Polis had a big year in 2023 when, even as he kicked off his second term as Colorado's governor, he was mentioned as a future presidential candidate. But he also stuck to the nerdy roots that helped make him relatable to those who voted to keep him in office — and inspired plenty of criticism from those who disliked his antics.
This disparity was never more clear than in the response to one of Polis’s last posts of 2023, a rendition of “Feliz Navidad” that garnered millions of views. Some people loved it and others hated it, but the corny choreography fit right in with the governor’s quirky spirit.
Days later, the governor shared a quasi-chaotic postcard on Facebook and Instagram highlighting a star-studded list of what makes Colorado great: a skier, a rainbow, a sun wearing sunglasses...and a giant banner bragging "now with wolves!," since Polis welcomed the controversial creatures back into the state last month.
Who’s coming up with these funky graphics and gimmicky posts? Turns out it’s Polis himself, in tandem with his communications team — which takes responsibility for this particular graphic.
“Governor Polis is thrilled with the graphic capabilities of his team, and he works closely with members of his in-house communications office to translate ideas into creative, fun and engaging social media posts,” says gubernatorial press secretary Shelby Wieman, who has also served as Polis's speech writer. “This particular post is an example of that creativity, and Coloradans have responded positively, with more than 4,000 interactions on Instagram to date.”As we jump into 2024, Colorado is the best state in the country pic.twitter.com/BnXALeY3zh
— Governor Jared Polis (@GovofCO) January 2, 2024
The governor has never shied away from goofiness and nerdiness, as evidenced by all the geeky references in last year’s State of the State address, which Westword chronicled. Lord of the Rings, niche facts about the bristlecone pine, and Star Wars topped the list.
“Governor Polis comes from a business and tech background, so he is very in tune with what is happening online,” Wieman says. “He runs his own personal accounts, and on the official side, he also likes to have fun on his social media channels and is always looking for unique ways to connect with Coloradans in collaboration with his communications team."
So as we prepare for Polis’s 2024 State of the State address set for January 11, which Polis is promoting on social media with a graphic mimicking an iPhone reminder, we decided to check into the State of the State's Social Media. Here are some of the governor's greatest hits from last year:
Celebrating Colorado’s Sports Teams
Colorado’s sports teams had an epic year in 2023, with the Denver Nuggets winning the NBA Championship, the Rockies losing over 100 games, and Deion Sanders’s arrival at the University of Colorado bringing national attention to the school.Polis was along for all of it, sharing praise for the state’s teams and even joking on his personal Facebook account that the Rockies should “put me in” when the team got trounced by the Los Angeles Angels on June 24, 2023, as the Halos scored 25 runs and the Rockies managed just one.
"Governor Polis is very at home on the internet and meets people where they are at, which is one of the many reasons people trust him to lead our beautiful state,” Wieman says. “Just like many Coloradans, he follows Colorado’s world-class sports teams and their ups and downs.”
Polis showed that jocks and nerds can get along when he posted about baseball cards, creating a card for himself and one for the Pokémon Pikachu.
“Did you know baseball cards are America’s most popular sports cards?” he asked.
Nerdy References Keep Trekking On
Of course, the governor’s geeky references don’t stop there. He’s a known “Trekkie," posting about Star Trek Day on Instagram this year as well as making October 7 Patrick Stewart Day in Colorado. Stewart played Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: the Next Generation, along with the movies based on the TV series and the revitalized Picard series.On Star Trek Day, September 8, Polis shared photos of himself posing with the iconic “live long and prosper” Vulcan hand salute from Star Trek.
The governor also reminded people to update their passwords with a South Park screenshot and promoted Girl Scout cookie season with a remake of the Star Wars opening crawl on Instagram: “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, there was this great cookie sale that only happened once a year..."
Feathered Friends
Despite being down to get goofy, Polis isn’t into one of the internet’s most popular conspiracy memes: Birds aren’t real. No, Polis seems to revere the winged creatures, and shared many posts about them in 2023.“Regardless of its name, the Bald Eagle does not have a bald head and will not require a combover,” he wrote on Instagram, posting a joke about America’s iconic bird needing a wig.
And Colorado’s most common vulture, the turkey vulture, didn’t escape Polis’s attention, either. “Just don’t get too close; their self-defense method is to vomit food, which they can project up to 10 feet away,” he wrote.
The Governor also pardoned turkeys for the first time this Thanksgiving, sharing a slide on Instagram for each pardoned turkey: Maple, Pumpkin, Gus and Matilda.
Sadly for many pop-culture girlies, the move was not related to the iconic turkey pardoning scene from Red, White & Royal Blue, a movie about the president’s son falling for a British prince that was released in 2023. Instead, Polis came up with the idea to honor Colorado’s farming and agriculture communities.
“He has not read or watched Red, White, and Royal Blue, and prefers sci-fi/fantasy,” Wieman clarifies.
But He Has Been In on Plenty of Other Pop Culture Moments
Polis is known for rocking New Balances in true white-dad-core fashion, for example.“A new year brings many changes, but some things stay the same,” he posted on January 1, 2023. “For me, it’s shoes.”
His shoes are so fetch! And he gave Tina Fey a fetching shoutout on Instagram when she wished Poudre High School well with its production of Mean Girls, the musical based on her iconic film.A new year brings many changes, but some things stay the same.
— Governor Jared Polis (@GovofCO) January 1, 2023
For me, it’s shoes. pic.twitter.com/NqfyZtkfAi
And, of course, Polis didn’t miss out on the most important pop-culture phenomenon of 2023: Taylor Swift. When Swift brought her record-breaking Eras Tour to Denver, Polis welcomed her with a custom letter interspersed with many of her song and album titles.
He also shared a Photoshopped image of himself listening to Swift’s re-released 1989 (Taylor’s Version) album to celebrate the Broncos' first victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in sixteen games. Taylor didn’t attend that match, despite showing up to many Chiefs games this year to cheer on Travis Kelce, her current sweetheart and the team's tight end.
“Broncos broke their 16-game losing streak to the Chiefs with STYLE,” Polis wrote in the Instagram caption. “Taylor's Blank Space was evident.”
According to Wieman, Polis isn't just jumping on a trend; he even empathizes with Taylor Swift's famous-people struggles.
“Governor Polis and his family love Taylor Swift’s Style of songwriting and her ability to Shake it Off while managing the Delicate balance of being in the public eye, something he knows All Too Well now that he too went ‘Platinum’ this holiday season with his hit cover of José Feliciano’s classic Christmas song 'Feliz Navidad,'” his communications team shares.
For the uninitiated: "Style," "Shake It Off," "Delicate" and "All Too Well" are some of Swift’s best work.
Totally Colorado Moments
On the less fun but more important side, Polis has been sharing social media updates on the work he’s doing in the state, everything from property tax reform to pollinator studies to universal preschool.
“The governor works with his communications office to develop graphics that are engaging to Coloradans, whether it’s a letter to Taylor Swift, information about his work to increase housing access for all budgets, celebrating Colorado’s State Fair and more,” Wieman says. “The governor often likes to share behind-the-scenes images, including when he visited the tarantula migration in southern Colorado or recently hiked to the top of Fishers Peak."
He also shows his love for the state by being in on some true Colorado content, including weather and cannabis-related posts.
Most of these were on Polis’s official Governor of Colorado accounts, but he maintains his own social media accounts, too. According to Wieman, he runs those personal accounts, sharing many more fun facts, memes and selfies.
When Polis first became governor in 2018, Westword chronicled his geeky gubernatorial photos. Now that we’re used to his ways, the goofy shots he still shares on his personal accounts, such as that cowboy look at the Colorado State Fair, seem pretty official.
The governor’s also got jokes. He recently shared a screenshot of LinkedIn telling him the hiring trends for governor aren’t so hot (they were up 0 percent from the week before). “Thank you LinkedIn for this incredibly useful job analysis,” Polis joked.
And he recently shared a “Steal His Look” graphic about Yosemite Sam that included the expensive items donned by the cartoon cowboy.I didn’t realize how bougie Yosemite Sam is until now! https://t.co/qNzk05K7n6
— Jared Polis (@jaredpolis) June 29, 2023
His office promises that there's more spectacular social media content to come in 2024.
“You can expect Governor Polis to continue to use social media as a platform to spread joy and provide good cheer and fun facts to the people of Colorado and beyond,” Wieman says. “Stay tuned."
