Topics
Code Section
Colorado > Colorado Electoral Code > Elections - Access To Ballot By Candidates

1-4-205. County commissioners

Overview of Statute

Members of the board of county commissioners will be elected in each county, except a city and a county, for four-year terms. Only registered electors who have lived in the county for at least one year before the election can serve as a county commissioner. Counties with less than seventy thousand residents will have three commissioners, with two constituting a quorum. Of those three commissioners, one will be elected every four years starting in 1982 and two will be elected ever four years starting in 1984. Counties with more than seventy thousand residents must have either three commissioners, by the same rules as provided above, or five commissioners, with three constituting a quorum. Counties with more than seventy thousand residents may switch from three to five commissioners under C.R.S. § 30-10-306.5, or from five to three commissioners under C.R.S. § 30-10-306.7.

Statute

(1) (a) Members of the board of county commissioners shall be elected in each county, excluding a city and county, for a term of four years.

(b) No person shall be a county commissioner unless that person is a registered elector and has resided in the district for at least one year prior to the election.

(2) Each county having a population of less than seventy thousand shall have three county commissioners, any two of whom shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. One commissioner shall be elected at the general election in 1982 and every four years thereafter, and two commissioners shall be elected at the general election in 1984 and every four years thereafter.

(3) (a) In each county having a population of seventy thousand or more, the board of county commissioners may consist either of three members, any two of whom shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, or of five members, any three of whom shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.

(b) If the board consists of three commissioners, they shall be elected as provided in subsection (2) of this section and as provided in section 30-10-306.7 (5), C.R.S.

(c) In any county having a population of seventy thousand or more, the membership of the board of county commissioners may be increased from three to five members pursuant to section 30-10-306.5, C.R.S., or decreased from five to three members pursuant to section 30-10-306.7 (2) (a) (II), C.R.S.

 

Source: L. 80: Entire article R&RE, p. 323, § 1, effective January 1, 1981.L. 88: (3)(b) and (3)(c) amended, p. 1113, § 3, effective April 9; (1) amended, p. 297, § 1, effective January 1, 1989.L. 92: Entire part amended, p. 674, § 4, effective January 1, 1993.

Editor’s note: This section is similar to former § 1-16-106 as it existed prior to 1980.

Cross references: For election and terms of county officers, see § § 6 and 8 of art. XIV, Colo. Const.; for statutes relating to county officers generally, see article 10 of title 30.
 
ANNOTATION

Law reviews. For article, “Colorado’s Program to Improve Court Administration”, see 38 Dicta 1 (1961).

Annotator’s note. The following annotations include a case decided under former provisions similar to this section.

Holding that the courts would not inquire into county’s increase in commissioners. Where a county entitled to increase the number of its commissioners from three to five, did make such increase, and the people of the county acquiesced therein and thereafter elected successors to the added members of the board so as to keep the number at five, in an action brought by private individuals twenty years after such increase was made to test the right of the successors of the added members of the board to the office, the courts will not inquire into the regularity of the proceeding making such increase. People ex rel. Lankford v. Long, 32 Colo. 486, 77 P. 251 (1904).

Holding that court action was not maintainable. In an action against two county commissioners jointly to test their right to hold their offices on the ground that the board was illegally increased from three to five members and that respondents were the successors in office of the two illegally added members of the board, where it appears that one of the respondents was not a successor of either of the added members of the board, a joint action could not be maintained against respondents. People ex rel. Lankford v. Long, 32 Colo. 486, 77 P. 251 (1904).

 

Definition [Title]

A brief statement that fairly and accurately represents the true intent and meaning of the proposed text of the initiative.

Definition [Person]

Any natural person, partnership, committee, association, corporation, labor organization, political party, or other organization or group of persons. Section 2(11) of article XXVIII of the state constitution.

Definition [Section]

A bound compilation of initiative forms approved by the secretary of state, which shall include pages that contain the warning required by section 1-40-110 (1), the ballot title, the abstract required by section 1-40-110 (3), and a copy of the proposed measure; succeeding pages that contain the warning, the ballot title, and ruled lines numbered consecutively for registered electors’ signatures; and a final page that contains the affidavit required by section 1-40-111 (2). Each section shall be consecutively prenumbered by the petitioner prior to circulation.

Definition [Election]

Any election under the “Uniform Election Code of 1992” or the “Colorado Municipal Election Code of 1965”, article 10 of title 31, C.R.S. C.R.S. § 1-7.5-103.

State Constitutional Provisions

For election and terms of county officers, see § § 6 and 8 of art. XIV, Colo. Const.

For statutes relating to county officers generally, see article 10 of title 30.

Regulations & Guidance