• Press Release

EMILY’S LIST STATEMENT ON COLORADO SECRETARY OF STATE GRISWOLD’S WARNING TO VOTERS

September 1, 2022

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SEPTEMBER 1, 2022

EMILY’S LIST STATEMENT ON COLORADO SECRETARY OF STATE GRISWOLD'S WARNING TO VOTERS
Extremists are running for Secretary of State with the Hope of Overturning Elections 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Laphonza Butler, president of EMILYs List, released the following statement echoing Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold’s plea to voters to pay attention to often overlooked races because the fate of our democracy hangs in the balance:

“Instead of aligning their political agenda with the values of the American people, Republicans have decided to put forth extremists up and down the ballot with the goal of overriding election results and silencing those they disagree with. Trump-backed Republicans have continued to spread conspiracy theories around our electoral system and have proven the extreme measures they are willing to take, from tampering with voting machines to wasting resources on unnecessary recounts. EMILYs List remains committed to electing secretary of state candidates that will go above and beyond to protect our democracy.”   

In an interview with The Guardian, Secretary Griswold said: 

“What we can expect from the extreme Republicans running across this country is to undermine free and fair elections for the American people, strip Americans of the right to vote, refuse to address security breaches and, unfortunately, be more beholden to Mar-a-Lago than the American people. For us, we are trying to save democracy.”

The piece also highlights the staggering reality we are facing in secretary of state races, “Having failed to overturn the 2020 vote, Trump and his loyalists are now strategically targeting positions that will play a critical role in supervising the next presidential election, turning many of the 27 secretary of state contests this year into expensive, partisan showdowns.” 

EMILYs List has endorsed the following candidates to expand the number of Democratic pro-choice women to hold this office and protect election integrity across the country: 

  • Rep. Bee Nguyen, running for Georgia secretary of state
  • Tanisha Sullivan, running for Massachusetts secretary of state 

As well as the following incumbents who have proven to be more than equipped to continue taking this fight head on: 

  • Jena Griswold, Colorado secretary of state 
  • Jocelyn Benson, Michigan secretary of state 
  • Maggie Toulouse Oliver, New Mexico secretary of state 
  • Dr. Shirley Weber, California secretary of state

EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, works to elect Democratic pro-choice women up and down the ballot and across the country with a goal of fighting for our rights and our communities. Our work is centered around a fundamental vision: Run. Win. Change the World. EMILYs List has raised over $700 million in service to that vision and has helped Democratic women win competitive elections by recruiting and training candidates, supporting and helping build strong campaigns, researching the issues that impact women and families, running one of the largest independent expenditure campaigns for Democrats, and turning out women voters to the polls. Since our founding in 1985, we have helped elect the country's first woman as vice president, 159 women to the House, 26 to the Senate, 16 governors, and nearly 1,400 women to state and local office. More than 40% of the candidates EMILYs List has helped elect to Congress have been women of color. Visit www.emilyslist.org for more information.