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Over 400 turn out for No Kings rally and march in Winter Park

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Izzy Wagner
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No Kings protestors rallied on the afternoon of Oct. 18, 2025 at Hideaway Park in Winter Park, Colorado.
Sean McAlindin/Sky-Hi News

No Kings day returned to Grand County on Saturday, Oct. 18.

A crowd of over 400 people gathered at 2 p.m. in Winter Park for speeches from members of Grand County Democrats and Colorado House Speaker Julie McCluskie. Concerns about healthcare, climate change and the effects of the “Big, Beautiful Bill” were shared by speakers and met with rallying cries from the crowd.

Jen Fanning, executive director of the Grand County Rural Health Network, was the first to deliver a speech on the Rendezvous Event Center stage. She focused on healthcare as a human right and the importance of protecting Grand County’s access to reliable health services.

“Our health care system is broken — especially the way we pay for it,” Fanning said. “The answer is to fix what’s broken while protecting every person’s right to care.”

Health insurance premium rates are projected to jump 28% across Colorado if current enhanced tax credits expire, shrinking benefits for lower-income enrollees and eliminating benefits for those making over 400% of the federal poverty line. In Colorado, that equates to $62,600 a year for an individual and $128,600 for a family of four.

Ingrid Karlstrom, secretary and communications director of the Upper Colorado Watershed Environment Team, took to the stage next. She defended the the need for climate change action and denounced the Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin’s decision to undertake the “greatest day of deregulation in U.S. history,” under President Trump’s first executive orders.

Then, Grand County activist Cody Wilkinson spoke about rising political activism among generations of young Americans who he said are “exposing the corruption and injustices built into our society.”

Rep. Julie McCluskie anchored the lineup, highlighting Colorado as a Democratic stronghold fighting back against the current Republican administration.

Rep. Julie McCluskie snaps a selfie at the No Kings Rally on Oct. 18.
Sean McAlindin/Sky-Hi News

“We’re at a time in our country where people are losing hope,” she said in an interview with Sky-Hi News. “They don’t see themselves represented in a president who continues to offer hate, who continues to take away the rights of people in our communities and across the state. I am so proud to see this community come together, stand up for one another, stand up for democracy and fight for what we all believe in — freedom and equality.”

After the speeches, protestors took to the streets for a march along U.S. Highway 40. Sky-Hi News counted approximately 440 people pass by during the march.

Some participants had also attended the first No Kings protest on June 14 in Granby at Polhamus Park. Both events were organized by the Grand County Democrats, whose chair, Elizabeth Newsom, said turnout was higher this time than at the summer protest.

 “We’ve had a flood of people getting in touch, asking how they can support our local community and stand up for democracy,” Newsom said. “I think that really reflects our local traditions. Our movement is built out of sense of community and a love our country, something nearly all of us in Grand County share. You look at the numbers, Kamala Harris was just 79 votes behind in Grand County … No party gets to own a county — it belongs to the voters. And that is what today is about.”

The Grand County GOP provided a statement on the event to Sky-Hi News via email.

“All citizens have the right to free speech and to peacefully demonstrate,” the GOP stated. “(We choose) to use our time and effort in Grand County giving back to our community by serving our neighbors, working on community projects, in fellowship with others, and working on our support for candidates.”

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