{"id":26641,"date":"2024-07-17T01:12:37","date_gmt":"2024-07-17T07:12:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/democrat-adam-frisch-shifts-campaign-message-to-abortion-in-cd3-race\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T23:43:03","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T05:43:03","slug":"democrat-adam-frisch-shifts-campaign-message-to-abortion-in-cd3-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/democrat-adam-frisch-shifts-campaign-message-to-abortion-in-cd3-race\/","title":{"rendered":"Democrat Adam Frisch shifts campaign message to abortion in CD3 race"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Adam
Adam Frisch speaks while debating U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Silt, on Saturday during the Club 20 Western Colorado Candidate Debates at Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction. The candidates are running to represent Colorado\u2019s 3rd Congressional District. (William Woody for Colorado Newsline)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Democrat Adam Frisch built his longshot 2022 campaign in Colorado\u2019s Republican-leaning 3rd Congressional District on a simple message: His opponent, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, was too extreme.<\/p>\n

It almost worked.<\/p>\n

But as Frisch runs again in the 3rd District, he\u2019s no longer facing Boebert, who fled to safer political territory on the other side of Colorado. And Frisch\u2019s attempts to elevate a similarly controversial Republican candidate in the district\u2019s GOP primary this year failed.<\/p>\n

So Frisch is turning to abortion to try to win in November against Republican Jeff Hurd, a mild-mannered Grand Junction attorney who is a first-time candidate preaching pragmatism over showmanship.<\/p>\n

An hour after it became clear in last month\u2019s primaries that Frisch would be facing Hurd in November, Frisch issued a statement claiming Hurd supports a federal abortion ban \u2014 which isn\u2019t true \u2014 and accusing Hurd of not \u201ctrusting the women of CD3 to have the freedom to make their own health care choices.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a tactic that may be risky. The 3rd District, which spans the Western Slope into Pueblo and southeastern Colorado, has been reliably Republican for more than a decade and Hurd is more moderate on abortion than many in the GOP.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s as if he\u2019s running against the candidate he wishes he had, rather than the one he\u2019s facing,\u201d Hurd said.<\/p>\n

Still, abortion has been a winning issue in recent years for Democrats in traditionally Republican parts of the country. Since the U.S. Supreme Court\u2019s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 precedent protecting the right to an abortion without excessive government restriction, Ohio voters passed a constitutional amendment guaranteeing abortion access and Kansans rejected an initiative that would let the legislature restrict or even ban the procedure.<\/p>\n

But abortion\u2019s track record for the left is less clear when it comes to candidate campaigns in Republican-leaning districts like the 3rd, said Joshua Wilson, a political science professor at the University of Denver who specializes in abortion and conservative politics.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until Donald Trump was elected in 2016 that abortion became a top issue for progressive and moderate voters as it was for conservatives, Wilson said. Roe being overturned, and states like Texas, Florida and Idaho imposing new restrictions on abortion as a result, just moved it further up the list.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbortion became a much more important, salient issue for a much broader range of voters,\u201d he said. \u201cThe big test is really coming up still (in) races like this, where it\u2019s being made into a central issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Demonstrators
Demonstrators gather to protest Senate Bill 8, the new Texas law banning abortion after six weeks into a pregnancy, on Sept. 4, 2021, at the Colorado State Capitol. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun file)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Frisch is confident abortion is a winning issue for his campaign, especially given that there\u2019s a measure on the November ballot that would amend the state constitution to enshrine Colorado\u2019s already nearly unfettered access to abortion.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think anyone from either side of this would say that it\u2019s not going to be a net positive for someone in my situation,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause there are going to be people who are going to be voting one way on presidents and another way on some other candidates. There\u2019s enough people going to be voting pro-choice, pro-freedom, pro-health care that we could build a coalition.\u201d<\/p>\n

But previous election results paint a murkier picture in the district.<\/p>\n

In 2020, voters in the 3rd District narrowly rejected a ballot measure that would have banned abortions in Colorado at 22 weeks of gestation, except in cases where a mother\u2019s life was at risk.<\/p>\n

A Colorado Sun analysis shows the measure lost by just over 2,200 votes \u2014 or 0.5 percentage points \u2014 in the 26 counties that are entirely in the 3rd District. Statewide, Proposition 115 failed by a margin of roughly 570,000 votes, or 18 percentage points.<\/p>\n

(A sliver of Eagle County is also in the district, but it\u2019s impossible to parse out how the initiative fared among the group of a few thousand 3rd District voters who live in that portion.)<\/p>\n

Additionally, an unscientific survey of hundreds of voters in the 3rd District conducted by The Sun and other Colorado media outlets found that many issues rank higher for them than abortion, including good governance, the economy, the environment and immigration.<\/p>\n

Adam Frisch\u2019s position on abortion is informed by his upbringing<\/div>\n

Frisch believes the government should never be involved in abortion.<\/p>\n

\u201cI appreciate (that) anything past the first trimester gets to be a more challenging conversation for a lot of people, for the religious or nonreligious. I fully respect that,\u201d the former Aspen city councilman said. \u201cHaving said that, I still don\u2019t see a situation \u2014 ever \u2014 where the government should be infringing on the freedom of a woman and her health care provider to make a better decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said as a congressman he would vote to codify Roe v. Wade. He also said he plans to vote in November for the Colorado ballot measure that would enshrine abortion access in the state constitution.<\/p>\n

Frisch\u2019s position on abortion is informed by how his father is an obstetrician gynecologist, and so is his sister. Growing up in Minnesota, Frisch said his family received death threats because his father performed abortions.<\/p>\n

\"Democratic
Democratic candidate for the 3rd Congressional District for Colorado Adam Frisch during an appearance on the campus of the University of Colorado-Pueblo on Sept. 28, 2022, in Pueblo. (David Zalubowski\/Associated Press file)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cThere needs to be a lot of humility and a lot of understanding in times of medical crises,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Frisch said he thinks abortion can be a winning issue in the 3rd District because he views the conversation around abortion access as being more about individual liberty than partisan politics.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that the freedom to allow women to do what they want to do with their doctors and not having politicians get involved resonates with a lot of people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Frisch didn\u2019t make abortion a centerpiece of his 2022 campaign against Boebert, which he lost by just 546 votes. And it didn\u2019t appear to be a central focus this time around until his initial preferred campaign playbook became untenable.<\/p>\n

Frisch spent more than $100,000 on TV ads boosting one of Hurd\u2019s opponents, former state Rep. Ron Hanks, in the six-way GOP primary in the 3rd District. Frisch saw Hanks, a firebrand election denier, as having vulnerabilities similar to Boebert\u2019s and thus easier to beat than Hurd.<\/p>\n

When Hurd won the primary, Frisch needed an angle of attack. He quickly invoked abortion in campaign statements and fundraising solicitations, along with water and immigration. But abortion has been a recurring theme in Frisch\u2019s recent missives.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am willing to talk all day about the fringe view that the government should be dictating women\u2019s medical decisions,\u201d Frisch said in a recent fundraising email.<\/p>\n

In an interview, Frisch said the one positive about Boebert switching districts is that \u201cwe try to tell people why people should be voting for us, as opposed to against\u201d his Republican challenger. And he has the money to do it \u2014 nearly $4 million in campaign cash at the end of June.<\/p>\n

Kiera Hatton Sena, the organizing and political director at Cobalt, the Colorado abortion-rights group behind the constitutional measure on the November ballot, thinks abortion can help Frisch break through.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do think you can absolutely win focusing on abortion rights in CD3,\u201d said Hatton Sena, who lives in the Pueblo County town of Rye, which is in the district. \u201cThere\u2019s something fundamental about rural voters, including myself, that we like to be able to make our individual decisions. We like personal privacy, and we really appreciate not letting the government tell us what to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said there are Democrats running for statehouse seats in the 3rd District who also have abortion-centric campaign platforms. Hatton Sena pointed to Rep. Matthew Martinez, D-Monte Vista, in House District 62, and Rep. Elizabeth Velasco, D-Glenwood Springs, in House District 57.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s a smart bet,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Where Jeff Hurd stands on abortion<\/div>\n

Hurd said his position on abortion is rooted in legal theory.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a constitutional conservative, I believe abortion is an issue that should generally be left to the states,\u201d he said, \u201cand I would not vote for a federal abortion ban.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hurd said he also wouldn\u2019t vote for a bill codifying Roe v. Wade since it would take power away from states.<\/p>\n

He describes himself as \u201cpro-life,\u201d but said abortion should be allowed in cases of rape and incest, as well as when a mother\u2019s life is at risk.<\/p>\n

\"Grand
Grand Junction lawyer Jeff Hurd talks with Allan Thayer, as his daughter Gabriella Hurd, 12, listens Oct. 28, 2023, in Towaoc. (Jerry McBride, Durango Herald)<\/span>Jerry McBride<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cIf you were to press me on where I would see this issue on the state level, I think I would advocate for a more mainstream approach,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m not sure I\u2019d have a specific week number in mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hurd said he couldn\u2019t remember how he voted on Proposition 115 in 2020, when he was a private citizen, but the fact that it didn\u2019t include exceptions for pregnancies caused by rape or incest gave him pause. However, he called the number of weeks prescribed in the measure \u2014 22 weeks of gestation \u2014 as \u201cpragmatic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hurd supports access to contraception and in vitro fertilization. A campaign spokesman said Hurd has close friends and colleagues who have conceived children through IVF and that Hurd wouldn\u2019t support any federal attempt to limit the procedure.<\/p>\n

Hurd said he doesn\u2019t think abortion will be a winning issue for Frisch and that Frisch\u2019s focus on the issue is a sign that he doesn\u2019t know the district.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just doesn\u2019t seem to me consistent with what the voters in this district have told me that they care about,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd, if anything, I think he\u2019s out of step with where most voters are in the district on this issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Abortion takes center stage in another Colorado congressional district<\/div>\n

The 3rd District isn\u2019t the only competitive congressional district in Colorado where Democrats are trying to tap support for abortion access in the wake of the Supreme Court\u2019s overturning of Roe v. Wade.<\/p>\n

In the toss-up 8th Congressional District, which spans the northeastern Denver suburbs into Greeley, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee highlighted Republican state Rep. Gabe Evans\u2019 position on abortion in an email blast sent out minutes after Evans won the district\u2019s GOP primary on June 25.<\/p>\n

The email, titled \u201cthe case against Gabe Evans,\u201d called him an \u201canti-abortion \u2026 extremist.\u201d<\/p>\n

Evans says he is pro-life and is opposed to abortion. But, based on his experience as a police officer and given his own family\u2019s experience with multiple miscarriages, he believes there should be exceptions in cases of rape and incest or when a mother\u2019s life is at risk. He also opposes a national abortion ban.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that this issue now firmly rests at the state level for the states to be able to figure out how best to protect all life, born and unborn,\u201d Evans said at a debate earlier this year.<\/p>\n

\"Colorado
Colorado Rep. Gabe Evans talks to well-wishers before the first Republican primary debate for the 8th Congressional District seat Jan. 25 in Fort Lupton. (David Zalubowski\/Associated Press file)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

But Evans said he\u2019s not sure at what point in gestation abortion should be banned.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t paint ourselves into a corner with too-strict laws,\u201d he said, adding that he couldn\u2019t remember how he voted when he was a private citizen in 2020 on Proposition 115, the Colorado ballot measure that would have banned abortion after 22 weeks of gestation.<\/p>\n

Evans supported the overturning of Roe v. Wade and said he would support a bill in Congress that would make permanent a prohibition on federal funds being used for abortion, except in cases of rape, incest or a mother\u2019s life is at risk. The measure would also prohibit private insurance offered through the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, from covering abortions if the plans are subsidized by the government.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo, the Democratic incumbent in the 8th District, is a cosponsor of the Women\u2019s Health Protection Act, which would establish a federal statutory right to abortion access nationwide. It would offer more protection for abortion access than Roe v. Wade did, prohibiting waiting periods and mandatory ultrasounds, and it would give people the legal right to travel out of state to get an abortion.<\/p>\n

\"Yadira
Yadira Caraveo, D-Thornton, makes remarks to reporters Nov. 8, 2022, in Thornton. She will be the first Latina to represent Colorado in Congress. (Olivia Sun\/The Colorado Sun via Report for America)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cAs a doctor, I have stood beside young women facing the solemn decision of whether to have an abortion. Having stood in those rooms, I know it\u2019s a decision that is never made lightly. It\u2019s one of the biggest, most difficult, life-changing decisions a woman can make, which is why I firmly believe it\u2019s a decision that must remain in the exam room,\u201d said Caraveo, a pediatrician and who is a member of the congressional Pro-Choice Caucus.<\/p>\n

As a state representative, Caraveo also voted for a bill that was passed and signed into law that confirmed nearly unfettered abortion access in Colorado. Abortion rights groups are asking voters in November to make that change in the state constitution, too, so it\u2019s harder to unwind.<\/p>\n

Andrew Baumann, a pollster with Global Strategies Group, a Democratic firm that conducted surveys on behalf of Caraveo\u2019s campaign, said the congresswoman\u2019s narrow 2022 victory was because of her position on abortion. (Caraveo beat Republican state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, who said abortion should be banned except when a mother\u2019s life is at risk, by about 1,600 votes.)<\/p>\n

\u201cCaraveo would not have overcome the district\u2019s inherent GOP tilt in 2022 without the issue,\u201d he posted on social media.<\/p>\n

The Colorado Sun is a reader-supported, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to covering Colorado issues. To learn more, go to coloradosun.com<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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