Election Day Update - 2:30 p.m.

Denver, November 2, 2004 - The Colorado Secretary of State’s office has received no reports of any difficulties that have prevented Colorado citizens from the constitutional right to cast a ballot. Voter turnout has been intense, as expected.

We are aware of the following events that have been resolved:

• Arapahoe County - Five precincts lost electrical power earlier today. Xcel Energy is working on restoring power to those precincts. The particular voting machines affected have a battery backup and are still functioning.
• Teller County - A technical problem occurred where voters who had not yet cast ballots during this election appeared to have already voted early or absentee. The software for the voting machine was corrected and the election judges were issued new poll books. Voters in the first 30 minutes were issued provisional ballots in accordance with Colorado Election rules.
• 100-Foot Limit - A number of reports of violations of the 100-foot limit C.R. S. 1-5-105(1) prohibits "election-related activity" within the 100 feet of the building in which the polling place is located or line of voters waiting to vote. We have reiterated to County Clerk and Recorders instructions to actively enforce the 100-foot limit to make voters feel welcome.

Our team of special counsel remains on standby to respond to any legal questions that may arise during the day.