Jared Polis Censured By His Own Party After Freeing Tina Peters

The Colorado Democratic Party voted Wednesday to formally censure Gov. Jared Polis in a sharp rebuke of his decision to grant early release to former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, triggering a growing political firestorm within his own party.

Peters was convicted in Colorado state court in 2024 on seven charges — including four felonies — after prosecutors argued she participated in a scheme to breach Mesa County voting systems in 2021. She received a nine-year prison sentence. (RELATED: Election Denier Tina Peters Granted Clemency By Colorado Governor)

At her sentencing, the judge criticized Peters’ conduct and said she remained defiant throughout the proceedings.

“I’m convinced you would do it all over again if you could,” the judge said. “You’re as defiant as a defendant as this court has ever seen.”

Last week, Polis granted Peters clemency and announced she would be released on June 1. The move followed repeated calls from President Donald Trump urging that Peters be freed.

Peters’ case became a flashpoint in the broader national fight over election integrity and claims surrounding the 2020 election. Prosecutors argued that Peters worked with associates of Mike Lindell in an effort to gain access to voting system data as part of attempts to investigate allegations of election fraud.

In defending his clemency decision, Polis argued Peters had received excessive punishment. Critics, however, disputed elements of his explanation, with CNN later publishing a fact-check challenging several of the governor’s claims.

The backlash inside the Democratic Party was swift.

The Colorado Democratic Party overwhelmingly voted to censure Polis, with members arguing the governor’s action undermined accountability and confidence in election systems.

“This is not a small policy disagreement at all whatsoever,” Democrat Zane Schichtel of Montezuma County told The Colorado Sun. “I think it is a direct rebuke of the principles of accountability and election integrity that uphold our democracy, and as such, we need to treat it for the serious matter that it is.”

Trump had repeatedly pressed for Peters’ release. In December, he announced on Truth Social that he was granting Peters a “full pardon,” though presidents do not have authority to pardon state convictions.

“For years, Democrats ignored Violent and Vicious Crime of all shapes, sizes, colors, and types. Violent Criminals who should have been locked up were allowed to attack again. Democrats were also far too happy to let in the worst from the worst countries so they could rip off American Taxpayers. Democrats only think there is one crime – Not voting for them! Instead of protecting Americans and their Tax Dollars, Democrats chose instead to prosecute anyone they can find that wanted Safe and Secure Elections. Democrats have been relentless in their targeting of TINA PETERS, a Patriot who simply wanted to make sure that our Elections were Fair and Honest. Tina is sitting in a Colorado prison for the “crime” of demanding Honest Elections. Today I am granting Tina a full Pardon for her attempts to expose Voter Fraud in the Rigged 2020 Presidential Election!,” Trump wrote at the time.

The unusual clash now leaves Polis facing criticism not from Republicans, but from members of his own party — a rare public split that has opened a new fault line among Democrats over the handling of election-related cases.

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