Hello? Denver? Are You Still There? is back with its 14th episode!
Join me, your host Bree Coco Davies, at Mutiny Information Cafe for another edition of this live podcast devoted to the conversations about the Mile High City that matter.
I'm honored to be joined by two rad women running for local office - Peg Perl for Denver Clerk and Annie for Denver running for City Council District 3!
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This month's podcast topic:
"Let's fill out our ballots and learn more about how the people we elect have to collaborate to make this city work"
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OMG it is finally, almost May 7th! BUT we already have our ballots in hand -- so what do we do? We've got initiatives to decide on, but we're also electing people to some really important positions. Denver is at a turning point and who we vote in as Mayor, Auditor, Clerk and Recorder, and to the 13 City Council Seats (two At-Large seats, 11 districts) will have a big impact on the future of this city.
Peg, Annie and I will be discussing the initiatives, but also talking about the positions they are running for and why YOU should care -- I want to know: what does a city's clerk and recorder really do and why does it matter to our city? How does city council work together and why should I care about city council members elected to districts other than my own?
As always, this is NOT A DEBATE - none of my guests are running for the same office. I've asked Annie and Peg to come on the show to share with us why they are running and to share why they think Denver should be paying attention to our municipal elections.
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Annie for Denver is a first generation child of immigrants, practicing attorney, community activist & proud Denverite running for Council District 3. ¡’Palante, todos!
She is a resident of the La Alma-Lincoln Park neighborhood in Denver’s Westside. As an attorney her practice entails representing low bono clients, which broadly, is the principle of increasing access to law-related services for people of moderate means who do not qualify for pro bono assistance, but cannot afford the fees private attorneys typically charge under traditional law firm models.
Additionally, Annie serves as president-elect of the Colorado Hispanic Bar Association. As part of her volunteerism there she organizes the free legal clinic at Mi Casa which provides free consultations with attorneys for residents in the area. Annie received her Juris Doctor from the St. Thomas University School of Law (Miami), holds a Masters in Biomedical Science and attended the University of Miami for her undergraduate studies.
Annie believes that a safe Denver is one where shared prosperity is the norm. Annie will fight for low-income housing, sensible policing policy and the repeal of the urban camping ban.
About Peg Perl for Denver Clerk:
Growing up the oldest of four kids in Arizona, I learned the values of education and service from my teacher mother and businessman father. As a young girl in the early 1980s, my two heroines were Sally Ride and Sandra Day O’Connor. Ultimately, I chose law over space travel and attended both Arizona State University and Georgetown Law on scholarships. I became a public interest lawyer because the potential and promise of our democracy is as awe-inspiring to me as the mysteries of our cosmos.
My legal career has focused on strengthening our democracy to better represent all citizens at the federal, state and local level. As policy counsel at the Federal Election Commission, I protected voters’ access to information about money raised and spent on political campaigns. I taught and enforced important ethics rules to keep elected officials more accountable to voters than big money interests as nonpartisan Counsel to the US House of Representatives Ethics Committee. During my time in D.C., I also supported workers as an employee of one public employee union (American Foreign Service Association) and later as a member & steward in another (National Treasury Employee Union).
Since 2010, my husband and I have raised our two kids in Southeast Denver after my brother-in-law (raised in Aurora) introduced us to the Colorado way of life. In Colorado, I’ve focused my advocacy for voting rights, government ethics, campaign finance reform, and public records access at the state and local level as Senior Counsel to Colorado Ethics Watch and an independent policy attorney working with nonprofit organizations. I was a leader in writing and enacting statewide pro-democracy reforms such as:
*Expanding voting rights through Colorado’s all-options voting, registration and pre-registration laws
*Increasing transparency to voters in school board elections by closing loopholes that allowed political spending without disclosure
*Limiting fees charged to people requesting public records and requiring more modern digital disclosure instead of wasteful and expensive printed copies
I was honored to be recognized as one of six Top Women Lawyers in 2017 by Law Week Colorado for this work.
At the city level, I have also worked with the current Denver Clerk and City Council to improve transparency of city lobbyist reporting and disclosure of gifts to elected officials, update the code of ethics, and modernize Denver’s campaign rules to reduce the amount of “dark money” in city elections by requiring public reporting of outside spending about candidates and ballot measures. I was also in the policy team that managed early drafting and community outreach for creation of a city elections small-donor matching program which was ultimately passed by Denver voters in November 2018.
I strongly believe in the value of civics education for active citizens of today and tomorrow. Through leading community workshops, volunteering with the Women's Lobby of Colorado, and teaching at the University of Denver, I help people participate in their government, understand how the process works, and find the information and tools needed to add their voice in policy-making.
I’m running for Denver Clerk to continue the fight for a more accountable, transparent, and accessible city government that works for all of us. I am the only candidate with the subject matter experience and the track record of successful community coalition work on democracy reforms to protect voting rights, create our new Fair Elections Fund program, and continue to modernize city records and services. I want to put my skills to work for you and create a city office that supports citizen involvement in governing every day, not just election day.
Kalyn 4 Mayor: is leading Denver's first disabled artist / activist campaign for the Denver's mayor seat 2019. Kalyn was born and raised in the Denver metro area where she has been advocating for herself and other marginalized, vulnerable communities most of her life. Kalyn fronts the internationally acclaimed band Wheelchair Sports Camp and represents the DIY (Do It Yourself) arts scene in the city and across the country. Kalyn is an activist educator working with underserved youth who is well known for fighting for access, health care, and calling out those in power who protect capital interests over humans.
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From the personal impacts gentrification has on us to what it's like to work at Casa Bonita, the idea behind Hello? Denver? Are You Still There? is to get folks off social media and into real life to talk face-to-face about everything serious and silly that matters, happens to, and characterizes Denver.
Artists, activists, city planning experts, political strategists, social service and non-profit professionals and nosy neighbors are invited to my table to cross paths and share ideas and perspectives about our rapidly changing city.
Whether you’re a fifth generation Coloradan or you just moved here last week, you are invited to sit in on the last Thursday evening of every month as I get my friends from across the political, social and cultural spectrum together for some real talk.
Listen to previous episodes: https://mutinyinfocafe.com/index.php/transmissions/hello-denver
THIS EVENT IS FREE!
Kids are welcome, but there will most likely be lots of profanities coming out of my mouth, so use your own parental discretion ♥
