Colorado Supreme Court to decide Weld commissioner redistricting case

State's top judicial body allows case to jump appeals court

The Colorado Supreme Court on July 1 announced it will hear arguments in the appeal of a Weld district judge’s ruling that the Board of Weld County Commissioners violated state law during the redistricting of their own seats.

The news, first reported by Colorado Politics, means the state’s top judicial body has allowed the case to jump the Colorado Appeals Court. Per Colorado Politics’ reporting:

Recognizing Weld County would not likely have enough time to properly draw its commission districts, (Weld District Court Judge Todd) Taylor (in his March 1 order) allowed the board to use its pre-2023 map for now. The county and the plaintiffs both filed appeals with the Court of Appeals, but on June 7, the plaintiffs petitioned the Supreme Court to stage a rare intervention and immediately hear the case itself.

The (League of Women Voters of Greeley and Weld County and the Latino Coalition of Weld County, as well as voters Barbara Whinery and Stacy Suniga) argued the normal appellate process would not likely yield a final answer in time for the 2026 county election and, in the meantime, Weld County has asserted it does not need to draw new maps until 2033, following the next census. The Colorado Attorney General's Office submitted a brief in support of the Supreme Court's intervention.