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Prohibit Bobcat, Lynx, and Mountain Lion Hunting | |||||||||||||
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| Elections in Colorado |
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2024 Colorado Proposition 127 was a proposed ballot measure that appeared before voters in Colorado during the 2024 general election. If the citizen initiated proposition had passed, it would have make it illegal to hunt and kill bobcats, mountain lions, and lynx in Colorado. [1]
Currently, hunting bobcats and mountain lions is legal in Colorado and regulated by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Of the roughly 4,000 mountain lions in Colorado, 504 were killed during the 2022-23 hunting seasons, with hunters being required to take training courses and report all kills within 48 hours of killing an animal. The state collects over $400,000 in revenue annually from big cat hunting licenses. Hunting lynx is already illegal in Colorado and remained so regardless of Proposition 127's failure to pass.
Proposition 127 was referred to the ballot through citizen petition. Petitions were circulated by the group Cats Aren't Trophys and largely funded by animal rights organizations. They gathered just under 150,000 signatures to put Proposition 127 on the ballot. Had voters approve the measure, bobcat and mountain lion hunting would have become illegal in Colorado. [2]
The proposition appeared on the ballot as follows: [3]
Shall there be a change to the Colorado Revised Statutes concerning a prohibition on the hunting of mountain lions, lynx, and bobcats, and, in connection therewith, prohibiting the intentional killing, wounding, pursuing, entrapping, or discharging or releasing of a deadly weapon at a mountain lion, lynx, or bobcat; creating eight exceptions to this prohibition including for the protection of human life, property, and livestock; establishing a violation of this prohibition as a class 1 misdemeanor; and increasing fines and limiting wildlife license privileges for persons convicted of this crime?
The main campaign in favor of Proposition 127 was led by the group Cats Aren't Trophies. Colorado's official voter guide offered the arguments that hunting big cats is inhumane and supports the unnecessary practice of commercial fur trade. It went on to argue big cat populations in Colorado can self regulate and would not become a public danger without hunters.
There are two organizations which led opposition to Proposition 127. They were Colorado's Wildlife Deserve Better and Western Heritage Conservation Alliance. [5] The state's official voter guide also offered the arguments that Proposition 127 would have restricted Colorado Parks and Wildlife's ability to manage big cat populations, lynx hunting is already illegal in Colorado, and hunting mountain lions and bobcats provides an important revenue source to wildlife management systems and local communities.
Proposition 127 required a simple majority to pass. It failed with only 45% of voters supporting the measure. [8]
| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
 No | 1,671,710 | 54.74 |
| Yes | 1,382,048 | 45.26 |
| Total votes | 3,053,758 | 100.00 |
| County | For | Against | Margin | Total votes cast | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Adams | 106,282 | 48.58% | 112,511 | 51.42% | -6,229 | -2.85% | 218,793 |
| Alamosa | 2,582 | 36.12% | 4,567 | 63.88% | -1,985 | -27.77% | 7,149 |
| Arapahoe | 156,021 | 50.54% | 152,708 | 49.46% | 3,313 | 1.07% | 308,729 |
| Archuleta | 3,057 | 34.06% | 5,918 | 65.94% | -2,861 | -31.88% | 8,975 |
| Baca | 335 | 17.38% | 1,593 | 82.62% | -1,258 | -65.25% | 1,928 |
| Bent | 619 | 29.39% | 1,487 | 70.61% | -868 | -41.22% | 2,106 |
| Boulder | 110,045 | 59.05% | 76,306 | 40.95% | 33,739 | 18.11% | 186,351 |
| Broomfield | 22,639 | 50.50% | 22,188 | 49.50% | 451 | 1.01% | 44,827 |
| Chaffee | 4,989 | 35.60% | 9,027 | 64.40% | -4,038 | -28.81% | 14,016 |
| Cheyenne | 137 | 13.37% | 888 | 86.63% | -751 | -73.27% | 1,025 |
| Clear Creek | 2,263 | 38.36% | 3,636 | 61.64% | -1,373 | -23.28% | 5,899 |
| Conejos | 995 | 24.83% | 3,013 | 75.17% | -2,018 | -50.35% | 4,008 |
| Costilla | 830 | 42.46% | 1,125 | 57.54% | -295 | -15.09% | 1,955 |
| Crowley | 513 | 30.68% | 1,159 | 69.32% | -646 | -38.64% | 1,672 |
| Custer | 1,114 | 29.32% | 2,685 | 70.68% | -1,571 | -41.35% | 3,799 |
| Delta | 5,098 | 26.73% | 13,972 | 73.27% | -8,874 | -46.53% | 19,070 |
| Denver | 195,313 | 56.90% | 147,921 | 43.10% | 47,392 | 13.81% | 343,234 |
| Dolores | 257 | 18.48% | 1,134 | 81.52% | -877 | -63.05% | 1,391 |
| Douglas | 96,607 | 41.43% | 136,573 | 58.57% | -39,966 | -17.14% | 233,180 |
| Eagle | 10,342 | 39.02% | 16,163 | 60.98% | -5,821 | -21.96% | 26,505 |
| El Paso | 171,772 | 46.78% | 195,415 | 53.22% | -23,643 | -6.44% | 367,187 |
| Elbert | 4,886 | 24.47% | 15,084 | 75.53% | -10,198 | -51.07% | 19,970 |
| Fremont | 7,833 | 31.31% | 17,181 | 68.69% | -9,348 | -37.37% | 25,014 |
| Garfield | 9,786 | 33.28% | 19,621 | 66.72% | -9,835 | -33.44% | 29,407 |
| Gilpin | 1,533 | 38.09% | 2,492 | 61.91% | -959 | -23.83% | 4,025 |
| Grand | 2,327 | 23.89% | 7,413 | 76.11% | -5,086 | -52.22% | 9,740 |
| Gunnison | 3,147 | 29.71% | 7,445 | 70.29% | -4,298 | -40.58% | 10,592 |
| Hinsdale | 185 | 30.78% | 416 | 69.22% | -231 | -38.44% | 601 |
| Huerfano | 1,670 | 38.67% | 2,649 | 61.33% | -979 | -22.67% | 4,319 |
| Jackson | 84 | 10.19% | 740 | 89.81% | -656 | -79.61% | 824 |
| Jefferson | 158,481 | 45.49% | 189,931 | 54.51% | -31,450 | -9.03% | 348,412 |
| Kiowa | 135 | 16.11% | 703 | 83.89% | -568 | -67.78% | 838 |
| Kit Carson | 724 | 20.38% | 2,828 | 79.62% | -2,104 | -59.23% | 3,552 |
| La Plata | 15,066 | 44.12% | 19,085 | 55.88% | -4,019 | -11.77% | 34,151 |
| Lake | 1,420 | 37.29% | 2,388 | 62.71% | -968 | -25.42% | 3,808 |
| Larimer | 93,401 | 43.24% | 122,613 | 56.76% | -29,212 | -13.52% | 216,014 |
| Las Animas | 2,705 | 36.07% | 4,794 | 63.93% | -2,089 | -27.86% | 7,499 |
| Lincoln | 506 | 19.98% | 2,026 | 80.02% | -1,520 | -60.03% | 2,532 |
| Logan | 2,562 | 26.12% | 7,246 | 73.88% | -4,684 | -47.76% | 9,808 |
| Mesa | 29,695 | 33.28% | 59,525 | 66.72% | -29,830 | -33.43% | 89,220 |
| Mineral | 188 | 25.75% | 542 | 74.25% | -354 | -48.49% | 730 |
| Moffat | 872 | 13.32% | 5,675 | 86.68% | -4,803 | -73.36% | 6,547 |
| Montezuma | 4,545 | 31.20% | 10,021 | 68.80% | -5,476 | -37.59% | 14,566 |
| Montrose | 6,884 | 27.67% | 17,992 | 72.33% | -11,108 | -44.65% | 24,876 |
| Morgan | 3,775 | 28.99% | 9,247 | 71.01% | -5,472 | -42.02% | 13,022 |
| Otero | 3,000 | 34.51% | 5,693 | 65.49% | -2,693 | -30.98% | 8,693 |
| Ouray | 1,760 | 44.64% | 2,183 | 55.36% | -423 | -10.73% | 3,943 |
| Park | 3,514 | 29.63% | 8,344 | 70.37% | -4,830 | -40.73% | 11,858 |
| Phillips | 475 | 21.37% | 1,748 | 78.63% | -1,273 | -57.26% | 2,223 |
| Pitkin | 4,681 | 44.84% | 5,758 | 55.16% | -1,077 | -10.32% | 10,439 |
| Prowers | 1,327 | 26.70% | 3,643 | 73.30% | -2,316 | -46.60% | 4,970 |
| Pueblo | 36,653 | 44.75% | 45,248 | 55.25% | -8,595 | -10.49% | 81,901 |
| Rio Blanco | 328 | 8.95% | 3,337 | 91.05% | -3,009 | -82.10% | 3,665 |
| Rio Grande | 1,750 | 28.82% | 4,323 | 71.18% | -2,573 | -42.37% | 6,073 |
| Routt | 5,299 | 33.24% | 10,645 | 66.76% | -5,346 | -33.53% | 15,944 |
| Saguache | 1,411 | 43.67% | 1,820 | 56.33% | -409 | -12.66% | 3,231 |
| San Juan | 296 | 53.82% | 254 | 46.18% | 42 | 7.64% | 550 |
| San Miguel | 2,534 | 55.59% | 2,024 | 44.41% | 510 | 11.19% | 4,558 |
| Sedgwick | 315 | 24.65% | 963 | 75.35% | -648 | -50.70% | 1,278 |
| Summit | 6,553 | 39.39% | 10,085 | 60.61% | -3,532 | -21.23% | 16,638 |
| Teller | 5,347 | 33.46% | 10,634 | 66.54% | -5,287 | -33.08% | 15,981 |
| Washington | 434 | 15.82% | 2,310 | 84.18% | -1,876 | -68.37% | 2,744 |
| Weld | 61,392 | 35.56% | 111,261 | 64.44% | -49,869 | -28.88% | 172,653 |
| Yuma | 759 | 16.68% | 3,791 | 83.32% | -3,032 | -66.64% | 4,550 |
| Total | 1,382,048 | 45.26% | 1,671,710 | 54.74% | -289,662 | -9.49% | 3,053,758 |
