Salazar, Ritter get set for reelection bids

Though not all of the 2008 contests have yet been resolved, Sen. Ken Salazar (D) and Gov. Bill Ritter (D) are kicking off their reelection bid in Colorado, a state in which Democrats have made impressive gains.

Salazar, who won an open seat in 2004 by a narrow 51-47 margin, will launch his effort for a second six-year term with a $1,000-a-plate fundraiser at the Denver Performing Arts Center this Friday, the Denver Post reported Tuesday.

{mosads}Ritter, who won the governor’s mansion two years later by a 57-40 margin, will host a fundraiser in Washington this week.

Colorado political analyst Floyd Ciruli says both Salazar and Ritter appear to be in good shape so far, thanks largely to a depleted Republican bench.

“The Republicans, I think, are suffering both organizationally, financially and in terms of their bench,” he said.

Outgoing Congressman Tom Tancredo, former Rep. Bob Beauprez and former University of Denver President Marc Holtzman are seen as potential GOP candidates. Tancredo is leaving Congress after losing a bid for the presidency, Beauprez lost to Ritter in 2006 and Holtzman lost to Beauprez in the primary that year.

Still, some national political watchers see Colorado as one of just a few states in which Republicans might make gains in 2010. With only a handful of legitimate targets, Republicans are likely to put serious effort into recruiting a prime candidate.

“If there was the right candidate, Ken could be in a race,” Ciruli said.

He added that Republicans are more focused on recruiting a challenger to Ritter, who has faced some challenges in his first term. But even giving Ritter a strong challenge could prove problematic.

“If you look at the last three governors, they all won their reelections fairly handily,” Ciruli said. “We’re in a rising tide [for Democrats] and even leaky boats do okay.”

Since Salazar’s election in 2004, Democrats have taken control of three additional congressional seats, putting them at a five-to-two advantage in the state’s delegation. The party also took over both chambers of the state legislature and this year won the state’s other Senate seat, when Senator-elect Mark Udall bested ex-Rep. Bob Schaffer.