The debate, hosted by The Colorado Sun at the University of Denver on Oct. 14, featured Colorado’s secretary of state and the El Paso County district attorney. Their exchanges offered voters contrasting views of how the state’s top lawyer should confront the Trump administration and respond to alleged government misconduct.

Griswold, who has served as secretary of state since 2018, said she would continue to oppose what she called illegal actions by the White House. She did not say whether she would withdraw from any of the federal lawsuits filed by current Attorney General Phil Weiser.

Allen has criticized Weiser for bringing or joining lawsuits for political reasons. He said he would end Weiser’s challenge to President Donald Trump’s decision to move U.S. Space Command from Colorado Springs to Huntsville, Alabama. Weiser and Griswold have argued the move amounted to unconstitutional retaliation against Colorado over its use of mail ballots; Allen said the president has authority to decide where military units are based.

Allen said he would continue legal action over the federal government’s withholding of emergency-management and public-safety grants, which he said has affected his community. “If you are hurting Coloradans, and I don’t care if you’re Donald Trump or any other president, you’re going to have to deal with Michael Allen as your attorney general,” he said.

The candidates also traded criticism over problems in their offices. Allen pointed to a 2024 incident in which a password for a voting system appeared on the Secretary of State’s website. Griswold accepted responsibility, saying the error did not create an immediate security risk.

Allen also raised a separate incident from the previous summer, when a website system update exposed information associated with confidential voter profiles. Griswold said information for 59 confidential voters was accessed; most of those who accessed it viewed their own information, and the others were connected with the Colorado State Patrol. She said there was no evidence of an immediate security threat and that her office had added automated and manual testing, including review by senior developers.

Griswold, in turn, cited reports of sexual discrimination in Allen’s district attorney’s office. She also challenged his views on Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying he had opposed Colorado’s law limiting state cooperation with ICE in most immigration matters. She asked Allen to explain reported remarks in a local radio interview praising the “trigger discipline” of an ICE officer who killed a Minneapolis woman.

Allen did not directly address the remarks. He said Griswold did not know his background, including that his mother’s family is Hispanic, and pledged to defend people facing discrimination. He said he would stand up for anyone victimized by government or law enforcement, whether the actor was federal, state or local.

Both candidates said they would keep a recently launched Department of Law database that allows the public to report alleged misconduct by federal officers. Griswold said federal officials who break the law should face accountability.

The debate ended with further personal attacks. Allen criticized Griswold for having plainclothes state patrol officers at the event, while Griswold accused him of attacking the state patrol. Allen said her remarks showed a lack of character; Griswold called him an extremist and criticized him for avoiding questions.

The exchange underscored a central choice in the race: whether Colorado’s attorney general should continue using litigation to challenge federal actions, as Weiser has, or take a narrower approach to disputes with the federal government, as Allen has advocated. The office also oversees enforcement of state law and legal representation of Colorado, making the candidates’ positions consequential for state agencies, local communities and residents whose information or rights may be affected.