Colorado Gov. Jared Polis grants clemency to Trump election denier Tina Peters

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Friday reduced the prison sentence of former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, the election denier whose efforts to undermine confidence in the 2020 election transformed her into a MAGA folk hero and a convicted felon.

A jury found Peters guilty in August 2024 of allowing a person affiliated with MyPillow founder and election conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell to access Mesa County voting systems after Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss, part of a broader effort tied to Trump’s baseless fraud claims. She was convicted on multiple felony counts, including conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation and official misconduct.

Peters had been serving a nine-year prison sentence before Polis reduced it to roughly four years and four months.

The move came after sustained public pressure from Trump, who repeatedly demanded Peters’ release, falsely portrayed her as a political prisoner, and attacked Colorado officials over her imprisonment. In one Truth Social post, Trump threatened “harsh measures” against Colorado if Peters was not freed.

Neither Peters nor her legal team has publicly expressed remorse. Last week, supporters published an apparent letter to Trump in which Peters again promoted election conspiracy theories and described herself as a “political prisoner,” according to The Denver Post.

Polis insisted the commutation was not a pardon.

“I’m not pardoning her,” Polis told The Colorado Sun. “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.”

This story is developing.