Denver City Wire

Republican gubernatorial nominee Heidi Ganahl participated in a debate with incumbent Gov. Jared Polis, during which Polis accused her of being a "mad mom" and said that he identifies as a "happy dad." Ganahl slammed him in response, explaining that she is mad about his policies that have made the state a less-safe place to live.

Ganahl later took to Facebook to confirm that she is a “mad mom,” mad about “skyrocketing crime and inflation.

“I am mad 60% of our kids can't read, write, or do math at grade level,” she posted on Facebook. “I am mad about the bad drug policies, specifically around fentanyl, that are killing our kids. I am NOT happy with the Colorado my kids are growing up in. Jared Polis, you are living on Fantasy Island.”

According to the Nation’s Report Card, just 27.8% of eighth-grade students in Colorado were proficient in math this year, down from 36.9% in 2019, before the pandemic. The report card also noted that 34.2% are proficient in reading, down from 37.7% in 2019.

Ganahl said drug policies are failing, and CBS News, citing data from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, reported that more than 900 people in the state died from fentanyl overdoses last year, up 70% from 2020. 

In addition, CPR News recently reported that homicides in Colorado increased by 47% from 2019 to 2021, with other violent crimes, including sexual assault, aggravated assault and robbery, were up 17% during the same timeframe. The outlet also reported that motor vehicle thefts jumped 86% during that period, and property crime jumped 20%, with crime in Colorado rising the fourth-most out of any state during that time.

The Common Sense Institute (CSI) noted in a report that the state ranks first in vehicle thefts and second in property thefts, and forecasts that 48,000 vehicles will be stolen this year in Colorado. The report also noted that Denver ranks 12th out of 167 cities for its homicide rate, while Pueblo was in the top 10 for the major crime categories, and Aurora had a 35% jump in its homicide rate. 

The CSI report also forecasted that 2,000 Coloradans will lose their lives to drug overdoses this year, with 1,500 of those coming from fentanyl use. The report also noted that state authorities are cracking down, seizing 2 million doses of the drug in the first five months of 2022. The report said that in 2021, an average of two to three residents per day died from synthetic opioids, which is up in 2022 to four to 5 deaths each day.