17-year-old, Raquel Pando, helps her older relatives when they’re voting.
Whether it’s because their eyesight is bad, or just because they don’t
understand the information on their ballot, this Front Range Community
College student helps her elders vote, even though she can’t yet.

She said, “It definitely took me, when I was trying to help them, a lot of time to
learn how to even read the ballot.”
She said that the text was so condensed in “blocks” of text that she needed to
look up ballot measures online to understand them.
She appreciates the language that the sources she finds use more than the
actual ballot language: “the ballot language is very confusing to me. If you
aren’t paying attention to it you can easily choose something that you don’t
fully agree with.”
Keeping students like Raquel in mind, I sat down with Lucas Brady Woods,
KUNC’s State Capitol Reporter. We met at their recording studio, in Greeley,
to discuss and clarify this year’s ballot measures.
This article will detail the important clarifications of each ballot measure he
and I spoke about.

91: Prohibit Trophy Hunting

This ballot measure seeks to ban the hunting of big cats in Colorado:
mountain lions, bobcats, and lynxes.
Though the words “trophy hunting” are written into the title of this measure – if
this initiative passes – all hunting of these big cats will be outlawed.
It is important to mention that there are still a few cases in which killing these
animals would be legal: Such as farmers and ranchers protecting their
livestock, or wildlife officials doing wildlife management.

89: Right to Abortion

This measure can be confusing because abortion is already legal in Colorado.
But as Roe V. Wade has been overturned at the federal level, this amendment
seeks to protect the legalization of abortion in the state, despite any change of
the federal ruling.

This ballot measure is an amendment because it suggests a change to
Colorado’s state constitution. Amendments to the constitution are harder to
reverse than state laws.
It being an amendment also means it needs a fifty-five percent of the vote for
it to pass. A regular ballot measure needs just one vote over fifty percent to
pass.
This measure – if passed – will also remove a ban on state money being used
for abortion services: Meaning Medicaid could be used to cover an abortion.
Amendment J: Repealing the Definition of Marriage in the Constitution
Much like the abortion measure, this amendment seeks to protect legalization
of a law already in effect – this one being the right of same-sex marriage.
In Colorado’s constitution, there exists language which defines marriage as
only between a man and a woman. However, that language became obsolete
in 2015 when same-sex marriage was legalized federally.
But it still exists. So, this amendment looks to change it, so as to protect the
right, regardless of change at the federal level.

145 Establish Qualifications and Registration for Veterinary

Professional Associate
So as to address the problem of affordable veterinary care in Colorado, this
initiative – if it passes – will create a new animal health-care position: the
Veterinary Professional Associate.
It would be a mid-level position with responsibilities including many of which a
traditional veterinarian holds: such as diagnosing or administering vaccines.
But, the associate would need to be overseen by a vet in order to perform the
tasks. The position would require a master’s degree.

Lucas said the veterinarians he’s talked to “don’t love” this ballot measure. He
said that veterinarians are concerned that because the initiative is backed by
large corporations like Petco, the new position is only being proposed to make
business operations cheaper and more expandable. That there won’t be
enough training, and that it won’t be licensed in the way other veterinarian
positions are.

310 Concerning the Conduct of Elections

Lucas said that this is one of the most “significant” measures on the ballot this
year.
This measure seeks to change the way we vote in Colorado.
First off, it would change primary elections. If this passes, all candidates –
regardless of political party – would run against each other, Instead of running
against only the other candidates in their parties.
Secondly, this measure would implement rank choice voting: a system in
which citizens would vote for the top-five picks for candidates, instead of just
one choice.
Some state lawmakers are so opposed to this measure that they passed a bill
which will make rank choice voting very difficult to implement, even if it
passes.