Health

Governor Jared Polis’s Nerdiest Pre-Pandemic Tweets

His celebration of May the Fourth Be With You was just the beginning.
By Michael RobertsMay 5, 2020
Colorado Governor Jared Polis upon learning about Pluto's exclusion from a book called 8 Little Planets.

@jaredpolis
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During his May 4 press conference about the COVID-19 crisis, Governor Jared Polis marked May the Fourth Be With You day with inspirational quotes from the Star Wars saga and the suggestion that Darth Vader’s mask will keep him safe from the novel coronavirus despite “his pre-existing respiratory condition.”

Anyone surprised by this routine hasn’t been paying attention. Polis proudly described himself as a “nerd” during that appearance, and there’s plenty of evidence to support this designation. Shortly after he was chosen to assume the state’s top leadership position in the blue-wave election of November 2018, we shared the “Least Gubernatorial Photos of Colorado Governor-Elect Jared Polis,” featuring images from his freewheeling Twitter page.

The weirdness of those pics, including one that found him rolling on a lawn like his dog, undoubtedly led some political observers to assume that Polis would dial things down after his swearing in early last year. But no: Polis has continued to maintain his personal account in addition to an official one specifically focused on his work as governor. And while @jaredpolis highlights plenty of purely political messages, he’s also used the platform to share quirky thoughts, snaps and links on a wide variety of subjects.

Here’s a slew of examples posted prior to the pandemic, categorized by subjects and themes to which Polis has returned time and again – including one in which he needles Vice President Mike Pence, with whom he’s been on many coronavirus-related conference calls of late. Like the governor’s social-distancing suggestion that everyone stay the length of a light saber away from each other in public, they’re a reminder that inside this professional politician grappling with the biggest challenges of his career is a man who’s never been afraid to let his geek flag fly.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword‘s news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor’s degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master’s degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

michaelrobertscolo@gmail.com
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