps down a much darker path. This conversation matters to all.

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email: [email protected]

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SHOW NOTES:

LGBTQ+ and need support? Call, text, or chat the Trevor Project’s suicide hotline. The org behind Prop 135. The measure would apply to both transgender and non-gender teens Colorado Sun, October 2024

Understanding transgender people, gender identity and gender expression, American Psychological Association,March 2023

Harvard study that shows little to no utilization of surgeries for gender-affirming care in the US. Harvard School of Public Health, July, 2024

TRUE Center

WPATH: World Professional Association for Transgender Health

Trump administration seeks to cut off access to transgender healthcare for US children. PBS, December 2025

Project 2025 is the playbook that specifically targets the transgender community. The Advocate, August 2024

One Year of Tracking Project 2025. Guttmacher, January 2026

Court of Appeals in Tennessee overturns manslaughter conviction with a form of the LGBTQ “panic” defense, which was the defense used by Matthew Shepard’s murderers in Wyoming. ABA Journal, October 2026

If you’re fairly new to Colorado elections or are still a little fuzzy on why we have the Blue Book, TABOR book, and Ballot Question 200, this is your episode. I explain the Blue Book (it’s a big ol thing this year at 127 pages), the TABOR book, and present information on “Yes on 200” so you can make your own decision. Do I have an opinion? Moi??? Yes. So does my neighbor. Time to be the informed ones in our group chat.

I will vote ✅YES on 200, ✅5 by District on 201, and 🚫NO on 1A

Do your neighbors agree with you on local issues? Get a Yes on 200 yard sign so they can see where you stand. Go here! Or contact me at [email protected]

If you want to ask the Yes on 200 (fka 3 to 5) committee questions, find one of their town halls all over the county.

Sample ballot.

Blue Book should already be at your house via mail, TABOR book is on its way but both are online.

Kyle Clark says the county commissioners are “tanking” the citizen-led 3 to 5.

I’m also voting ✅YES on 5A. This is an MLO (funding) for our public schools. Colorado schools are chronically underfunded, and Douglas County itself is trying to recover from years of damage from almost a decade of BOE’s who wanted to starve public schools. It’s a whole thing. Don’t know what an MLO is and why we have them? Listen to my episode on school finance here.

This ballot is LONG, it’s ok to get help from orgs you already trust:

Bell Policy Center Ballot Guide: short, sweet, gives recommendations.

League of Women Voters - Where the League Stands. Also gives recommendations This whole website is so educational regarding elections.

Indivisible Colorado Ballot Guide

Contact me anytime:

email: [email protected]

on signal: @emilysuyat.87

Text or leave a message at 720-288-0147

Thanks for listening! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review for me on Apple Podcasts to drown out the fella telling me to move to Denver. (No 💅 ) Douglas County is my home and if you live here, it’s yours too.

Hi! What a sh*t week for news! Let’s vote in some good people, shall we? My guest today is Dan Smith, candidate for Douglas County treasurer. What does a county treasurer do? Why is it important? Dan will explain it all, including why the county waiving $19 million in taxes for a data center probably should have had more public input and input from other Douglas County elected officials. If you’re a money nerd or not, this episode is for all who want transparency.

Check out candidate Dan Smith’s tax transparency tool and see how your property taxes compare to other taxpayers in Douglas County.

Visit https://www.dan4dougco.com/ to donate, get a yard sign, volunteer or contact Dan.

Ballots are mailed on Oct 2, Election Day is Nov 3. Sample ballot here.

Visit the Yes on 200 - 3 to 5 website to find out more about your ballot and voting yes on 200. I’ll also do an episode on this. Yard sign link here.

Contact me anytime, I’d love to hear from you:

email: [email protected]

on signal: @emilysuyat.87

Text or leave a message at 720-288-0147

Thanks for listening!

Irene Bonham may be running as a Democrat but she joins us in a conversation about values that matter to most of us when it comes to public officials: integrity, accessibility, and transparency. Irene talks about why she wants a seat where she will be outnumbered and likely ostracized (if not worse), what smart growth looks like, the dangers of dark money and consolidated power, and dun dun dunnnnn “is she a socialist?” (No.)

Get to know the candidate endorsed by Rep Jason Crow, Rep Joe Neguse, Rep Brittany Petterson and Senator Michael Bennet.

2:35 - Irene’s background and why she’s running

4:55 - Why run after knowing allegations of bullying by former commissioner Lora Thomas?

7:25 - How she plans to address trust and transparency

10:16 - Data centers and AI

14:30 - Why she’s not taking donations from developers doing business in the county

16:45 - The jaw-dropping dark money supporting her opponent.

19:42 - The top county concern for voters

22:15 - Is she a socialist?

Volunteer, get a sign, donate, meet Irene: https://www.irenebonham.com/

TRACER - the CO Secretary of State’s searchable campaign finance site

Booker banners are back: DougCoFReadom defenders on Instagram and Facebook (private group).

New residents compared to locusts, featuring Irene’s opponent Jake Bockenfeld.

My guest Angela Thomas, leader of the 3 to 5 effort, tells us about the hearing last Thursday, who actually signed the 3 to 5 petition, and what the plan is to get 3 to 5 to pass November. She’ll also tell us how the 5 districts will be drawn if the voters choose to be represented by district.

The news coverage of the commissioner’s interference with 3 to 5 was right on the money, so if you need a basic explainer to share, Kyle Clark of 9News and Olivia Young of CBSColorado have you covered as do many other local news outlets.

ALSO, What do Sonny Crockett and George Teal have in common? Listen to find out!

email: [email protected]

on signal: @emilysuyat.87

Text or leave a message at 720-288-0147

Sources:

Keep up with 3 to 5 here: website, Facebook

3 to 5’s petition data

Convict Coffee episode

3 to 5 in the media—

CBS Colorado

Denver Gazette

Denver7

Share on social media:

Olivia Young with CBSColorado on Instagram

Kyle Clark on threads

Kyle Clark on Facebook

Kyle Clark on youtube

Thank you for listening!

The commissioners appointed themselves judge and jury over a ballot fight they started — and then wrote misleading language for their own competing measure. In this episode, I talk about the missing a “at-large” language in the commissioners’ stand-alone ballot measure, the 3-5 committee's protest, and what's at stake before Thursday's hearing. Come to the hearing if you can: September 3 at 3pm at 100 Third Street.

Contact me anytime:

email: [email protected]

on signal: @emilysuyat.87

Text or leave a message at 720-288-0147

Video clips taken from this meeting.

9news: https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/local-politics/douglas-county-commissioners-ballot-issues-affect-future/73-dc19da4d-7a58-48bc-bd96-6afb82856a91

Westword: https://www.westword.com/news/douglas-county-battle-over-commissioners-ballot-measure-40929581/

Denver Gazette: https://www.denvergazette.com/2026/08/28/dougco-commissioners-set-ballot-language-for-initiative-to-expand-board-from-3-to-5-members/

Douglas County News Press: https://www.douglascountynewspress.com/news/local-government/article_71a8a27f-ddf7-4e75-85a1-ac6e3cc07767.html

Timeline on Commissioner’s website with all of their resolutions and ballot language: https://www.douglasco.gov/board-county-commissioners/transparency/3-to-5-commissioners-voter-initiated-measure/).

3 to 5 press release: https://www.3to5dougco.com/post/20-000-voters-signed-for-a-simple-question-douglas-county-commissioners-rewrote-it

Most ballot measures are just…put on the ballot. Not in Douglas County. On Friday, August 28, the three Douglas County commissioners added their own biased language to the citizen-led ballot measure that over 20k residents signed. On top of that, the commissioners plan to add their own separate competing ballot measure this Monday, August 31. It’s quite unhinged. Listen to hear how it went down, why it’s important, and what’s next.

Bottom line: 3 to 5 will be on the ballot and it’s more important than ever to vote for it.

Watch the commissioners’ special business meeting on August 28

3 to 5 organizer’s response.

Episode 63 of this podcast: 3 to 5 explained, with organizer Angela Thomas.

Resolution #1 adding to the ballot language. Redlined version so you can see exactly what they added.

Resolution #2: the commissioners’ competing ballot measure will be discussed Monday, August 31 at 8:30am at 100 Third St in Castle Rock. The caption in the video said 8am, it’s 8:30am. Public comment will be allowed, but may be limited according to the emotions of Commissioner Teal. If you don’t want to comment, be a butt in a chair and bring a friend. It’ll be a masterclass on gaslighting but it will educate you on what the commissioners really value (themselves). Take care of yourselves. Blast a Dolly song about hypocrisy. Stream the meeting here if you can’t be there in person.

Contact me anytime:email: [email protected]

on signal: @emilysuyat.87

Text or leave a message at 720-288-0147

Thank you for listening!