Bloomberg: Kerry Threatens Bush in Colorado as Democrats See Gain in West

[unfrigginreal]

Oct. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Gary Hart, the former senator and presidential candidate who serves as John Kerry's campaign chairman in Colorado, gave the four-term Massachusetts senator little chance to win the state six months ago.

``The state's got a reputation as Republican,'' Hart said in an interview in April.

He may be proven wrong. With three weeks until the Nov. 2 election, a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll of Colorado voters shows the race there mirrors the national contest, with President George W. Bush and Democratic candidate Kerry each drawing 49 percent support. Both parties earlier this year excluded Colorado from their list of ``battleground'' states, projecting it as a Republican win.

Colorado illustrates a shift in the Western U.S., which for most of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s was Republican territory. An increase in Hispanics, migration from California and an ideology that dovetails with party positions on issues such as abortion are buoying Democrats in the fastest-growing region in the U.S.

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=az69iUU0q_XY&refer=top_world_news

[RobertDevereaux]

1. Colorado is going BLUE!

We're determined to make it happen.