1. United States
2. Colo.
3. Letter

Your decision to pardon Tina Peters is, in my view, an act of political cowardice — a refusal to stand up for the rule of law, for Colorado’s election officials, and for the citizens who depend on you to defend the integrity of our democratic institutions. Tina Peters was convicted by a jury of her peers. She was found guilty because she violated her oath, compromised secure election systems, and then spent years spreading falsehoods that endangered public trust. She has never accepted responsibility, never shown remorse, and continues to promote the same conspiracy theories that put Colorado’s clerks and voters at risk. By granting her clemency, you didn’t show mercy — you showed weakness. You signaled that accountability is optional, that pressure from election deniers matters more than the safety and credibility of the people who actually run our elections. You left Colorado’s clerks — Democrats and Republicans alike — standing alone after they spent years enduring threats, harassment, and intimidation for simply doing their jobs. This pardon undermines the very principles you once claimed to defend. It tells every public official that violating the law and betraying the public trust may carry no real consequence if the political winds shift. Colorado deserved courage. Instead, we got capitulation. I urge you to explain to the people of this state why you chose to abandon the clerks who protect our elections and the rule of law that protects us all.