GOP Senate candidate wins right to be on Colorado ballot

A popular GOP establishment candidate in Colorado has won his legal challenge to appear on the party’s Senate primary ballot. 

Jon Keyser, an Air Force veteran and former state representative, did not qualify for the ballot after the secretary of State on Monday said he did not meet the petition signature requirements. He fell short by 86 signatures, and his campaign filed a lawsuit appealing the decision. 

{mosads}In a Friday ruling, District Court Judge Elizabeth Starrs said that Keyser’s campaign “substantially complied” with the state’s election law and ordered that the secretary of State accept all signatures and put Keyser’s name on the ballot, according to The Denver Post. 

Two other GOP Senate candidates, businessman Robert Blaha and former Aurora city councilman Ryan Frazier, also fell short of the required number of signatures to qualify for the ballot, the secretary of State confirmed on Thursday. 

State rules stipulate that candidates must garner at least 1,500 signatures from voters in each of the state’s seven congressional districts — totaling 10,500 signatures — if the candidate chooses to get on the ballot through a petition. 

Candidates had two avenues to get on the ballot: by petition or by reaching a threshold at April’s state party convention. State Sen. Tim Neville, another leading contender, failed to hit the 30 percent threshold during the convention and was kept off the ballot. Underdog Darryl Glenn, an El Paso County commissioner, was the only candidate to qualify that way. 

Former Colorado State athletic director Jack Graham has also qualified for the GOP primary ballot. 

Democrats were quick to respond to the news, and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee knocked the issues this week as “a huge embarrassment” for Keyser and Republican party leaders. 

“Jon Keyser’s ballot issues are a huge embarrassment to his campaign and to the national Republicans who hand-selected him after their top picks passed and who have touted his candidacy,” DSCC spokeswoman Sadie Weiner said in a statement. “This is a major stumble that hurts Keyser — who has already promised to support Trump if he wins — and prevents him from inspiring confidence among voters and donors that he can beat a well-organized and well-funded candidate like Michael Bennet.” 

Colorado is one of the few Republican targets this cycle as the party seeks to maintain its slim majority in the upper chamber. 

Democrats need to net five Senate seats in 2016 to regain a majority — unless they retain the White House. Then a net gain of four seats would give them the majority, with the vice president breaking a 50-50 tie.

Democrats are considered to have an advantage because they are only defending 10 Senate seats, while the GOP is defending 24 seats.