Gordon shoutout 

Having worked on several local candidates elections I wanted to give a quick shout out to Ryan Gordon. Shortly after his loss to Tom Jankovsky he showed great team spirit by calling Commissioner Tom and congratulating him. 

Tom shared later with me that he was the first candidate to do so in the past four elections that he has won. When it comes to local elections it is vital that we in the end realize we are all on the same team as we each work for the betterment of our community! Thank you Ryan for showing the community what that looks like. 

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A salute from a guy that worked on the Jankovsky election team. I wish you great success in all your future endeavors. 

Caleb Waller, Silt

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New rural dynamic

Democrats have a huge opportunity to pick up rural seats across America but outside of a couple of races, they have yet to capitalize on this. Republicans have left voters behind with blind loyalty to Trump. 

It’s important to remember that Republicans do not have a monopoly in rural districts. Just because people in this district own firearms, work in energy sectors that are heavy in fossil fuels and are impacted by inflation, does not mean that they will vote Republican. They know better than to believe the last election was stolen and they see the impact that drought and wildfires have on our community every year. 

People want good-paying jobs, affordable housing, and fewer restrictions on how they live — like being forced to follow through with a pregnancy. Adam Frisch opened the door to this new reality and whether he unseats Rep. Lauren Boebert or not is yet to be seen, but he has laid the groundwork for how Democrats can win in rural districts. 

Both parties have been reactionary to one another for so long that they forgot to listen to what voters actually want. Rural voters are not stupid and Democrats need to stop attacking them as if they are. No one will vote for a candidate who does not like them. People want someone who is going to reflect life in rural communities and actually gets on the road to talk to them, no matter how small that community may be. 

Candidates must look at and understand how policy affects rural and urban districts differently. Running a moderate campaign against an extremist like Rep. Boebert does help but I believe we can flip seats outside of extremist leadership. It’s time for a new batch of moderate, rural Democrats to run for office in 2024.

Westley J. Crouch, political consultant , United Western Voices LLC

Glenwood Springs

Snake oil salesman

As anticipated, Donald Trump declared his candidacy for president in 2024 Tuesday evening. This is welcome news for Democrats, particularly after doing so well in the midterms against the party formerly known as the GOP. 

To boost his cred with QAnon cultists and solidify his status as a real stable genius, Trump should announce the late JFK Jr. as a potential running mate; provided he returns from the dead soon. It would be the MAGA/Q dream ticket. 

Trump 2024! Make snake oil great again; democracy, not so much great again. 

John M. Jesse, Glenwood Springs