Colorado to tighten petition verification for candidates

A bill that passed the legislature requires the state to check signatures.

DENVER (AP) — Colorado is tightening requirements for the petitions gathered by would-be political candidates.

A bill that passed the Senate 34–0 Friday sets a signature-verification procedure for those ballots. It says the state has to check signatures against an existing voter database, instead of just verifying names and addresses.

The upgrade was inspired by last year’s Senate primary, when forged signatures were found on some petitions from a Republican seeking to get on the GOP primary ballot.

A canvasser in the race admitted to forging voter signatures while collecting petitions. She was sentenced to 250 hours of community service.

The measure has already passed the House and is on its way to the desk of Gov. John Hickenlooper, who is expected to sign it into law.