Colorado recall election's low turnout due to voter suppression: Democrats

Colorado residents will decide Tuesday whether or not they would like to recall two state senators who supported stricter gun laws following two mass shootings that took place in 2012.

Gun rights advocates launched the recall initiative against Colorado Senate President John Morse and Sen. Angela Giron after the two voted in favor or limiting the size of ammunition magazines and requiring universal background checks for possible gun owners.

According to the HuffPo, advocates initially sought to recall four Democratic senators but were only able to collect the required signatures to challenge two.

The election, Colorado’s first legislative recall election in history, is expected to have a low voter turnout. Democrats working on the ground said several voting rules that make it difficult for voters to cast their ballots might be to blame.

"It's a race made up of an endless number of things that will just confuse voters and have an effect on the election itself," an official told the HuffPo.

They added that if either Morse or Giron is defeated, it will be because their opponents were able to suppress voter turnout with the new voting rules.

Some of the voting restrictions that may lead to confusion include the decision to prohibit voting by mail, -- even when though Colorado voters have strongly relied on mail-in ballots in the past -- not opening enough polling centers and limiting voting hours except when faced with long lines.

"We are hearing disturbing reports that some people are being encouraged to go to the polls, not to legitimately vote, but to disrupt the process," Gov. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat, said in a statement. "That would be unlawful and makes a mockery of the democratic process."

The National Rifle Association has reportedly spent at least $360,000 advocating for the recall effort. On the other side, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a gun control advocate, donated $350,000 to the two Democrats. Both figures are considerably high for a race that began with a low profile.