A bevy of commutations and pardons out of Colorado included a decision on a Trump-supporting grandmother considered by many to be “long overdue.”
Despite the cries of many to see President Donald Trump act against myriad cases viewed as examples of the weaponization of the Justice Department, federal pardons have no bearing on state convictions. So it was that, in the case of Tina Peters, calls for clemency were left waiting for Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D), who announced the commutation of her sentence on Friday.
Following an election in 2021, Peters was prosecuted and convicted on three counts of Attempt to Influence a Public Servant in addition to Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Impersonation — Cause Liability, Official Misconduct, Violation of Duty Elections, and Failure to Comply with Secretary of State Requirements after she sought to preserve data from election machines before an update.
As a result, she was sentenced in 2024 to 8 years and 3 months at a Department of Corrections facility and 6 months in county jail, which Polis slashed to 4 years and 4.5 months on Friday as he asserted in an interview with The Colorado Sun, “She, because of her incorrect and unpopular speech, got an unduly harsh sentence.”
— Tina Peters Whistleblower of fallen Navy SEAL (@realtinapeters) May 15, 2026
“I’m not pardoning her,” he made clear. “I publicly have said very early on I would not even consider a pardon. She’s a convicted felon. She deserves to be a convicted felon. She will remain a convicted felon.”
Polis had also sought to add clarity when speaking with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins as the network seemingly continued the trend against Peters’ “unpopular speech” by emphasizing her as a “2020 Election Denier.”
“I have to start, Kaitlan, by correcting just one thing in the lead-in,” the governor said. “Tina Peters did not commit any crimes regarding the 2020 election. She certified President Biden won. This was after the 2021. It was a small municipal election in the town … nothing to do with President Trump’s election.”
Jared Polis to Kaitlan Collins: I have to start by correcting just one thing in the lead in. Tina Peters did not commit any crimes regarding the 2020 election. She certified. President Biden won. Nothing to do with President Trump’s election. pic.twitter.com/ffQrxOKUW3
— Acyn (@Acyn) May 16, 2026
Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold denounced the clemency grant as “an affront to our democracy, the people of Colorado and election officials across the county.”
“No official should bow down to retaliation from Donald Trump,” the Democrat official said.
In her own statement on the commutation, Peters said in part, “I made mistakes, and for those I am sorry. Five years ago I misled the Secretary of State when allowing a person to gain access to county voting equipment. That was wrong. I have learned and grown during my time in prison and going forward I will make sure that my actions always follow the law, and I will avoid the mistakes of the past.”
Thank you Governor Polis.
I made mistakes, and for those I am sorry. Five years ago I misled the Secretary of State when allowing a person to gain access to county voting equipment. That was wrong. I have learned and grown during my time in prison and going forward I will make…
— Tina Peters Whistleblower of fallen Navy SEAL (@realtinapeters) May 15, 2026
After condemning all violence directed toward public officials and concerned citizens alike, Peters went on to express her “plan to do my best through legal means to support election integrity and based on my own personal experiences to elevate the cause of prison reform to help ensure the detention system is more fair and equitable for people of all ages.”
As was previously reported, though her conviction remained, the Colorado Court of Appeals overturned her sentence in April, “because it was based in part on improper consideration of her exercise of her right to free speech,” as the judge responsible asserted it was necessary to stave off the spread of her so-called election conspiracies.
Trump has repeatedly spoken out on behalf of Peters, including a statement in March where he insisted in all capital letters, “FREE TINA PETERS, A 73-YEAR-OLD WOMAN, WITH CANCER, GIVEN A NINE YEAR DEATH SENTENCE IN A COLORADO PRISON BY A DEMOCRAT GOVERNOR, JARED POLIS, AND A CORRUPT POLITICAL MACHINE, FOR EXPOSING FRAUD BY THE DEMOCRATS DURING THE 2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. AGAIN, FREE TINA!”
Now that her release was in sight, many celebrated while some even called for Trump to honor Peters after what she’d been through.
It’s about time.
— Steve Ritchey (@56steveritchey) May 15, 2026
Way, way overdue.
— (@steadfast_h_k) May 15, 2026
PRAISE GOD! I can’t believe what she’s gone thru for doing the right thing. She deserves the presidential medal of freedom
— Kara (@Freis44627) May 16, 2026
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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