What to watch in Tuesday's mayoral runoff debate

Thanks for joining us here on 9 News Plus. I'm Chris Bianchi. 9 News is hosting a debate between the two finalists for the Denver mal runoff between Mike Johnson and Kelly Bruff. That debate coming up on Tuesda, May the 16th. The Denver mayoral runoff will take place on Tuesday, June 6th. They will begin at 7:00 PM and will air in full on KTVD Channel 29 News Plus and on 9news.com will be moderated by Cal Clark, Anusha Roy and. Marshall Zellinger, who joins us now for a bit more about this. Marshall, thanks for taking the time to join us here. Of course. Anything for you, Christian. Well, let's start things off with, are you happy or are you sad tot have an 11 person debate this t? I have found that writing debate questions is surprisingly easiew that they're just two candidated that we've gone through this two other times that there was a lot of angst in trying to research some candidates that. Weren't widely known to come uph very specific pointed questionst would help a voter make a decis. So I am, I'm not disappointed there are not 11 double negative, but we'll take that as a positi. I guess Marshall, when it comes to maybe the debate overall, give us a bit of a top line overview. There's not a ton based on on wI know at this point in terms of e of those main issues when it comes to. They both want to hire more cop. They both want to expand the STAR program. They're both against run contro. Both want to enforce the city's camping ban, though in different ways. Where do you hope to find some daylight between Kelly Brouff and Mike Johnson on those topics? Really, Because it's easy to sa, well, I I do this and then and then the other person says, well, I want to do that too. But how? It's the how. And a lot of it deals with. Being the political reporter, a lot of it's money based. So okay, you can do certain thi. Well, if if it can be done, how come the current administration isn't doing it? What are you going to do different and if it can be done and you want to do this, this, this okay now we're talking about you're going to move money or use where is it, You know where's that where's it move from and to and all that s. So I mean that's typical of any kind of question about I want to do something as the new person. Okay. Great. What was wrong? Why didn't the old person figure it out and or the prior person I should say and what's the grand scheme that you have that they don't or when they finding daylt is if they agree on something. Well why do you think your plan works and there's done like things lie that where you you start to tryo figure out if if they can perhas pick apart the other person's pn Speaking of which. Should should have said this ear but Kelly brought more than maye true centrist mold kind of ran a bit of a center right campaign in the lead up to the runoff orI should say when it was what whet was a jungle primary when it cos to Mike Johnson more the kind of center left sort of candidates. And I I say this say it's technically a nonpartisan race. Where do you do you think that one or the other may be the favorite right now? And the reason I see that is, could you could we expect some fireworks? Can I? I don't subscribe to the favorites game or the front runner game just because I picture it for a sports analo. I used to believe in college football. The beginning of the year you would hear people say the Heismn hopeful is or this is the leadi. No, no, everyone is 0 for zero for 0 yards. Like there's no leader and then you start to get stats and then you know, well, I mean the only stat we have is is the general election and and to an extent our poll that we did when theree multiple like you know the dozen candidates. So you could look at money. The people supporting Mike Johnston are pouring much more money into the race, giving Mike Johnston's campaign and visibility more edge. And you look at the results, Kelly Bruff, you know, if if this would have gone on for another day or, maybe Lisa Calderon would have caught Kelly Bruff. Mike Johnston was at 24%, you know, and Kelly Bruff at 20. We're not talking big, big numbers there, but that's all I can base off od a lot's changed in the last mon. And perhaps another three weeks before before actual Election D. You're looking for a direct answer for me. And I've danced around it enoug, I think. All right. Well, I guess you'ree one who might be seeing some of that, perhaps here on Tuesday night as well. I guess what's interesting to m, you mentioned Johnson comes away with 24%. I think Kelly bruv comes away 2. Only 39% turnout. In the, again the primary with no progressive, no true progressive in the runof and you had Lisa Calderon at 18, Leslie Heritage 11%, I think Debbie Ortega 4-5 perce, you got a pretty good block of progressive votes that are up for grabs. Where do you think both these candidates may teacher to that side of the aisle? Well, you know, we've already sn a few of the candidates who areo longer in the race endorse likee Johnson for instance had Leslie Herit. Endorsement And then there was an event last week with like Ian Thomas Tafoya endorsing. It's things like that that peope who voted for them may say okay, there is my candidate. I will go with them to that sid. Lisa Calderon was not too far ay from making the runoff and so te are Lisa Calderon supporters that are probably looking to her for guidance. And again in transparency, we're recording this on Monday and on Tuesday. By the time you watch this, Lisa Calderon will have made the announcement on Tuesday morning. She's going to tell us the publf she has picked one of the candis to endorse or chooses to to say I don't choose either of them. She met with them last week and there is a scorecard that her a. A group of of they call it the Latino Mayoral Agenda Scorecard, and I know she met with the two candidates with a group with a Latino group on Friday, I believe. And they've broken down the scorecard based on economic justice, education, equity, leadership, culture, gentrification and displacement, public safety, health and wellb, and immigration. And at the bottom, there's a total score. So there's some green on what yu know if if they are supportive of what that candidate is sayin, it's shaded green, it's yellow. If it's kind of iffy, actually there is no yellow that that it's either green or red. The red clearly is this is not s person failed our test on this topic. I don't know. I mean the score is 7 out of I guess out of 100. It's 74 for Mike Johnston, 66 for Kelly Bruff and they bot. Did not do well in the public safety area. I shouldn't say both. Kelly Bruff had six of This is great TV for you because you can see the top of my head, but you don't see what I'm looking at. 1234567891011136 and 13 boxes fr Kelly Bruff are shaded red in te public safety category. Just on. Is shaded red for Mike Johnston. But there is an area of gentrification and displacement where there were seven questions and Mike Johnston failed two of them. And Kelly Ruff had perfect green scores all on that side. So anyways, all that to say, if you're a supporter of Lisa Calderon, are you waiting to hear who she supports? And so clearly if she supports one or the other, that could push progressives that direction. And when we talk about progresss could be deciding this election, that could be what does it. If she were to say I don't pick somebody, then it's either a free for all that like flip a coin, or maybe these voters are are not going to participate. Voters who took part in the firt election may just sit on their hands, but sitting on your hands, you're still stuck with whoever wins. And if you're sitting on your h, it means you don't like either of them. So wouldn't you rather have a say of which of the lesser of to evils you'd prefer versus just staying out of it altogether? I I I would much rather vote ant least say I had a say in someth. Well, I absolutely and we're obviously advocating for people. But by the quick question, do we typically based on past mr runoffs, do we typically see an increase in turn out or decrease on the, I can't remember I'm on the general because it used to e one month later and it changed o two months later because the ciy of Denver was out of compliance with federal overseas and mility voter law where you're supposedo deliver ballots to overseas vot, meaning you're an expatriate, you're still registered to vote here, but you no longer. To live in the US or a military voter who lives overseas that's registered to vote in in the ci, you're supposed to give them 45 days prior to the election where you send them a ballot. And I believe in most cases now they get a digital ballot. So it's not, I don't know if it's all digital or if it's only like military get digital anyways. We were out of compliance when you had the election and then the one mh later runoff that's 3028 thirty days, not 40-5 days. So this is the first time we've had two months in between to ben compliance with that federal la. I I think in the one month scenario it it depend in when it was a free for all when you didn't have an incumbent mayor, I think voter turnout was up. So I want to say like in 2011 it went up from when Michael Hanco. And Chris Romer won the first election and then went to the general, the runoff election, I believe that one went up. Someone's watching this in their price shouting at the screen like, Marshall, you don't know what you're talking about. I don't know until like 2019 whn it was Hancock versus Jamie Gils in the runoff if that went up or not because it wasn't necessari, I mean it wasn't a free for all. You had an incumbent that just happened to have to go to a runoff that . I wish I had the answer for you. I could look it up real quick. It's okay. I asked that off the cuff just because I was curious because ae get into that what what they I'm wondering for the debate is do u expect some of the ideology or some of the. Ideas expressed by the two candidates perhaps. Maybe lean a bit more progressie because there's such a big chunk of progressive votes out there. I mean, I heard it on election night when I was at Mike Johnston's watch party and in his election night speech, he called out specific candidats and a topic that they stood for as something that he I like wha? I'm drawing a blank. Clear. Like I liked what? Terrence Roberts had to say about social justice. And I like what Leslie Harrod hd to say on I feel like it was puc safety or something like that. And so he started name dropping in the moment. And so I I even asked him afterwards, like, was that your way of reaching out to their voters to try to get them on your side? And I wish I remembered the exact answer. But I mean, clearly you're doing it to get the attention of people who weren't supportive of you. Maybe they don't know you. And now this is your way of say, hey, I'm. I can be your friend. I'm on your side. Interesting. So I guess we'll find that out. You you alluded to this earlier when it comes to maybe some more specific discussion points, perhaps one where there is a bit of daylight is the camping ban d how I think Kelly Ruff and Mike Johnson have suddenly differents about how that may be enforced. Both both candidates to be clear endorse the campaign ban the the camping ban being fully enforced but different ways by going abot it is that one area that's. You we may see some that dayligt between the two candidates. I mean if if in a previous the answer, Kelly Bruffett said ultimately that if someone was refusing the services of the city that she would forcibly arrest if need be. Mike Johnston had not said that. But I remember reading something where arrest was like on the table because if no if they're not listening to you and we'd asked this in a previous debate like, oh, just not obeying the mayor is that enough to be arrested But if it's something. In the books like living on the street, the the camping band, you're not allowed to stay for extended period of time in certain spotse like is that that's what you're going to forcibly arrest someone for. We had heard that previously from rough. We hadn't heard the forcibly part from from Johnson. So yes, if we're going to, if we're going to see any perhaps nuance that they may point out about each other, it could be on that topic I guess. From a broad perspecti, for viewers out there who are going to be watching the debate, maybe this is the first one thee tuning in for the first time. What do you think are the things a viewer home who's maybe comply open minded to the two candidat? What should viewers be watching for on Tuesday night? Issues that matter to them, I how someone answers the questn and if they're actually answering it, if they're pivoting around. I m, it's one thing to give talking points. But you can still give talking points and answer the question t we're seeking because we ask pod questions that are supposed to educate a voter about this candidate tht we're asking the question about. And so if they if they don't want to give a a good answer and both have been pretty open. I mean Kelly Broff in previous debates has been pretty open and honest in her in her direct answer that I feel like maybe a follow up or two had been necessary. Same with Mike Johnson, he gives you the answer it's it. Rare that we've had to like prod for hey you, you completely diverted from the question. I'll give an example. Thomas Wolfe, I asked a question two different questions where it's like will you talk f0 seconds but you didn't answer the question. I'll give you 5 more seconds like that kind of thing. I don't we're not going to see that from the two of them. But it's it's I just hone in on the topics that interest you and if you care about how they answr the question and you want to hae that ear for did I just get feda bunch of BS or was that authentc like I'd look for that too so. Watch of course, with the ideals and then after t how they're answering the questn to make sure that there are gene perhaps too about what that poi. Any final things we should watch for here, Marshall? No, I mean, the ballots go out y on Monday when we're recording . You could have them in your hans by the time you're watching thid by the time the debate is happe. And just vote. Vote, I would say vote I would. I now subscribe to getting it in early so that we have results. Earlier than we when I say earl, any ballots that are dropped by Sunday, June 4th should be counted and y to hit total at 7:00 PM on Tues, June 6th and last election in A. I want to say it was 40 some odd percent turned in their ballots the day of or the last two days. Or the last couple hours. There was a high number the last couple hours, and I was one of . I dropped mine and my wife's off after my live shot at 6:00 PM on Tuesday of the Election Day. So people like me cause the results to be delayed. But also we live in this world e like shouldn't we have it have a clerk's office that knows okay. Most people are turning it in te day of let's figure it out so that we can get results faster. Thank you for coming to my Ted , the dinner break. But I will say things can sometimes come up. In between when ballots come out and the day of and as much as I have just said, vote a little early. You may also want to hold on tor ballot because maybe you're goio learn something in the last 7 to 10 to 14 days that if you're really on the fence, it may make the difference and u don't want to have voted and sa, man, I wish I could have that b, but maybe turn it in before Friday or Saturday, the weekend before the election, right? So there you have it. The primer here from Marshall Zellner is going to be. Moderating the debate on Tuesday night, it's at 7:00 PM. So again, if you have not made-up your mid on who you're going to vote for, or even if you have, you should tune on in. 7:00 PM KTVD Channel 20, right here on 9 News Plus and also nine news.. Marshall Anusha and Kyle Clark l be Anusha Roy and Kyle Clark wie moderating the debate, as I mentioned, at 7:00 PM coming up on Tuesday night. Marshall, thanks so much for joining us here. Thanks, Chris. Appreciate.