Back in November, this race looked as if it would be a snooze. Democratic Sen. Ken Salazar was well positioned for re-election to a second term. He had amassed a $2 million campaign war chest, and there wasn’t a serious Republican challenger on the horizon.
Then, President Obama tapped Salazar to join his Cabinet as Secretary of the Interior, and handed Colorado voters what essentially amounts to the third open Senate seat in four cycles. And while Salazar was expected to have an easy race, this one now has the potential to become competitive.
Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter had the task of appointing Salazar’s replacement and announced in early December of last year that he would tap Denver Public Schools Superintendent Michael Bennet for the soon-to-be-vacant seat. Bennet’s selection came as a surprise to many Democratic activists since he’d never run for any office and was not known outside of Denver. And, there were much better known Democrats who were interested in the appointment. Some Democratic activists in the western part of the state were disappointed that Ritter did not
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