Colorado school board candidate alleges intimidation in campaign sign theft probe

In a case of potential election interference, a school board candidate in Basalt, Colorado, said her volunteers tracked stolen campaign signs to a public school employee’s home.

But despite electronic evidence of where the signs went, the candidate told The Lion she believes authorities just want the case to disappear.

Elizabeth Taylor, who ran for a spot on the Roaring Fork School District Board, placed trackers in her campaign signs after they kept disappearing from public rights-of-way.

The next morning the devices registered their location at the school staff parking lot and later from a home belonging to an individual connected with the school district. 

Taylor said public voter registration information confirmed the home belonged to a school employee. 

She said the signs were then moved once again, according to the electronic tracking devices.  

One went to a local convenience market and was subsequently discarded in a trash can, while the second was retrieved with help from the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office.  

Taylor’s now working with law-enforcement and would like to file formal charges, characterizing the thefts as “election interference.” 

Colorado prohibits the interference with campaign election material 45 days before polling.  

The thefts also could be classified as second-degree criminal tampering with property. 

According to Taylor’s website, the campaign signs are now in the sheriff’s possession. 

But Taylor said she’s doubtful the authorities will follow up with the case. 

“I have a sinking feeling that it’s always going to kind of disappear if we don’t stay on it. You know?” she told The Lion. “I mean, I just don’t have faith in the system, either with the district or with law enforcement.” 

Taylor said in talking to the Sheriff’s Office she felt intimidated, feeling she shouldn’t ask too many questions. 

“It was intimidation, like ‘You better not, or else’ kind of feeling,” she said, recalling the sense of warning she got from deputies when she refused to drop the issue. 

She also told The Lion law-enforcement authorities cautioned her against naming the suspect. 

Taylor told The Lion she feels she’s being stonewalled by local authorities, who are looking to cover up rather than investigate the incident.  

The district called Taylor and asked for the name of the district employee allegedly implicated in the theft, but she refused, sensing they weren’t interested in a proper investigation.  

“I called [the Sheriff’s Office] yesterday to find out what the latest is, and was told, ‘Oh, that particular sheriff is off until Friday,’ so now I have to wait until Friday to get the update,” she added. 

In an op-ed in the Rocky Mountain Voice, the secretary of the Colorado Republican Party, Russ Andrews, blamed the sign theft on the local teachers’ union. 

And Andrews went part of the way to naming a suspect, which may explain why local authorities aren’t enthusiastic about investigating the case. 

“Do they teach the kids in their classrooms that the ends always justify the means?” asked Andrews. “Are they above the law because they are Democrats, teachers, or union members?”  

Andrews said the person allegedly linked to the thefts is a teacher who is formerly a top local union official. 

Taylor said she was tired of campaign sign thefts that targeted female candidates running as reformers. 

She said reform candidates, like her, focused on the basic curriculum of reading, writing and arithmetic, while their opponents campaigned on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) platforms. 

For now, Taylor will simply accept a comment from anyone connected with the union or the district that they don’t condone theft of campaign materials. 

“I wish that we could get some kind of a statement from the district or from the union saying we disavow any kind of theft or stealing of signs or suppression of the voice of the people, or anything like that,” she added. “But it’s just been total crickets.” 

Taylor lost in Tuesday’s election to incumbent Kathryn Kuhlenberg, who got 72% of the vote, the Aspen Daily News reported.