Colorado Attorney General Race Pits Career Prosecutor Against Political Fighter

Will voters pick a lawyer or a fighter? That is the question hanging over the race for Colorado attorney general, a post that effectively puts a candidate in charge of one of the state’s largest law firms.

On one side stands Republican Michael Allen, the El Paso County district attorney. He has practiced law for 20 years, leading an office of more than 250 people for over five years. His resume is thick with trial work; he prosecuted one of the state’s most recent mass shootings and has managed legal teams in both civil and criminal courts. Yet, as the Colorado Sun noted, his politics lean conservative — a stance that may not align with the majority of the state’s electorate. Still, Allen believes his track record gives him a strong case.

“[I]’ve got the right experience to lead the attorney general’s office into the future and to fight for all of your rights,” Allen told a crowd at a recent debate at the University of Denver. “And those rights, by the way, are not partisan rights. They are rights that you hold dear, and I will fight for them every single day as your attorney general.”

Across the aisle is Democrat Jena Griswold, the current secretary of state. Her path to the top legal job is different. She has served as secretary of state for eight years, becoming the youngest person in the country to hold the office at age 34. Before that, her legal background was thinner. She passed the bar in 2011 and worked for 18 months at Paul Hastings LLP, a private firm in Washington, D.C. She also represented the state and former Gov. John Hickenlooper in D.C. and consulted for the state’s health care policy department.

To hear them tell it, the debate isn’t just about who knows more case law. It’s about who is willing to take on the federal government. Griswold has spent years in the media spotlight attacking President Donald Trump’s policies on a wide range of issues. In contrast, the Colorado Sun reported that Allen has scarcely mentioned Trump on the campaign trail.

This creates a distinct tension for voters. The attorney general’s office employs more than 700 people, many of whom are experienced trial lawyers. It runs the statewide grand jury and manages the Peace Officers Standards and Training board, which certifies law enforcement officers. The question is whether Coloradans value the deep, hands-on legal experience of a career prosecutor like Allen, or the political willingness to clash with the White House that defines Griswold’s brand.

As the election approaches, the choice becomes clear. One candidate offers a lifetime in the courtroom; the other offers a war with the president. For the neighbors in the valley, the decision rests on what they believe the state’s chief legal officer should be: a manager of cases or a challenger of powers.

Allen’s view on the matter remains steady. “I will fight for them every single day as your attorney general,” he said.