Dark Money Ties To Lakewood Officials

A recent ethics complaint was filed against a group of Colorado Representatives, including Lakewood’s Rep. Rebekah Stewart. The complaint alleges Representatives received gifts in the form of food, beverages and lodging in Vail for a lobbyist retreat. The main donor was One Main Street, a nonprofit of the same name as heavy political donors to Wendi Strom’s campaign for Lakewood Mayor in 2023. No matter the outcome of the ethics complaint, these dark money ties are being exposed in Lakewood and throughout Colorado.

As reported by the Colorado Sun: “Ethics complaints were filed Wednesday against several Democratic state lawmakers alleging they violated Colorado’s prohibition on elected officials receiving gifts when they attended a retreat last month in Vail where they mingled with lobbyists at a ritzy hotel.  The complaints were filed by Colorado Common Cause, a liberal-leaning nonprofit that advocates for an open government.“

One Main Street Colorado approved spending $25,000 for the retreat. However, One Main Street Colorado – the nonprofit – does not disclose its donors. The complaint alleges that dark money is not allowed, even when funneled through the Opportunity Caucus.

The nonprofit is apparently different than One Main Street Colorado, the Independent Expenditure Committee, that did not disclose matching expenditures to One Main Street Lakewood in support of Wendi Strom.

According to the Summit Daily, caucuses like the Colorado Democratic Latino Caucus, are also not required to disclose their donors but they do anyway for transparency. The Summit Daily article interviewed Colorado Representative Velasco (D-Glenwood Springs) as the co-chair of the Democratic Latino Caucus, who described the difference between the two Caucuses: “The Opportunity Caucus is a 501(c)(4), which gives the nonprofit more ability to lobby and engage in political campaigns, including endorsing candidates, in what Velasco described as ‘electioneering.’”

That means the Opportunity Caucus itself and their donor, One Main Street Colorado, are purposefully not fully transparent.

The Opportunity Caucus and One Main Street Colorado purport to support moderate Democrats to  “rebuild Colorado’s middle class”. In Lakewood, both organizations effected change through their candidates, although not exactly for Colorado’s middle class. For example, both Representative Stewart and Mayor Wendi Strom voted to change laws facilitating Additional Dwelling Units (ADUs) buildouts. According to GoBankingRates.com, “installing any kind of ADU on your property has an average cost of $180,000 and there are no guarantees that you’ll earn a return on this upfront investment.” The middle class does not typically have an extra $180,000 of disposable investment income.