A bipartisan effort

Dear Editor:

I had the pleasure and privilege, along with Marcela Larson, to act as county counsel for the Colorado Democratic Party during Election Day on Tuesday. I spent my time in the County Clerk and Recorder’s Office throughout the day and was in touch with the poll-watchers for the Colorado Democratic Party, who were stationed at each of the 10 precincts in Pitkin County.

Our job was the same as that of the county clerk during the election – to make sure that every eligible voter in Pitkin County had a fair chance to vote. It was strictly a job of applying Colorado election law and was nonpartisan. If an eligible person turned up at a precinct or the Clerk’s Office to vote, we just wanted to be sure that they were given every opportunity

to vote, no questions asked about for whom. If there was a problem at a precinct, a poll-watcher would call me, I would discuss it with the county election officials at the Clerk’s Office, and when we reached agreement on the problem and solution, they would make a call to be sure that it was resolved.

I want to congratulate the Pitkin County Clerk and Recorder’s Office and all of its staff for all of their hard work and dedication leading up to Election Day, during the election and afterward as ballots were counted. The staff was incredibly knowledgeable, was always courteous to those coming with a question or problem regarding their ability to vote and always sought to correct the problem efficiently so that the person could cast their vote.

That is how the democratic process should work. It was a pleasure to work with them. So my heartfelt thanks to Rexs Hochins, Shelley Popish, Roselyn Martin, Yolanda Thierfelder, Janet Haas, Cindy Klob, Linda Gustafson, Tammie Driscol, Jeanette Jones, Lyndee Deane, Karen Keeney, Scott Graham, L. Terry and, of course, Dwight Shellman III and Janice K. Vos Caudill.

I also want to thank all of the election judges and other volunteers who worked the polls and made our voting process happen. My day was mostly boring, which is a testimony to how well they did their jobs in a stressful situation.

Finally, I want to thank Peter Wallison, my counterpart from the Republican Party who sat there at the Clerk’s Office with me. Although our politics are different, we found common ground (we are both corporate/securities lawyers and fly fishermen) and worked together to resolve any problems when necessary. I hope that all of us and our elected officials can do the same by putting aside our differences and working together in a bipartisan spirit to solve the current problems of our country and those that arise in the future.

J. Cavanaugh O’Leary

Aspen