Republicans are in a bind in the Colorado gubernatorial race, but nominee Dan Maes isn’t going to drop out to fix it.According to a statement by state party chairman Dick Wadhams, Tom Tancredo offered to drop out of the race if Maes did. Tancredo is running as a third-party candidate, making good on a threat he made before the primary, when he demanded that Maes and the other leading Republican candidate, Scott McInnis, drop out of the race after the primary and allow the party to pick a fresh nominee. Both Maes and McInnis had been hit with campaign scandals, and Tancredo argued that neither was in a position to beat Democrat John Hickenlooper in the general. And now that Tancredo’s in and splitting the conservative vote, polls of the three-way race show Tancredo essentially handing the race to Hickenlooper. The TPM Poll Average shows Hickenlooper (44.8%) with a big lead over both Maes (26.3%) and Tancredo (22%).
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=122423