2023 Fort Collins voter guide: What to know about Fort Collins, PSD, statewide races
It's decision time, Colorado.
While the national political machine already has its sights set on November 2024, voters in Fort Collins and across Colorado have important decisions to make this November about their local representation and the future of taxation in the state.
Colorado's county clerks began releasing ballots on Oct. 16 for the Nov. 7 all-mail election. Prior to and during the release of ballots, the Coloradoan published multiple race profiles, previews and candidate questionnaires, with an emphasis on elections in Fort Collins, Poudre School District and statewide Proposition HH.
Editor's note: Prior to Nov. 7, this page will include links to more than 60 articles published to help Fort Collins, Larimer County and Colorado voters make informed choices in the 2023 election. Coloradoan reporters Rebecca Powell, Pat Ferrier and Kelly Lyell have spent countless hours interviewing candidates, attending public forums and scouring background documents to bring you coverage that you won't find anywhere else. To support this type of local journalism in Fort Collins and its important role in democracy, please visit subscribe.coloradoan.com to purchase your digital subscription for as little as $1 for the first six months.
2023 Colorado and Fort Collins-area election results
Check back here after 7 p.m. Tuesday for updated election results as they're made available by the state and Larimer and Weld counties:
Find statewide Proposition HH and Proposition II results here.
Find results to local races in the Fort Collins area here.
Fort Collins City Council: Fort Collins voters pick 1 new council member, support others who voted for land use code
Fort Collins ballot issues: Fort Collins voters split approval of 2 tax increases
PSD Board: Progressive slate of candidates elected to Poudre School District Board of Education
Proposition HH: Voters reject Colorado Proposition HH that would have traded TABOR refunds for property tax relief
Proposition II: Colorado Proposition II wins big, adding more funding for universal preschool
Loveland groceries: Loveland voters overwhelmingly eliminate city's sales tax on groceries
Loveland URA: Loveland voters claim final say over future urban renewal projects, pass Question 301
First off, how to vote and register to vote in Colorado
Looking for information on how to vote in the Centennial State, or how to check on the status of your ballot? Read our free guide for all the info you need.
A procrastinator's guide: It's almost Election Day. If you're cutting it close, it's not too late. Here's what to know
Colorado voter registration guide: How to register and get your ballot for '23, '24 elections
Vote en Colorado: Cómo Registrarse y Obtener su Boleta para las Elecciones del '23 y '24
Colorado Proposition HH
Statewide Proposition HH, if passed, would have significant impacts to the state budget, your property tax bill and the future of your Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR) refund.
Voter guide: Here's what Colorado voters need to know about Proposition HH, property taxes and TABOR
Voter guide: Colorado Proposition HH's passage could extend the life of metro districts across the state
Tax comparison: Here's how property taxes in Fort Collins will change in 2024 with, without Proposition HH
Video explainer: Here's how Proposition HH will affect property tax bills in Colorado
HH makes the ballot: Colorado Supreme Court clears Proposition HH for November ballot
A game-changer for Colorado taxation: Here's how Proposition HH could upend Colorado's tax system and TABOR
Ballot language: Shall the state reduce property taxes for homes and businesses, including expanding property tax relief for seniors, and backfill counties, water districts, fire districts, ambulance and hospital districts, and other local governments and fund school districts by using a portion of the state surplus up to the proposition HH cap as defined in this measure?
Colorado Proposition II
If passed, Colorado Proposition II would retain more of Colorado's tobacco tax to help fund the universal pre-kindergarten program that launched statewide during the 2023-24 school year.
Voter guide: Colorado Proposition II seeks to retain nearly $24 million in funding for universal pre-K
Español: Proposición II de Colorado busca conservar casi $24 millones para el preescolar universal
Ballot language: Without raising taxes, may the state retain and spend revenues from taxes on cigarettes, tobacco, and other nicotine products and maintain tax rates on cigarettes, tobacco, and other nicotine products and use these revenues to invest twenty-three million six hundred fifty thousand dollars to enhance the voluntary Colorado preschool program and make it widely available for free instead of reducing these tax rates and refunding revenues to cigarette wholesalers, tobacco product distributors, nicotine products distributors, and other taxpayers, for exceeding an estimate included in the ballot information booklet for proposition EE?
Fort Collins Ballot Issue 2A
Fort Collins Ballot Issue 2A is a proposed sales tax increase that would fund city parks and recreation, transit and climate action priorities.
Voter guide: A voter's guide to the Fort Collins sales tax ballot issue to fund 3 different areas
Annotated ballot language: A Fort Collins half-cent sales tax is on November ballots. We've broken down the city's ask
Español: Guía para Votantes: Se propone impuesto de ventas en Fort Collins para financiar 3 áreas
Ballot language: Shall city of Fort Collins taxes be increased by $23,800,000 in the first full fiscal year (2024), and by such amounts collected annually thereafter, from a .50% sales and use tax beginning January 1, 2024, and ending at midnight on December 31, 2050, with the tax revenues spent only for the following:
50% for the replacement, upgrade, maintenance, and accessibility of parks facilities and for the replacement and construction of indoor and outdoor recreation and pool facilities,
25% for programs and projects advancing greenhouse gas and air pollution reduction, the city’s 2030 goal of 100% renewable electricity, and the city’s 2050 goal of community-wide carbon neutrality, and
25% for the city’s transit system, including, without limitation, infrastructure improvements, purchase of equipment, and upgraded and expanded services;
And while city council may exercise its discretion in deciding the timing of spending for each category, that spending shall supplement and not replace the current city funding for the specified purposes and shall be reconciled to the stated percentages by the end of 2030, 2040, and when the last revenues collected from the tax are spent, but this tax shall not apply to:
Items exempt under the city code from city sales and use tax;
Food for home consumption; and
Manufacturing equipment, but for the use tax only;
And with all the tax revenues, and investment earnings thereon, to be collected, retained, and spent as a voter-approved revenue change notwithstanding the spending and revenue limitations of Article X, Section 20 of the Colorado Constitution?
Fort Collins Ballot Issue 2B
Fort Collins Ballot Issue 2B would increase property taxes in the city in order to increase municipal funding for housing affordability initiatives.
Voter guide: A voter's guide to the proposed Fort Collins property tax to fund affordable housing
Annotated ballot language: Fort Collins' property tax increase would fund affordable housing. Here's what it means
Español: Guía para votantes: impuesto a la propiedad propuesto en FC para financiar viviendas
Ballot language: Shall city of Fort Collins taxes be increased by $16,000,000 in the first full fiscal year of property tax collection (2025), and by such amounts collected annually thereafter, from a mill levy of three (3) mills imposed for property taxes levied in 2024 and collected in 2025, which would be the city’s first property tax increase since 1992, with the taxes collected used for the exclusive purpose of funding “affordable housing”, as defined by city council, to include funding the affordable housing strategies identified in the city’s 2021 Housing Strategic Plan, as later amended or replaced by city council, and to fund:
The city’s development, construction, acquisition, operation, and maintenance of affordable housing;
Grants and incentives for the development, construction, acquisition, operation, and maintenance of affordable housing by private and other public entities; and
Programs and services provided by the city, other public entities, and non-profit organizations to subsidize affordable housing and provide housing support for it;
And with all the tax revenues, and investment earnings thereon, to be collected, retained and spent as a voter-approved revenue change notwithstanding the spending and revenue limitations of Article X, Section 20 of the Colorado Constitution?
Fort Collins Ballot Issues 2C-2E
These ballot issues are largely housekeeping issues to clean up Fort Collins City Code.
Voter guide: What to know about the 3 Fort Collins charter amendments on the November ballot
Español: Todo sobre las tres enmiendas a la carta de Fort Collins en la boleta electoral
2C ballot language: Shall Section 2 and Section 18 of Article II of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins, disqualifying anyone convicted of any felony from running for or serving on City Council, be amended to conform the City Charter to the Colorado Constitution, which specifies felonies resulting in disqualification from office in Colorado (currently including embezzlement of public monies, bribery, perjury, solicitation of bribery and subornation of perjury)?
2D ballot language: Shall Section 2 and Section 5 of Article X of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins, regarding the referendum process and petition process, be amended to eliminate inconsistency in language and make clear that certification of a referendum petition as sufficient stays the impact of the referred ordinance, that Council may consider a referendum petition at a special meeting called for that purpose, and making other clarifying and organizing edits to make those provisions more readable and understandable?
2E ballot language: Shall the Charter of the City of Fort Collins, specifically Article II, Section 12, and Article IV, Section 3, regarding residency requirements, be amended to remove specific requirements that specified City employment position types live in or near Fort Collins, which requirements currently may only be amended by the electorate, and allow the City Council to establish such requirements by ordinance or by employment agreement for employees reporting directly to the City Council?
Fort Collins mayor
Incumbent Mayor Jeni Arndt is challenged by write-in candidate Patricia Babbitt.
Voter guide: What to know about Jeni Arndt, Patricia Babbitt
Campaign finance: Here's which Fort Collins City Council candidates are bringing in the most campaign money
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Jeni Arndt, running for re-election to be Fort Collins mayor
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Patricia Babbitt, running for Fort Collins mayor
A challenger emerges: Fort Collins mayor's race won't be uncontested. Here's who's running
Fort Collins City Council District 2
Incumbent council member Julie Pignataro is challenged by Eric Hamrick and Sean McCoy, who on Oct. 11 suspended his campaign and endorsed Pignataro.
Voter guide: What to know about City Council District 2 race between Pignataro, Hamrick
McCoy ends campaign: Sean McCoy drops out of Fort Collins City Council race for District 2
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Julie Pignataro, running for re-election to Fort Collins City Council District 2
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Eric Hamrick, running for Fort Collins City Council District 2
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Sean McCoy, running for Fort Collins City Council District 2
Fort Collins City Council District 4
Incumbent council member Shirley Peel is challenged by former councilmember Melanie Potyondy
Voter guide: What Shirley Peel and Melanie Potyondy want for Fort Collins
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Shirley Peel, running for reelection to Fort Collins City Council District 4
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Melanie Potyondy, running for Fort Collins City Council District 4
Fort Collins City Council District 6
Incumbent Mayor pro tem Emily Francis is challenged by Alexander Adams
Voter guide: How Francis and Adams want to help residents
Background check: City Council candidate is linked to extremist posts. Adams says: 'I strongly disavow it'
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Alexander Adams, running for Fort Collins City Council District 6
Candidate questionnaire: A Q&A with Emily Francis, running for re-election to Fort Collins City Council District 6
Poudre School District Board of Education District A
Scott Schoenbauer is unopposed after incumbent board member DJ Anderson missed the filing deadline to run for re-election.
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Scott Schoenbauer, running for Poudre School District Board of Education District A
Anderson misses deadline: Incumbent misses deadline, leaving challenger unopposed in PSD school board election
Poudre School District Board of Education District B
Kevin Havelda and Kurt Kastein seek the seat that will be vacated by term-limited director Nate Donovan.
Voter guide: What to know about PSD school board District B race between Havelda, Kastein
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Kevin Havelda, running for Poudre School District Board of Education District B
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Kurt Kastein, running for Poudre School District Board of Education District B
Poudre School District Board of Education District F
Andrea Booth and Conor Duffy seek the seat that will be vacated by term-limited board president Rob Petterson.
Voter guide: What to know about PSD school board District F race between Booth, Duffy
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Andrea Booth, running for Poudre School District Board of Education District F
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Conor Duffy, running for Poudre School District Board of Education District F
Poudre School District Board of Education District G
Incumbent director Jessica Zamora is challenged by Caleb Larson.
Voter guide: What to know about PSD school board District G race between Larson, Zamora
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Caleb Larson, running for Poudre School District Board of Education Disrict G
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Jessica Zamora, running for Poudre School District Board of Education District G
Loveland Ballot Question 300
Voter guide: Loveland voters may ax the city's tax on groceries Nov. 7; city worries about lost revenue
Ballot language: Shall Article 12 of the Loveland City Charter be amended to add Section 12-3 to provide that Council shall make no law, nor continue any law, which imposes any tax or fee on the retail sale of any human food for home consumption, and shall such amendment become effective on January 1, 2024?
Loveland Ballot Question 301
Voter guide: Loveland voters will decide who has final say over urban renewal projects in 2023 election
Español: Los votantes de Loveland votarán sobre el impuesto a los alimentos; la Ciudad se preocupa
Ballot language: Shall Article 15 of the Loveland City Charter be amended to add Section 15-9 to provide that any council action approving or modifying an urban renewal plan, pursuant to Urban Renewal Law of state statutes, must be subsequently ratified by the registered electors of the City if the approval or modification of the urban renewal plan authorizes the use of or a change to area boundaries, eminent domain, condemnation, tax increment financing, revenue sharing, or cost sharing, and shall such amendment become effective immediately upon the date of approval by the City’s voters?
Thompson R2-J School District Board of Education races
Eight candidates hope to take four seats to represent the public school district that serves the Loveland and Berthoud area.
District A: Ryan Wilcken vs. Dawn Kirk
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Ryan Wilcken, running for Thompson School District Board of Education District A
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Dawn Kirk, running for Thompson School District Board of Education District A
District C: Nancy Rumfelt vs. Briah Freeman
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Nancy Rumfelt, running for Thompson School District Board of Education District C
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Briah Freeman, running for Thompson School District Board of Education District C
District D: Denise Alvine Chapman vs. Yazmin Navarro
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Denise Chapman, running for Thompson School District Board of Education District D
Candidate questionniare: Q&A with Yazmin Navarro, running for Thompson School District Board of Education District D
District G: Stu Boyd vs. Elizabeth Kearney (Kearney did not complete a candidate questionnaire)
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with James 'Stu' Boyd, running for Thompson School District Board of Education District G
Weld County School District RE-4 Board of Education races
Six candidates hope to take four seats to represent the public school district that serves Windsor and Severance.
Candidate forum: Weld RE-4 school board candidates share their views at community forum
District A: Raymond Ruth is unopposed.
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Raymond Ruth, running for Weld RE-4 School District Board of Education District A
District B: Karen Trusler is unopposed
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Karen Trusler, running for Weld RE-4 School District Board of Education District B
District D: Mark Leach vs. Patrick Miller
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Mark Leach, running for Weld RE-4 School District Board of Education District D
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Patrick Miller, running for Weld RE-4 School District Board of Education District D
District E: Jennifer Hansen vs. Hellen "Kathy" Ulrich
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Jennifer Hansen, running for Weld RE-4 School District Board of Education District E
Candidate questionnaire: Q&A with Kathy Ulrich, running for the Weld RE-4 School District Board of Eduation District E
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: 2023 Colorado election: Fort Collins, PSD, Proposition HH voter guide
