| Dan Slater | |
|---|---|
| Vice Chair, Colorado Democratic Party | |
| In office March, 2005 – March, 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | Julia Hicks |
| Succeeded by | Beverly Ryken |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 24, 1972 La Junta, Colorado |
| Political party | Democratic Party |
| Spouse(s) | Brandy Slater |
| Children | Madison Slater, Ethan Slater, Demitrius Slater, and Logan Slater |
| Residence | Canon City, Colorado |
| Occupation | Attorney |
| Website | http://www.demnotes.com |
Dan Slater (born c. 1972[1]) was the first vice chair of the Colorado Democratic Party. An attorney in Cañon City, Colorado, Slater ran unsuccessfully for the Colorado State Senate in 2002 before joining the top leadership of the Colorado Democratic Party in 2003. A delegate to both the 2000 and 2004 Democratic National Conventions, Slater was a superdelegate to the 2008 convention, and publicly endorsed Barack Obama.
Born in La Junta, Colorado and raised in Las Animas, Slater attended the University of Oklahoma, following high school in Mustang, Oklahoma, graduating with a bachelor's degree in 1994. He earned his law degree from Washington College of Law at American University.[2] Slater married Brandy Johnson in November 2008, and has two children from a previous marriage, Madison and Ethan,[1] and two children from his current marriage, Logan and Demitrius.[3]
Slater resides in Cañon City, Colorado,[4] where he is an attorney in private practice, specializing in personal injury, estate planning, and real estate law. He was named "Young Lawyer of the Year" in 2004 by the Colorado Trial Lawyer's Association[5] and has served on the Board of Governors of the Colorado Bar Association and as the Chair of the Judicial Performance Commission for Colorado's 11th Judicial District.[2]
Named a "Rising Star" by the Colorado Democratic Party in 2002, Slater was the chair of the Fremont County Democratic Party before running unsuccessfully for the Colorado State Senate in 2002. He has also been a delegate to the 2000 and 2004 Democratic National Conventions.[2]
In 2003, Slater was elected Secretary of the Colorado Democratic Party.[2] He was elected to the post of state party first vice-chair in 2005, a year that saw contentious battles for party leadership among Colorado Democrats, in what supporters of incumbent chair Chris Gates characterized as a battle between liberal and moderate wings of the state party. [6] Under party rules, the first vice chair must be the opposite sex of the chair. Slater bid for and campaigned for the office of second vice chair. While the vote count for chair took hours, the remaining offices elections were held up. When Waak was announced the victor, Slater changed his bid from second vice chair to first vice chair. Slater was the only member of state party leadership who maintained a blog. Slater continues to blog at DemNotes.com.[7]
As vice-chair, Slater successfully led efforts to move up Colorado's presidential caucus date to February 5, 2008, placing Colorado among other states holding contests on pivotal Super Tuesday.[8] He was also a central player in Colorado Democrats successful bid to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, and was vice-chairman of the Host Committee that presented the bid.[9] Slater considered challenging Waak for the post of state party chair in 2007,[10] but instead sought and gained unanimous re-election to the vice-chair post.[11]
As vice-chair of the Colorado Democratic Party, he was a superdelegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention. In 2007, he announced his intention to vote for Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.[12]