Joseph Maldonado, better known as Joe Exotic from Netflix's Tiger King, is a sucker for life on the Front Range.
"I love Colorado and Estes Park is my favorite place on earth," Maldonado tells Westword from his prison cell in Fort Worth, Texas, where he's serving a 22-year sentence for animal abuse and an attempted murder-for-hire plot related to his feud with animal-rights activist Carole Baskin.
"When I was fifteen I lived at the Centennial Race Track taking care of my dad's race horses, and this is all part of why I want to preserve Colorado's way of life," Maldonado says, speaking through emails verified by his attorney, John Phillips.
Since early last year, the infamous big-cat keeper has waged a public war of words with the Colorado Secretary of State's Office over his attempts to appear on the 2024 presidential ballot as a Democratic candidate. He was on the Colorado ballot in 2016 before his Tiger King stardom, running alongside disgraced animal exhibitor Doug Terranova as an Independent.
Now, as a convicted felon, Maldonado can't register to vote — a requirement he claims Colorado is forcing him to meet. As Coloradans prepare to vote in presidential primary elections for Democratic and Republican candidates on March 5, his chance to appear on the Colorado ballot this November is running out.
"They are using the excuse that I have to be a registered voter, which is illegal for me to register as a felon and they refuse to answer any letters that my campaign has sent to the Democrat Party or the Secretary of State," Maldonado says. "I have met all federal requirements to be on the ballot and run for President. I am over 32 years of age, I am a U.S. Citizen, I have lived in America for over fourteen years. That is all the United States Constitution requires to run for office and it should not be a state party choice to change the rules for a federal election."
Maldonado posted on X earlier this month that he had met "every requirement the Federal Government requires to run for office" and was continuing his fight to get on the Colorado ballot, but the secretary of state's office wasn't budging.
"This is how America elections are rigged. Biden nor the Democrats want my name Joe Exotic on the ballot because I am more popular than most people think and it would force President Biden to answer my questions and debate me," he adds. "The Democrat party in Colorado thinks ignoring me will make me go away, but they're wrong. I plan to push the last two months hard to be written in if they like it or not. America must take a stand against rigged elections."
Maldonado says that numerous attempts have been made to contact the Colorado Secretary of State's Office, but department spokesperson Jack Todd says otherwise.
"I love Colorado and Estes Park is my favorite place on earth," Maldonado tells Westword from his prison cell in Fort Worth, Texas, where he's serving a 22-year sentence for animal abuse and an attempted murder-for-hire plot related to his feud with animal-rights activist Carole Baskin.
"When I was fifteen I lived at the Centennial Race Track taking care of my dad's race horses, and this is all part of why I want to preserve Colorado's way of life," Maldonado says, speaking through emails verified by his attorney, John Phillips.
Since early last year, the infamous big-cat keeper has waged a public war of words with the Colorado Secretary of State's Office over his attempts to appear on the 2024 presidential ballot as a Democratic candidate. He was on the Colorado ballot in 2016 before his Tiger King stardom, running alongside disgraced animal exhibitor Doug Terranova as an Independent.
Now, as a convicted felon, Maldonado can't register to vote — a requirement he claims Colorado is forcing him to meet. As Coloradans prepare to vote in presidential primary elections for Democratic and Republican candidates on March 5, his chance to appear on the Colorado ballot this November is running out.
"They are using the excuse that I have to be a registered voter, which is illegal for me to register as a felon and they refuse to answer any letters that my campaign has sent to the Democrat Party or the Secretary of State," Maldonado says. "I have met all federal requirements to be on the ballot and run for President. I am over 32 years of age, I am a U.S. Citizen, I have lived in America for over fourteen years. That is all the United States Constitution requires to run for office and it should not be a state party choice to change the rules for a federal election."
Maldonado posted on X earlier this month that he had met "every requirement the Federal Government requires to run for office" and was continuing his fight to get on the Colorado ballot, but the secretary of state's office wasn't budging.
"This is how America elections are rigged. Biden nor the Democrats want my name Joe Exotic on the ballot because I am more popular than most people think and it would force President Biden to answer my questions and debate me," he adds. "The Democrat party in Colorado thinks ignoring me will make me go away, but they're wrong. I plan to push the last two months hard to be written in if they like it or not. America must take a stand against rigged elections."
Maldonado ran for governor of Oklahoma in 2018 as a registered Libertarian, and only registered Democrats may appear on the Democratic presidential primary ballot. Since he's a felon, however, he is unable to change his party registration.
Maldonado says that numerous attempts have been made to contact the Colorado Secretary of State's Office, but department spokesperson Jack Todd says otherwise.
"No, we have no record of additional correspondence from Mr. Maldonado or his representatives," Todd says. "The Department of State denied Mr. Maldonado’s attempt to get on the Colorado Presidential Primary ballot in June of last year. At that time, filing paperwork for the 2024 Presidential Primary had not been published. The department never received additional paperwork to appear on the Presidential Primary ballot from Mr. Maldonado after his initial, premature attempt was denied."
The deadline to file to be on the ballot was December 11, Todd explains, while the filing cutoff to appear as a write-in candidate was December 29. According to Todd, "The Department did not receive paperwork from Mr. Maldonado to this effect" for either deadline.
While his options are limited, not all routes to the ballot are blocked for Maldonado: Todd says he could still file a petition to run in the 2024 General Election as an unaffiliated candidate by July 11.
"Additionally, major and minor parties may nominate candidates by party assembly or convention until August 22," Todd adds.
Maldonado says he's been waiting on the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on Donald Trump's eligibility to be a presidential candidate in Colorado, because "as of right now" he doesn't have the money to pursue legal action.
The Tiger King's Colorado Connections
Asked what it is about Colorado that has him so invested in the state's presidential ballot, the former zookeeper points to residents and land rights.
"Colorado has some of the nicest people in it," Maldonado says. "It is one of the last states that hold dear the western life of ranching. The Rocky Mountains must be protected and the BLM [Bureau of Land Management] land must be used and protected at the same time. If Biden allows the animal rights and climate change groups to lease the BLM land and just let it sit without working it, the land will become dangerous for fires and such just like California has become."
The sixty-year-old is confident that he could do well as a presidential candidate in Colorado, adding that his fame is "sure to draw over 1 million votes if my name gets on that ballot."
Maldonado received 872 votes in 2016, according to state election data. El Paso County showed the most support with 131 votes, followed by Adams and Jefferson counties with 121 and 91 votes, respectively. Denver County saw 83 people vote for the "Tiger King."
"Keep your right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," he writes in the campaign platform section on his website, adding that he wants to "free America from the controlling left and right."
Prison and criminal justice reform, gun rights, abortion, taxes, foreign affairs and immigration would be among Maldonado's biggest concerns if he were president. Maldonado would like to "open up the pipeline, start drilling in America for oil, coal, gas" and "veto nine out of ten laws that hit my desk," as well. He also has issues with electric vehicles, wants to "get wind farms out of the ocean" and believes the United States should end federal support in Ukraine and Israel.
Last week, Maldonado commented on an Instagram post from musician Machine Gun Kelly, implying he wanted to smoke meth with him and have sex, causing Maldonado's Instagram page to go viral and be shut down temporarily. "I have never been afraid to speak the truth," he says of his public infatuation with the rapper. "That is why I would make a great president."
Maldonado gives a gritty description of the federal prison life behind his social media presence, however.
"If the general public knew what really went on, they would close most of them down," he says. "I sit in here daily and watch people smoke K2, shoot up meth, smoke weed and make alcohol and stay drunk. Nothing about this fixes what someone done wrong. The sentences they hand out are far too long, just like mine. Twenty-two years: Shit, I learned not to ever fuck up again in the first two weeks of prison. Most people cave to pressure in here and if you are not a junky when you get here, chances are you will be when you leave."
Federal Bureau of Prisons spokesman Donald Murphy says that for privacy, safety and security reasons, the bureau does not discuss any individual's confinement conditions, but he did provide a statement related to Maldonado's claims.
"The FBOP takes pride in protecting and securing individuals entrusted in our custody, as well as maintaining the safety of correctional employees and the community," Murphy says. "We make every effort to ensure the physical safety of individuals confined to our facilities through a controlled environment that is secure and humane."
The deadline to file to be on the ballot was December 11, Todd explains, while the filing cutoff to appear as a write-in candidate was December 29. According to Todd, "The Department did not receive paperwork from Mr. Maldonado to this effect" for either deadline.
While his options are limited, not all routes to the ballot are blocked for Maldonado: Todd says he could still file a petition to run in the 2024 General Election as an unaffiliated candidate by July 11.
"Additionally, major and minor parties may nominate candidates by party assembly or convention until August 22," Todd adds.
Maldonado says he's been waiting on the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on Donald Trump's eligibility to be a presidential candidate in Colorado, because "as of right now" he doesn't have the money to pursue legal action.
The Tiger King's Colorado Connections
Asked what it is about Colorado that has him so invested in the state's presidential ballot, the former zookeeper points to residents and land rights."Colorado has some of the nicest people in it," Maldonado says. "It is one of the last states that hold dear the western life of ranching. The Rocky Mountains must be protected and the BLM [Bureau of Land Management] land must be used and protected at the same time. If Biden allows the animal rights and climate change groups to lease the BLM land and just let it sit without working it, the land will become dangerous for fires and such just like California has become."
The sixty-year-old is confident that he could do well as a presidential candidate in Colorado, adding that his fame is "sure to draw over 1 million votes if my name gets on that ballot."
Maldonado received 872 votes in 2016, according to state election data. El Paso County showed the most support with 131 votes, followed by Adams and Jefferson counties with 121 and 91 votes, respectively. Denver County saw 83 people vote for the "Tiger King."
"Keep your right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," he writes in the campaign platform section on his website, adding that he wants to "free America from the controlling left and right."
Prison and criminal justice reform, gun rights, abortion, taxes, foreign affairs and immigration would be among Maldonado's biggest concerns if he were president. Maldonado would like to "open up the pipeline, start drilling in America for oil, coal, gas" and "veto nine out of ten laws that hit my desk," as well. He also has issues with electric vehicles, wants to "get wind farms out of the ocean" and believes the United States should end federal support in Ukraine and Israel.
Last week, Maldonado commented on an Instagram post from musician Machine Gun Kelly, implying he wanted to smoke meth with him and have sex, causing Maldonado's Instagram page to go viral and be shut down temporarily. "I have never been afraid to speak the truth," he says of his public infatuation with the rapper. "That is why I would make a great president."
Maldonado gives a gritty description of the federal prison life behind his social media presence, however.
"If the general public knew what really went on, they would close most of them down," he says. "I sit in here daily and watch people smoke K2, shoot up meth, smoke weed and make alcohol and stay drunk. Nothing about this fixes what someone done wrong. The sentences they hand out are far too long, just like mine. Twenty-two years: Shit, I learned not to ever fuck up again in the first two weeks of prison. Most people cave to pressure in here and if you are not a junky when you get here, chances are you will be when you leave."
Federal Bureau of Prisons spokesman Donald Murphy says that for privacy, safety and security reasons, the bureau does not discuss any individual's confinement conditions, but he did provide a statement related to Maldonado's claims.
"The FBOP takes pride in protecting and securing individuals entrusted in our custody, as well as maintaining the safety of correctional employees and the community," Murphy says. "We make every effort to ensure the physical safety of individuals confined to our facilities through a controlled environment that is secure and humane."
Life After Prison for Joe Exotic
Maldonado, who's not scheduled for release until 2042, wants to frequent Colorado as much as possible once he gets out, including visiting the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs. He also claims to have been "offered a world concert tour, and a movie," and that he plans to "get married and put this all behind me."All of it besides Carole Baskin.
Maldonado argues that his downfall as a big-cat keeper "was all a scam by Carole Baskin and all of her friends" to set him up and take his tigers away.
"I dont understand how a group of people that were paid to talk shit by netflix and made to lie under oath by the U.S. Attorneys office in OKC can hand over their cell phones with 416 phone recordings of them and the feds telling them how to make this happen, how to lie under oath and that they have a plot to kill me anyway are still walking around free and I am in prison," he writes in an email. "They even did video depositions to that effect and their phones werr full of recordings admitting to rape, sex trafficing and bank fraud along with identitiy theft. they are all on my attorneys youtube called tiger tales. Its a sad day in America when a Federal Judge has this evidence along with the U.S. Attorneys and they denie me a motion for a new trial. Its to make me do as much time as they can because each appeal takes over one year."
Asked to respond to his comments, Howard Baskin, Carole's husband, sent Westword an email saying, "I am not sure Maldonado is genetically capable of uttering a true sentence. As pointed out by one juror, it was Maldonado's own words on tape that convicted him of murder for hire. And the image in Tiger King of pulling a newborn tiger cub from its mother with a pole and squeezing it through a fence is just one small but vivid example of his decades of mistreating animals."
Maldonado has been seeking a new trial in the Western District of Oklahoma, alleging that the trial attorney who handled his 2019 case did not properly investigate it.
The endangered tigers that Maldonado had been keeping at his zoo in Oklahoma before his 2018 indictment were transported to the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg.
