Colorado GOP lawsuit derailed as party can't agree who is its actual leader: court filing

Colorado Republicans want to pause their federal lawsuit against the state's secretary of state until they figure out who's in charge of the party, court records show.

The Colorado Republican Party on Thursday filed a motion to modify scheduling in their suit against Jena Griswold in which they ask for a four-month delay to deal with an internal political battle.

"Two sets of individuals currently claim to be the Colorado Republican Party's leaders," attorney Randy B. Corporon explained.

Or, as Politico reporter Kyle Cheney put it, "Colorado GOP is asking a federal court to postpone an ongoing election-related lawsuit because of an internal power struggle over who is actually running the party."

The lawsuit filed in August reflects the Colorado GOP's latest attempt to limit its primaries to registered Republican voters by invalidating 2016 ballot measure Proposition 108, which they argue harms the party and infringes on free speech, the Denver Post reported last month.

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Party chairman Dave Williams threw his support behind the renewed effort, rejected by a federal court in 2022, and looped in John Eastman, the former lawyer for Donald Trump indicted on election fraud charges in Georgia and Arizona, according to the report.

Williams faced backlash from within his own party the same month over a slew of controversial decisions made since his election in March 2023, local reports show.

The Colorado Sun reported Williams used state party resources for his failed congressional campaign and sent out anti-LGBTQ emails that infuriated fellow party members.

Competing factions organized dueling votes on whether to replace Williams with U.S. Senate candidate Eli Bremer and, predictably, came up with opposing results, the Denver Post reported Wednesday.

Bremer sued Williams when he refused to hand over the keys to party headquarters and a trial is slated to begin on Oct. 14, according to the Denver Post report.

Williams tried to have that court date pushed back until after the election but was met with rejection from El Paso County District Court Judge Eric Bentley, according to the Colorado Sun.

“It appears self-evident that the Republican state committee cannot function as intended without its leadership issue resolved,” Bentley reportedly said. “It is necessary in order for the party apparatus to function as intended — as a state party — before the election."