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Supporters of Amendment 80 share misleading texts and falsely imply support from Polis and Hickenlooper

Posted on by Pranco
Supporters of Amendment 80 share misleading texts and falsely imply support from Polis and Hickenlooper

Another misleading ad about Amendment 80 arrived via text message to voters across Colorado – this time just days before the election election.

A statewide text campaign from Amendment 80 advocates last weekend falsely suggests that Sen. John Hickenlooper and Gov. Jared Polis support the ballot initiative, which add the right to school choice to the Colorado Constitution.

The text, paid for by 501(c)4 nonprofit Colorado Dawn, included an image with two quotes from Polis and Hickenlooper. Polis’ quote expressed support for school choice but made no mention of Amendment 80, while Hickenlooper’s spoke generally about educational opportunities such as apprenticeships.

Below the image was text that read: “Democratic leaders support school choice!” While the ad does not explicitly state that Polis and Hickenlooper support it, the text attempts to equate their support for school choice with Amendment 80 by including their photos and quotes.

Hickenlooper responded by posting at his Facebook and

“Let me be clear: I do not support Amendment 80,” Hickenlooper wrote in his letter personal X account. “The quote is about my support for apprenticeships and is being misused to suggest I am supporting something I do not support. This amendment would harm our public school system.”

This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. In October, the same sender shared a text message suggesting that Kevin Vick, president of the Colorado Education Association, supported the ballot initiative.

Colorado Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state, has publicly opposed Amendment 80, arguing that its vague language could be interpreted to take away funding from public schools and open the door to future voucher programs.

Although the text did not directly state that Vick supported the measure, an audio clip of him speaking positively about school choice as it currently exists in Colorado was taken and shared alongside an ad for Amendment 80, making it appear as though Vick was. argued in favor of the amendment in his statement.

Vick called the text message a deceptive tactic, claiming its advocates “misrepresent the position of myself and thousands of teachers across the state.”

“Unfortunately, using these types of tactics seems like business as usual for supporters of Amendment 80, but it also indicates that they know voters are starting to see through this backdoor attempt at a voucher system,” Vick wrote in a post on Colorado Education Association website.

The message featuring Vick did not reveal who paid for it, which became the subject of an October campaign finance complaint filed by former state Rep. Bri Buentello, D-Pueblo, who wrote to her Colorado Dawn suspects IEC of being behind the text messages. The independent expenditure committee has the same name as the 501(c)4 nonprofit Colorado Dawn, which was behind the text quoting Polis and Hickenlooper.

Erin McCann Ciani, a liaison for the group “No on Amendment 80” Protect Our Public Schools, confirmed that the text message quoting Polis and Hickenlooper came from the same sender as the one that quoted Vick, and confirmed that the original was not had been paid for by the Independent Expenditure Commission. mentioned in Buentello’s complaint.

Colorado Dawn, which does not have to disclose its donors, reported spending $873,000 on mailers and text messages in support of Amendment 80 on October 12.

Advance Colorado President Michael Fields, whose organization authored Amendment 80, is also listed as treasurer of Colorado Dawn.

Advance Colorado did not return the Vail Daily’s request for comment.