Colorado must not capitulate. No pardon for Tina Peters

This request urges restraint, integrity, and adherence to the rule of law. Granting clemency in a case involving election fraud would undermine public trust in Colorado’s democratic institutions at a moment when that trust is already under sustained attack. Accountability for deliberate interference with elections is not partisan; it is foundational. Forgiveness without responsibility signals that attempts to subvert the will of voters are negotiable. They are not. Colorado has earned a national reputation for secure, transparent, and well-administered elections. That reputation exists because laws are enforced consistently, even when it is uncomfortable or politically pressured. To reverse course now would validate disinformation campaigns, embolden future misconduct, and disrespect the election workers and officials who followed the law under extraordinary scrutiny and threat. Equally concerning is the suggestion that the state should yield to the illegal freezing or leveraging of federal funds as a means of coercion. Capitulation in the face of unlawful pressure sets a dangerous precedent. Colorado should not be forced to trade the integrity of its justice system for resources it is lawfully owed. Standing firm is not defiance; it is fidelity to constitutional governance and the separation of powers. Coloradoans expect principled leadership that resists intimidation, rejects transactional justice, and defends democratic norms even when doing so carries risk. Upholding the verdicts of the courts and refusing to bargain away accountability affirms that no individual is above the law and that our state cannot be bullied into abandoning its values.