Mt. CB asking voters to move town’s elections from April to November

Ballot question this November 2022

[  By Kendra Walker  ]

In an effort to make voting easier for constituents and encourage a larger voter turnout, the Mt. Crested Butte town council is putting a ballot question on the upcoming November 2022 election to move Mt. Crested Butte’s elections to November. The town’s current elections cycle falls in April.

“Having an election in April when everyone is out of town on Spring Break on a desert trip is probably not the best thing for voter participation,” said mayor Nicholas Kempin. “We all vote in November on the big stuff, so why not include this in November when everyone is used to voting?” 

Town manager Greg Sund agreed, “Everybody’s gone in April, this place is a ghost town. It’s really hard to hold an election and expect good participation.”

“Is there any downside or cost to do this or some reason not to?” asked Kempin.

“You hold the election with the county, so the cost is pretty minimal,” said Sund.

Town attorney Kathy Fogo explained that the town charter would need to be changed in order to move elections from April to November, which would require a vote from the public. Fogo further explained that the ballot question would also require a corresponding question to extend council terms to end in November as well, as they currently expire in April. So if voters approve the elections change to November, the next council members whose terms expire in April 2024 would instead serve through November 2024.

The council unanimously voted to notify the county that the town would like to put a question on the November 2022 ballot to move its elections to November. Fogo will now draft up ballot language for the council’s review at an upcoming council meeting.