Opinion

{Editor’s Column} Democracy: Participation required

Niki Turner
First off, congratulations to the newly elected members and reelected incumbents of the fire district board, the rec center board and the hospital board. Voter turnout for this combined special district election was higher than the voter turnout for the town election in April. That’s excellent news, and hopefully a trend in the right direction.
The next opportunity we have to participate in our democratic process will take place in June with the party primaries. For the first time this year in Colorado independent voters will be allowed to vote in the primary elections, which is a big plus for independents in counties where the only opportunity to vote for a local candidate is in the primaries.
In the county commissioner race in RBC, for example, two Republicans are running, Gary Moyer will be on the ballot and Mike Hoke is a write-in candidate (meaning if you want to vote for him, you’ll have to write in his name when you get your ballot). If no independent candidates step up by the July deadline to run in the general election (or decides to run as a write-in independent), our next county commissioner will be decided in June, not in November.

If you regularly access our online edition, or just click through articles on the website, you’ll notice a new “soft paywall” for non-subscribers. We’ll still offer a limited number of free articles each month, but after that, we’re asking our online-only readers to subscribe for online access. For existing print subscribers, online access is included in your print subscription, but we’ll need your email address to add you to the database.
Why? Well, I’ve realized we can’t give away our only product for free and expect to survive. Our product is local news, and we have to pay people to report that news and take those pictures. What we’re asking our online-only readers to do is to support local journalism, the same way print subscribers and single copy readers have always done and continue to do. It’s only fair. In the now immortal words of Bartles & Jaymes (dating myself, I know), “Thank you for your support.” We’re working hard to cover more events, more meetings and get local community news to you.
If you’re a print subscriber, please call the office at 878-4017 or email [email protected] so we can add you to the online subscriber list.

Graduation season kicked off last weekend with CNCC’s commencement exercises, and continues with both county high schools in the next few weeks. It’s an exciting time of year, and a busy one. We’ll be doing our “grad pages” for the high schools again. Rangely’s will be next week, so Rangely parents are urged to call or email the office ASAP to get those congrats ads in for your graduates. Call 878-4017 or [email protected] no later than Monday at 5 p.m.!

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@ht.1885
  • The Meeker Preschool Roundup will be held this Friday, April 26th from 8am to 4pm!
  • Gear up for an unforgettable adventure with the 2024 Ride The Rockies Route, set to unfold from June 9th to 15th! Read all about this new and exciting adventure visiting Meeker this year in this week’s edition and online at ht1885.com.
  • Rangely Panther Kobey Chism (#22) has been selected to play in the 2024 8-man football all-state game. He’s sponsored by the Bleed Green Lancaster #17 Foundation. Story at ht1885.com.
  • The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Rio Blanco Fire Protection District (RBFPD) will begin work on a firebreak northwest of the Town of Meeker this month. Read about it online at ht1885.com.
  • You can always find a reason to laugh... start with yourself. Hear from our Editor in her column this week online at ht1885.com.
  • The amount of money reported lost to fraud and scams in the United States nearly tripled from $3.5 billion in 2020 to $10 billion in 2023, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Learn the tricks to help protect yourself and your family in this week’s edition and online at ht1885.com.
  • About 80 Meeker Elementary Students participated in the reading competition. Prizes were distributed according to the most minutes read by each student.  Story at ht1885.com.
  • The Rangely Panthers track and field team traveled to Grand Junction this past weekend to compete in the Phil Wertman Invitational. Catch up online at ht1885.com.
  • Natalie Kracht took first in her 100M heat for the MHS Cowboys at the Glenwood Springs Invitational last weekend. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
The Meeker Preschool Roundup will be held this Friday, April 26th from 8am to 4pm!
The Meeker Preschool Roundup will be held this Friday, April 26th from 8am to 4pm!
47 mins ago
View on Instagram |
1/9
Gear up for an unforgettable adventure with the 2024 Ride The Rockies Route, set to unfold from June 9th to 15th! Read all about this new and exciting adventure visiting Meeker this year in this week’s edition and online at ht1885.com.
Gear up for an unforgettable adventure with the 2024 Ride The Rockies Route, set to unfold from June 9th to 15th! Read all about this new and exciting adventure visiting Meeker this year in this week’s edition and online at ht1885.com.
20 hours ago
View on Instagram |
2/9
Rangely Panther Kobey Chism (#22) has been selected to play in the 2024 8-man football all-state game. He’s sponsored by the Bleed Green Lancaster #17 Foundation. Story at ht1885.com.
Rangely Panther Kobey Chism (#22) has been selected to play in the 2024 8-man football all-state game. He’s sponsored by the Bleed Green Lancaster #17 Foundation. Story at ht1885.com.
21 hours ago
View on Instagram |
3/9
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Rio Blanco Fire Protection District (RBFPD) will begin work on a firebreak northwest of the Town of Meeker this month. Read about it online at ht1885.com.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Rio Blanco Fire Protection District (RBFPD) will begin work on a firebreak northwest of the Town of Meeker this month. Read about it online at ht1885.com.
2 days ago
View on Instagram |
4/9
You can always find a reason to laugh... start with yourself. Hear from our Editor in her column this week online at ht1885.com.
You can always find a reason to laugh... start with yourself. Hear from our Editor in her column this week online at ht1885.com.
2 days ago
View on Instagram |
5/9
The amount of money reported lost to fraud and scams in the United States nearly tripled from $3.5 billion in 2020 to $10 billion in 2023, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Learn the tricks to help protect yourself and your family in this week’s edition and online at ht1885.com.
The amount of money reported lost to fraud and scams in the United States nearly tripled from $3.5 billion in 2020 to $10 billion in 2023, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Learn the tricks to help protect yourself and your family in this week’s edition and online at ht1885.com.
3 days ago
View on Instagram |
6/9
About 80 Meeker Elementary Students participated in the reading competition. Prizes were distributed according to the most minutes read by each student.  Story at ht1885.com.
About 80 Meeker Elementary Students participated in the reading competition. Prizes were distributed according to the most minutes read by each student. Story at ht1885.com.
3 days ago
View on Instagram |
7/9
The Rangely Panthers track and field team traveled to Grand Junction this past weekend to compete in the Phil Wertman Invitational. Catch up online at ht1885.com.
The Rangely Panthers track and field team traveled to Grand Junction this past weekend to compete in the Phil Wertman Invitational. Catch up online at ht1885.com.
4 days ago
View on Instagram |
8/9
Natalie Kracht took first in her 100M heat for the MHS Cowboys at the Glenwood Springs Invitational last weekend. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
Natalie Kracht took first in her 100M heat for the MHS Cowboys at the Glenwood Springs Invitational last weekend. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
4 days ago
View on Instagram |
9/9

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