May 1 Update: US Senate Candidate Surveys

In 2016, we're finally experiencing the happy result that almost every credible candidate for higher office in Colorado wants to be seen as strongly pro-life (enough so that many are willing to lie to make it sound like they're something they're not).

Colorado Right to Life regularly sends out very specific surveys to get candidates on the record as to where they really stand on important pro-life issues like Personhood. The candidates who are really pro-life generally respond favorably, and are willing to go on the record.

The many candidates who are wanting to hedge, or who try to cover up their willingness to accept abortion, usually don't respond. Colorado Right to Life reports this too, so you can judge for yourself.

Colorado's US Senate race, this year, has had a couple of surprising results:

1. The candidate most experts figured as the conservative front-runner, pro-life Sen. Tim Neville, didn't make the ballot after voting at the Colorado State Convention. Instead, El Paso County Commissioner and retired Air Force Lt. Col. Darryl Glenn, who is also strictly pro-life, received 70% of the votes from delegates.


2. The crowd of candidates who attempted to petition onto the ballot, rather than using the grass-roots caucus/assembly process, are having a shocking degree of difficulty getting on the ballot.

As a result, as of today, we have the following candidates confirmed on the ballot for the June 28 primary election:

• Darryl Glenn, who has responded to the CRTL survey and has pledged to be 100% pro-life.


• Jack Graham, who has not responded to the CRTL survey. Graham has said he is "personally pro-life" but "didn't think it was the government's role to decide if a woman can or cannot get an abortion" (Fort Collins Coloradoan, Feb 16, 2016). I.e. if he's not willing to intervene on behalf of the children, he is essentially pro-abortion. He has linked from his website to a Pueblo Chieftain article calling him a "pro-choice Republican" (Apr 8, 2016) which is a guaranteed sign that he accepts that characterization. Graham was also a Democrat until the past year or so.


• Jon Keyser, who claims to be pro-life but has not responded to the CRTL survey. Keyser told radio host Craig Silverman that he supports abortion in cases of rape or incest, so CRTL considers him pro-abortion (because he FAVORS the killing of an innocent unborn child in some cases).

Ryan Frazier and Robert Blaha are also trying to get on the primary ballot, but they've fallen short of the required number of signatures. A judge has forced the Secretary of State to not make any firm decisions about allowing or not allowing them, which means that in the next few days they may still be allowed to be on the ballot.

As Colorado Right to Life has noted in the past, Frazier is another candidate who has been willing to let people believe he is "pro-life" while in reality Frazier believes it's "not government's role" to protect unborn children. He may have changed his opinion, but we have no reason to believe that, and we're not sure how far we could trust his opinion. It would help if he were willing to go on the record by answering the CRTL survey.

Robert Blaha also says he's pro-life, but he's more quiet about whether he will or won't support "abortion exceptions" in cases of rape or incest. He has not responded to the CRTL survey.

As you probably know, Colorado Right to Life has led the charge nationally to reject "abortion exceptions" and to promote a 100% pro-life Personhood standard (a right to life for unborn children, from conception on, no exceptions). Pro-lifers nationwide have increasingly adopted this position. Even though some may still hold a "pro-life except in cases of rape or incest" position (which was considered a standard Republican position a decade ago), a majority of pro-lifers now understand the inherent hyporcitical contradiction (is abortion murder, or isn't it?) and reject exceptions today.

This, of course, still allows a doctor to save the life of a woman in a life-threatening pregnancy by treating two patients - mother and baby - and not trying to kill either of them. If the baby dies anyway, as may happen, that's a natural death. If the doctor intentionally kills the baby (which is NEVER medically necessary) it's an abortion.

Colorado Right to Life is surveying legislative candidates, and will continue trying to reach Congressional candidates and US Senate candidates. Updates will be posted in coming weeks, in preparation for making decisions for the primary election in June.

Some quick notes on important legislative primaries:

• In Senate District 12 (Colorado Springs) 100% pro-life Rep. Gordon Klingenschmitt is opposed by Fmr. Rep. Bob Gardner. Though Gardner claims to be pro-life, he has not responded to the CRTL survey and CRTL has reason to categorize him as pro-abortion based on his past statements and legislative record.
• In House District 16 (Colorado Springs) Colorado Right to Life believes Rep. Janak Joshi to be pro-life, whereas we believe Fmr. Rep. Larry Liston is not.

Note: One more candidate will NOT appear on the June 28 ballot for US Senate, but Jerry Eller is eligible as a write-in candidate, which means you must write his name in the write-in line of the US Senate ballot section exactly as he is registered, which we believe is "Jerry Eller". Eller has responded to the CRTL survey and has pledged to be 100% pro-life.