By Kara Mason
April 1, 2020
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At the Hickenlooper campaign event, it’d been just days since the first positive COVID-19 case had turned up in Colorado. He said that day he and Giffords promised each other to be cautious and use lots of hand sanitizer. Less than three weeks later, there have been more than 40 deaths across the state due to the virus, thousands of unemployment claims filed due to business restrictions and mandatory stay-at-home orders.
The effort to contain the virus has made lots of aspects of life difficult, and traditional campaigning has been no exception. But candidates in races across the state are embracing the new normal, finding ways to still make meaningful connections with voters and use their platform to host health care experts who can speak to the current pandemic.
“To be isolated and in your home is the opposite of campaigning,” Hickenlooper said. “It’s meeting people and building connections. Now you have to do that but from a virtual way, telephones or texting.”
The former Colorado governor, Denver mayor and presidential hopeful is no stranger to campaigning, but this time around is not like the others.
“It’s certainly different than anything I’ve ever experienced,” he said.
He’s spending a lot of time on the phone. A lot of candidates are.
