On November 6, the CU Denver School of Public Affairs hosted "What happened in our elections?", its third installment of the First Fridays virtual event series, to unpack a range of topics from the presidential election (which had not yet been called at the time of the event) to the state and local ballot results. Moderator Paul Teske, Dean of the School of Public Affairs, was joined by Saja Hindi, reporter for The Denver Post; Mike Littwin, columnist for The Colorado Sun; and Sean Walsh, election consultant for Sean Walsh Consulting.




Beginning with how the presidential election was unfolding, Littwin touched on the dramatics of the election and the likelihood that the election results would not be resolved for some time. Walsh shared his observations on voter turnout and the efforts to encourage communities to vote via mail-in ballots amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Hindi described how the presidential race and state ballot issues are layered and intertwined, citing the example of Colorado Proposition 113, National Popular Vote Interstate Compact Referendum, which gives the state’s nine electoral votes to the presidential candidate who wins the national popular vote if states representing at least 270 Electoral College votes adopt the compact.

Moving on to Senate races, the panel agreed that former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper’s defeat over incumbent Senator Cory Gardner was unsurprising. Hindi describing the race as “heavily influenced by national politics” and “something that is representative of Colorado’s changing electorate.” 

A debate about the future of “Trumpism” between Littwin and Walsh led to some interesting points concerning the mindset of Republicans moving forward. According to Littwin, “Biden may have won, but our country remains just as divided as it was before Biden won” and that “Trumpism is here to stay at least for the near future.” 

Taking a different view to Littwin, Walsh maintained that the era of Trumpism is finished and that many Republicans will be “quick to throw Trump under the bus.” He predicts, however, that the people who elected Donald Trump in 2016 will continue to support him.

The panel then discussed various Colorado ballot initiatives, which were discussed at length by the panel of the school’s October First Friday event "What are we voting on? A pre-election discussion of Colorado ballots, issues, and candidates." Watch the October event.