Campaign Finance, Personhood Petitions Turned In

DENVER (CBS4/AP) — Two groups trying to get measures on the November ballot in Colorado are turning in petition signatures.

A group that wants to regulate large political contributions, Colorado Fair Share, said it turned in more than 176,000 signatures on Monday. That's about 82,000 more signatures than it needs to qualify for the ballot. The signatures must now be verified by the secretary of state's office.

"Here in Colorado our democracy is in crisis. We need a government of, by and for the people; not of, by and for corporate interests," Elena Nunez with Common Cause said.

The measure would ask members of Congress to support a constitutional amendment to authorize limits on campaign contributions.

Meanwhile, Personhood Colorado said it turned in 112,121 signatures in support of a measure to outlaw abortions. The measure also would ban embryonic stem-cell research.

"We call up on Colorado voters to end this hypocrisy by joining us in passing the personhood amendment to recognize the legal protection and justice for the lives of the most helpless and innocent among us," Rosalinda Lozano with the Personhood Coalition said.

"This measure does not respect Colorado women, it does not respect the families, and we must trust women with their decisions in terms of what type of care they're seeking and what type of care doctors are able to provide," Monica McCafferty with Planned Parenthood said.

Similar personhood measures in Colorado failed by wide margins in 2008 and 2010.

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