Colorado Democratic Party - Working Towards An Answer

Today, I decided to refocus on my home state of Colorado. I once again contacted party representatives with the following letter:

Chairwoman Waak,

Under Section VI of the Colorado 2008 Delegate Selection Plan, it states:

5. The Democratic Party in Colorado should publicize fully and in such a manner as to assure notice to all interested parties a full description of the legal and practical procedures for selection of Democratic Party officers and representatives on all levels.

As an interested party, I request a full description of the legal and practical procedures for selection of the Democratic Party Presidential candidate.

The same document also states:

6. The Democratic Party in Colorado should publicize fully and in such a manner as to assure notice to all interested parties, a complete description of the legal and practical qualifications of all positions as officers and representatives of the State Democratic Party.

Again, as an interested party, I request a complete description of the legal and practical qualifications for the office of President of the United States of America.

In addition, I request a complete description of policies and procedures followed by the Colorado State Democratic Party in relation to the certification of the party's Presidential candidate's qualifications to hold office, including a complete list of all documents required from the candidate in order to determine eligibility.

I thank you for time, and look forward to your prompt response. Please note that I have copied several of your staff members on this email, so that a timely response might be offered more easily.

Sincerely,

Your Fellow Citizen,

Justin W. Riggs

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The first person to respond (I had cc'd several individuals) was Butch Hicks, Treasurer of the party. He wrote:

Isn't this on the web site ?

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I responded:

Mr. Hicks,

Thank you for the prompt reply! If it is on the website, I haven't been able to locate it - and believe me, I've looked. Could you point me to where on the website you think this information might be? And thanks again for the quick response - Blackberries are a wonderful thing.

Justin

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As of yet, I haven't seen a reply.

Later in the day, I was pleasantly surprised to see an email from Patricia Waak, Chairwoman of the Colorado Democratic Party. Her response was:

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Mr. Riggs

The rules of the Colorado Democratic Party are on our website at www.coloradodems.org.

Pat Waak
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I responded:

Ms. Waak,

Thank you for your timely reply. I'm aware of the Colorado Rules, and have reviewed them thoroughly, but none of the information I am seeking is available in those documents. Am I to understand that there are no "legal and practical procedures" for selecting the Democratic Presidential candidate? And that there are no "legal and practical qualifications" that the Democratic Presidential Candidate must meet in order to receive the nomination and certification of eligibility of the party?

I only ask because the Secretary of the State's office has informed me that the legal responsibility for checking the Presidential candidates qualifications lies with the candidate's party. They did not specify whether that meant the state or the national party. I am, as I mentioned in my earlier message, interested in understanding how your presidential candidates qualifications for the office are determined - what evidence is presented, to whom is it presented, when and where was it presented, who has the final authority for declaring the candidate as eligible, etc.

If you could be of assistance in this matter, I would greatly appreciate it. If the information I am seeking can be found on your website, please point me to the page and document to search - I tried to search the site as thoroughly as possible, but might have missed what I was looking for. Please note that my request is time sensitive, and I therefore request a timely response - although I do not expect a response as timely as the last one!

With Warm Regards,

Justin

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I hope to hear back from Ms. Waak in the near future.