(Colorado Newsline) Critics of Colorado Republican Party Chair Dave Williams are free to meet and hold a vote on his removal later this month after a judge lifted a temporary block on the process on Tuesday evening.

In July, Arapahoe County District Court Judge Thomas W. Henderson blocked members from holding a scheduled meeting to oust Williams. Tuesday, however, he concluded that the matter falls outside his jurisdiction entirely.

The group of Williams critics now plans to meet August 24 in Brighton.

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The effort is led by El Paso County GOP Vice Chair Todd Watkins and Jefferson County GOP Chair Nancy Pallozzi, who in June announced that they had sufficient signatures from party members to force a vote on the issue and called a meeting. Henderson’s temporary restraining order came the day before the scheduled meeting for the vote.

“The disputes here at issue … are clearly internal controversies within the jurisdiction of the (Colorado Republican State Central Committee) to make a final determination. As such, in accordance with the above cited law, and as the Bylaws themselves recognize, this Court lacks jurisdiction to decide the questions of whether the (executive committee)’s determination that the June 26, 2024 call was invalid and illegal, and in turn — whether any meeting of the CRC is properly called or not,” Henderson wrote.

Williams, a far-right former state lawmaker, is facing intense criticism over his ability to lead the party after he used party resources to support primary races across the state, including his own unsuccessful bid in the 5th Congressional District. Various Republicans have also condemned a series of anti-LGBTQ messages sent by Williams and the state party, including an email with the subject line “God hates flags” and a call on social media to “burn all the pride flags this June.”

Six of the eight Republican congressional nominees from Colorado, as well as Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen, called on Williams to resign ahead of the blocked July meeting. U.S. Representative Lauren Boebert, who is running in the 4th Congressional District, wrote in a Facebook post about a “failure from Chairman Williams to lead after our primary election.”

Various other county party leaders and state lawmakers have also called for Williams to resign or be removed from his position.

Critics will need support from 60 percent of the Republican State Central Committee’s 400-plus members to remove Williams from office.

“We are very pleased that the court sided with our obviously sound reasoning. We are even more pleased that the court has correctly decided to let the CRC solve its own problems as we originally intended,” Watkins told Colorado Newsline.

An unsigned email to the state party’s central committee members on Tuesday night states that a “properly called” meeting for Aug. 31 is the correct venue for this topic.

“The court DID NOT rule on the legality of the dispute contrary to Watkins’ false assertions. The court is simply unsure if it has jurisdiction to hear the merits of the dispute and is requiring both sides to file briefings about it before the court continues forward,” it reads. “The State Executive Committee has rendered a decision that Watkins’ meeting is invalid and illegal. That has not changed, and its determination is still in full force and effect.”

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