Colorado Republican Sues to Get ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ Added to Ballot, Tells The Hill: ‘We’re Not Going to Take It’

Zachary LeemanApr 20th, 2022, 4:58 pm
 

“Let’s Go Brandon” is not just the anti-Joe Biden phrase used by detractors, it’s also the nickname for a Colorado Republican, at least according to a lawsuit filed State Rep. Dave Williams.

Williams is a House candidate and wants the supposed nickname to appear on a primary ballot in late June. He filed a lawsuit this week against Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold after the nickname was rejected. The state lawmaker submitted Dave “Let’s Go Brandon” Williams to be on the ballot, but the nickname was not allowed, a moniker he claims he’s been using for approximately four months, meaning he jumped on the trend quick since the term was coined only in October.

According to Williams’ lawsuit, there’s no legal basis for the rejection of his nickname. While the state deemed it a slogan, Williams pointed to a 2021 candidate running for school board who used “No Mandates” as a nickname on his ballot.

The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office responded to Williams’ lawsuit by saying his four-month-old nickname would “cause confusion” for voters in the race.

“While Colorado statute does permit the use of nicknames on the ballot, our office does not believe this is a good faith use of that statute and will cause confusion for voters,” they said in a public statement.

Williams spoke with The Hill in an interview this week, saying Griswold, a Democrat, may find be offended by the conservative phrase. He also said he would plan on actually using the nickname with colleagues if he makes it to Congress.

“It represents a disgust [at] out-of-control government,” he said. “It means we’re not going to take it anymore.”

On Twitter this week — where the lawmaker has his name listed as “Rep. Dave ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ Williams” — the Colorado Republican called Griswold corrupt over the rejection and said it was part of a “radical agenda” that includes his nickname.

Dave “Let’s Go Brandon” Williams is up against four candidates, including Rep. Doug Lamborn, an eight term congressman for the state.

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Zachary Leeman

Zachary Leeman covered pop culture and politics at outlets such as Breitbart, LifeZette, BizPac Review, HollywoodinToto, and others. He is the author of the novel Nigh. He joined Mediaite in 2022.