GOP Theme: Little to Cheer About

As many of the numbers looked a grim for Republicans, disappointment crept onto several faces at the Larimer County Republican party. The mood became much more somber as the night went on. Some shook their heads in grief and others tried to celebrate the small victories.

But, by 10 p.m., the crowd which had grown to about 100 people, thinned out to about 50 people.

“It looks like a tough evening for a lot of Republicans,” said Steve Johnson, who was a state senator and will now be a Larimer County commissioner. “It’s been a tough year. We all knew that. I think things can only look up from here. If there is a silver lining, that’s it.”

Johnson came out ahead of Randy Eubanks for county commission's District 1 seat. This means he will leave his senate seat to take on local issues at the county level.

He said he is eager to take on budget issues and get out to meet people on a one on one basis. He attributed his win to the fact that he earned several votes from Democrats.

“For me, I think that’s what made the difference,” he said. “In this kind of year, you’re not going to win with your own base. You have to reach across the isle.”

Incumbent Kevin Lundberg, who won the State House District 49 race, echoed a similar sentiment. He said his number one priority will be the economy.

“The time has come for a good steady hand at the tiller,” he said.

He acknowledged that it was a disappointing night for many, but that the issues won’t go away.

“We are going to have to recalibrate our expectations in the next few months and years,” he said.

Donna Gallup, who lost against Randy Fischer in the State House District 53 race, attended the gathering to celebrate the wins in other races. She said it is long from over.

Matt Fries, who was up against Democrat Bob Bacon for State Senate District 14, said he was proud that his race was clean. He knew the odds were against him, but graciously thanked all his supporters.

“Some fights have to stand up and fight even when you know you might not win,” he said. “We logged over 3 million steps. We learned an awful lot.”

Fries asked the crowd how many were going to reregister as Democrats tomorrow. People booed. He then asked how many were going to stand with him and reregister as a Republicans. The crowd cheered.

Bob McClusky, who lost the State House District 14 race against Incumbent John Kefalas also admitted it was an overall tough year for Republicans.

Stan, 75, and Faith Atwood, 72, sat with friends hoping things would swing in their favor. Faith Atwood said she was paying particularly close attention to the presidential race. She prayed McCain would have won.

Faith Atwood grew up in Windsor and said she has always been a Republican, but didn't get really involved until she met Stan who she has been married to for 14 years. Stan has had a long history of involvement within the Republican party.

"I think this is the highest emotional election of any, but did we always say that?" she asked. "Our country has a lot of problems right now, financially, morally and we are at war. That's what makes this such an important election."

Steve Ripley, 33, of Evanston, Wyo., had also hoped for a different outcome.

He came to Fort Collins to volunteer during the last few days. Ripley said.

Wyoming was already pretty set and so he figured he could have more of an impact in Colorado. Since Thursday, he has been busy putting up signs , making phone calls and knocking on doors.

Though disappointed many Republicans in the county did their best to keep a positive attitude. Toward the end of the night, Republicans were still watching the Larimer County Commissioner’s District three race. A Larimer

County Republican representative announced around 10 p.m. that Tom Donnelly who was running against Roger Hoffmann was within 21 votes—likely one of the closest races of the night.

Kirk Brush, Larimer County Republican Party chairman, was quick to point out that on a county level, Republicans did OK.

“When you think about the Democrat sweep that’s going on nationally, within our county, we held our own or gained one seat depending on Donnelly’s outcome.

Bob Lynch, 75, of Fort Collins, also tried to keep things in perspective.

“One thing you have to remember about any election, no matter how good or bad it is, the sun will still rise tomorrow,” he said.