By Quentin Young | editor
“The sheriff's office has been in existence for over 160 years, and there's never been a formal bargaining unit that is able to speak on the employees' behalf and have it actually be a written promise between both sides that we will work together, we will work harmoniously.”
– Brad Riccillo, president of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers Local 837
Leaders with different unions around Pueblo held a silent protest during the Pueblo County Commissioners meeting on Feb. 25, 2025, outside of the Pueblo County Government Building. (Courtesy of Brad Riccillo)
By Lindsey Toomer
Pueblo County commissioners Thursday approved a collective bargaining agreement for the county sheriff’s office more than two years after its employees first voted to form a union. The agreement follows years of turmoil between union leadership and outgoing Pueblo Sheriff David Lucero, a Democrat, who claimed in a lawsuit that a Colorado law that allows collective bargaining of county employees does not apply to sheriff offices.
Left: Phil Weiser, the Colorado attorney general, is seen during his primary election night watch party for his campaign for governor, in Denver at Ace Eat Serve on June 30, 2026. Right: Greg Lopez, then a Republican candidate for Colorado governor, attends the Western Conservative Summit in Aurora on June 4, 2022. (Photos by Andrew Fraieli and Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline)
By Chase Woodruff
Democratic Attorney General Phil Weiser kicked off debate season Thursday night without his main opponent in the race for Colorado governor, Republican Victor Marx, facing off instead against independent candidate Greg Lopez at an event in Colorado Springs. In his first debate appearance since his Democratic primary victory over U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet in June, Weiser, who is favored to win, renewed his promise to Colorado voters to stand up to President Donald Trump. He denounced the Trump administration’s pressure campaign against the state to secure the release of former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, and its efforts to interfere with mail ballots.
Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank, left, and Democrat Jessica Killin, right. (Courtesy photos)
By Sara Wilson
Democrat Jessica Killin repeatedly criticized U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank’s attitude toward the war in Iran during a debate Thursday night, as Crank repeated that he thinks President Donald Trump should have sought congressional approval before military action. Crank, the incumbent Republican representative, said that he will not vote to “pull the rug” out from under American troops involved in the conflict, which began in late February and has extended months beyond the amount of time Trump initially said the war would last. Crank voted against a measure in June meant to direct Trump to withdraw troops or win congressional approval.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Commentary: ICE detention center is a health risk to every Coloradan | By Quentin Young
What climate science tells us about the causes of the Colorado River crisis | By Chase Woodruff
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