Republicans can win redistricting fights in blue states. Colorado shows how

This week’s unanimous Colorado Supreme Court ruling rejecting Democratic efforts to ram through a congressional gerrymandering initiative is more than a procedural victory. It is proof that conservatives can win even in blue states when we show courage and fight with smart, aggressive strategy.

Initiatives 241 and 242, designed to sideline our independent redistricting commission and deliver Democrats a rigged 7-1 map, were blocked by the Colorado Supreme Court. The court refused to let proponents achieve indirectly what the Constitution forbids directly.

This outcome stands in stark contrast to the feckless and haphazard approach too often taken by the state GOP on traditional party-building. While party leadership has struggled, grassroots conservatives and principled advocates have checkmated the Left on redistricting. The evidence is clear: a competitive 4-4 congressional split in an increasingly blue state, with multiple truly contested seats that give voters real choice. This is the latest example of what focused conservative action can achieve.

Nationally, House leadership deserves praise for setting the tone. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA), and key fighters like Reps. Jeff Crank (R-CO), Jeff Hurd (R-CO), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and Gabe Evans (R-CO) have shown the kind of resolve that puts Democrats on defense. Their example is making it impossible for weak-kneed Republicans elsewhere to sit on the sidelines.

Conservatives are catching on. We got routed in California, where aggressive Democratic map manipulation went largely unchecked. In Virginia, conservatives waged a close, hard-fought battle that wounded a newly elected Democratic governor and exposed the Left’s hypocrisy. Here in Colorado, we finished the job. Through lawsuits, alternative measures, and a relentless grassroots strategy, we made Democrats defend their double standard, and they couldn’t. The state Supreme Court’s ruling today validates that approach.

Colorado conservatives have been one step ahead precisely because we support a genuine independent district-drawing process, not the political games of gerrymandering. We backed the citizen commission in 2018 because it removes self-dealing politicians from the mapmaking process. Democrats’ latest attempt to bypass it for temporary partisan gain was rejected not on partisan grounds, but because it violated basic constitutional protections against logrolling and hidden agendas.

This victory should be a rallying cry. Conservatives around the rest of the country must get on offense. Blue states are not lost causes. With courage, clear strategy, and willingness to fight at the grassroots, in the courts, and at the ballot, we can force fair maps, competitive districts, and accountable government even where Democrats hold the levers of power.

CIVIL RIGHTS COSPLAYER JUSTIN PEARSON MELTS DOWN OVER TENNESSEE ‘COLOR-BLIND’ REDISTRICTING

Today’s ruling protects the will of Colorado voters who demanded an end to politician-drawn maps. It rebukes the national Democratic strategy of retaliatory gerrymandering in response to changes elsewhere. Most importantly, it demonstrates that when conservatives refuse to play defense and instead execute a disciplined counterstrategy, we win.

The fight for fair redistricting is far from over, but Colorado just showed the country how it’s done. Time for conservatives everywhere to take note, and get in the game.

Frank McNulty is chairman of Fair Maps Colorado, former speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives, and a political strategist and advocate with Square State Strategy Group, focused on Colorado redistricting reform and local government issues. Scott Gessler is a former Colorado secretary of state and attorney practiced in election and redistricting law. Gessler represented parties in opposition to the Democratic gerrymandering initiatives.