Schwartz edges Rankin in state senate nail biter

It came down to the wire but Sen. Gail Schwartz kept her seat and the state Senate for the Democrats.

Beating her Republican challenger Bob Rankin of Aspen by just 832 votes out of more than 49,500 cast, Schwartz didn't know she had won the race until all the ballots were finally counted this morning. Her victory assures the Democrats will hang on to the Colorado Senate after losing the state House.

“This was a difficult race for many Democrats” Schwartz told Real Aspen on Wednesday. “We've maintained our majority and I'm happy with that. ... I think the voters wanted to see more balance.”

Early returns saw Rankin off to a large lead largely because of Republican support that showed up for him in Delta County, which was one of the first counties in Senate District 5 to report its results. But as the night wore on and Tuesday morphed into Wednesday, Schwartz climbed back into the race and, finally, into the lead after returns from Chaffee County finally saw the light early this morning.

“We've conceded the race,” confirmed Rankin's wife and campaign manager, Joyce. “The early number that came in had us very optimistic, but as the numbers kept coming in we noticed she was getting closer. … Bob did talk with Sen. Schwartz and they had a nice conversation.”

The two opponents may have had a nice conversation today but the campaign wasn't so nice. A group supporting Rankin called the Western Tradition Partnership mailed out fliers that attacked Schwartz's support of renewable energy with a photo of her superimposed over Donald Trump. The executive director of Colorado Conservation Voters immediately blasted the ads for being in “poor taste.”

Schwartz's supporters in turn portrayed Rankin as “Big Oil Bob” who would be a mouthpiece for the oil and gas industry. Rankin said he would've preferred “Big Coal Bob” since he supports coal miners.

Now that the election is over, Rankin's plans are about as clear as as coal.

“We will probably go on another journey but this time I get to choose what it's going to be,” Joyce Rankin laughed. “But this was a great experience. We wouldn't trade it for anything.”

River Name / Location	Stream flow, ft3/s	Gage height ft
Gore Creek
At Upper Station, Near I-70 Twin Bridges	n/a	4 ft
Booth Creek	n/a	4 ft
Abv Red Sandstone Creek At Vail	182	6 ft
At Mouth Near Minturn	223	7 ft
Beaver Creek
At Avon	21	2 ft
Lake Creek
Near Edwards	80	1 ft
Cross Creek
Near Minturn	100	4 ft
Homestake Creek
At Gold Park	127	5 ft
Eagle River
East Fork Eagle River Near Climax	n/a	2 ft
At Red Cliff	30	3 ft
Near Minturn	234	4 ft
Wastewater Treatment Plant At Avon	675	5 ft
Below Gypsum	826	5 ft
Colorado River
Near Kremmling	404	4 ft
Near Dotsero	1,630	3 ft
Below Glenwood Springs	3,140	5 ft
Near Cameo	3,740	6 ft
Below Grand Valley Div Nr Palisade	2,080	5 ft
Near Colorado-utah State Line	4,120	4 ft
Near Cisco, Ut	4,060	3 ft
At Lees Ferry, Az	12,100	9 ft
Near Grand Canyon, Az	12,200	9 ft
Yuma Main Canal Ww At Yuma, Az	1,010	10 ft
Roaring Fork River
Abv Lost Man Cr Near Aspen	n/a	n/a ft
Ab Difficult C Nr Aspen	52	1 ft
Near Aspen	78	1 ft
Near Emma	480	6 ft
At Glenwood Springs	1,180	3 ft
Hunter Creek
Near Aspen	56	2 ft
At Aspen	48	4 ft
Frying Pan River
Near Ruedi	113	2 ft
Crystal River
Abv Avalanche Crk, Near Redstone	540	2 ft
Arkansas River
Ef Arkansas R At Us Highway 24, Nr Leadville	47	3 ft
Near Leadville	86	5 ft
Below Empire Gulch Near Malta	156	3 ft
Below Granite	429	4 ft
Near Nathrop	451	4 ft
At Parkdale	464	3 ft