On a damp, rainy evening in Carbondale, Mary Watson stood in front of a crowd of 20 at the Crystal Theatre and began reading aloud through the 14 statewide measures on this year’s ballot — a record number.
Watson, a member of the League of Women Voters, drove an hour from her home in Parachute to give the presentation. It was one of several such presentations that the League is sponsoring across Garfield County in the run-up to Election Day on November 3.
With such a lengthy ballot, Watson worries that many voters might feel overwhelmed by the number of decisions they’re being asked to make.
“Voter fatigue,” she said, as people took their seats. “I had never heard that term before, but you’re hearing that from people.”
Like decision fatigue, voter fatigue occurs when the brain becomes mentally taxed after making numerous decisions. Studies show that it can result in lower voter turnout.
Watson’s presentation was designed to help prevent that from happening. After reading through each ballot measure, she explained what the measure entails and the reasons for and against it according to proponents and opponents.
The goal was to offer voters nonpartisan information, so they have the tools to make up their own minds.
Kellee Morris, a yoga teacher who lives in Snowmass, came to the event unclear about what some of the ballot measures actually meant. “Some of the language, I didn’t really understand,” she said.
After the presentation, she felt better educated. But for some of the measures, the additional information complicated her decision-making. Proposition 132, for instance, would make possession of any amount of fentanyl a felony, and impose a mandatory 8-year prison sentence for fentanyl distribution.
Initially, Morris thought she would vote yes. Having lost family members to the drug, she assumed she was in favor of stronger deterrents. But learning that the proposition would remove judicial discretion and potentially scare people away from calling for help made her reconsider.
She thought about a dealer who witnesses a kid overdose, but is afraid to call 9-1-1, because they know they’ll end up in prison, so the kid dies. “I'm gonna have to do a little more research because what I thought my position was, now I'm like, ‘okay, it's a little more complicated,’” she said.
Originally from the United Kingdom, Carbondale residents Helen Copping and Martin Evans have voted regularly since they became U.S. citizens 15 years ago. “We take our voting privilege very seriously,” said Copping, adding that she and Evans attended the event hoping to get as much information as they could before casting their votes.
Evans specifically wanted to understand which ballot measures were the result of “dark money” groups (so called because they don’t have to disclose their donors), which use the citizen initiative process to put propositions before voters and spend millions of dollars advocating for or against certain ballot measures.
Those groups are present on Colorado’s ballot this year.
One, Advance Colorado, an organization that describes its mission as "[pushing] back on the progressive policies that have put our state on the wrong track," is among the opponents to Amendment 87, which would replace Colorado’s flat income tax rate with a graduated system. Amendment 87 would increase the state tax for incomes over $500,000 and lower taxes for anyone making less. It would raise an estimated $2 billion for the state to spend on healthcare, education and childcare.
Advance Colorado has backed roughly half of the 14 measures on this year’s ballot, including Proposition 136, an opposing tax measure that would maintain Colorado’s 4.4% flat tax rate.
If both Prop 136 and Amendment 87 pass, state law says that whichever measure receives more Yes votes governs the points where the two measures conflict.
After learning about the two rival tax measures, Evans felt strongly about which one he supports. “Certainly, the graduated tax,” he said. “If you earn more than $500,000 a year, I think you should probably be paying more than 4.4%.”
The Crystal Theatre will host another information session about this year’s statewide ballot measures next Wednesday, Oct. 28.
Ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3. 2026, at a drop box or vote center located throughout Garfield, Pitkin and Eagle counties.
Find more information about the upcoming election in Aspen Public Radio’s 2026 Midterm Election Guide.
