Local labor union members will “Feel the Bern” on Saturday with a chili cook-off aimed at drumming up last-minute enthusiasm for the Vermont senator before Colorado Democrats go to caucus Tuesday.

“I just like it,” said local IBEW treasurer Ken Schauer, of the burn pun and Sen. Bernie Sanders’ face emblazoned on a red chili pepper. “It makes me happy.”

The chili cook-off is one example of the political happenings across Colorado as Democratic rivals Hillary Clinton and Sanders face off before Super Tuesday.

Thousands are being spent on television advertisements, President Bill Clinton came to Pueblo and Colorado Springs last weekend, and state politicians for Bernie and Clinton held “rallies” at the Capitol last week. Clinton and Sanders spoke at the Democrats’ annual dinner in downtown Denver this month.

On the Republican side, voters are hearing crickets. Records indicate not a single Republican nominee bought a TV ad in Colorado in recent months.

“They don’t spend their money where there is no election,” said Bob Loevy, Colorado College political professor emeritus.

Loevy said Republicans won’t conduct a preference poll Tuesday, so the winner in Colorado won’t be known until delegates are elected at the state assembly in April to the Republican National Convention. Only North Dakota and Wyoming forgo awarding delegates based on a primary or caucus result.

Loevy said the Colorado policy – new this year – to not hold a straw poll disenfranchised voters.

“It’s turned into this very exciting race, and Colorado Republicans would have been voting at a very exciting time in the process,” he said.

Daniel Cole, executive director of the El Paso County GOP, said Colorado voters never received much attention from GOP presidential hopefuls ahead of the caucuses.

“Probably because they knew the straw poll was nonbinding and wouldn’t determine our delegate allocation,” Cole said. “Democratic delegates won’t be bound to candidates, either. Maybe Clinton and Sanders are visiting because, like so many other people, they’re confused about how the process works.”

Cole said a primary might draw more attention from candidates on both sides.

In the complex presidential nominating system, winning delegates is far less important than the appearance of having won delegates. Typically, the nominees have everything locked up before delegates gather at the party conventions in the summer.

That’s why on both sides Tuesday – called Super Tuesday because 12 states and a territory have caucuses or primaries – is so important.

The big question in Colorado will be whether Clinton or Sanders wins.

Clinton has locked up most of the establishment Democrats, including heavy hitters like Gov. John Hickenlooper, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and Rep. Diana DeGette.

“I think it’s going to be a close election,” Hickenlooper said at a news conference Thursday for Clinton supporters. “A lot of people in Colorado do know Hillary, and when you meet her in person, it’s completely different than what all those attack ads make you think you know. She’s one of the most grounded, down to earth people.”

Hickenlooper said Clinton is the only candidate on either side prepared to take command of the White House on day one.

But Clinton is being outspent in Colorado by Sanders, who has dropped about $1.6 million on local TV ads. Clinton has spent almost $750,000 on ads, according to an analysis of reports made public by the Federal Communications Commission.

And the approaches to the campaign have been completely different.

Clinton has spent about $100,000 on TV ads in the Colorado Springs market, compared with just over $250,000 dropped in the market by Sanders’ campaign. Clinton didn’t spend anything in the Grand Junction market, according to the records, while Sanders spent $45,495 on the more sparsely populated Western Slope.

Sanders has held massive rallies, one early in the political season at the University of Denver and another in downtown Denver two weeks ago. Thousands of people turned out for each.

Clinton has held rallies with a few hundred dedicated caucus participants and urged them to take their neighbors to the caucus Tuesday.

Schauer hopes to have thousands of volunteers knocking on doors of friendly and undecided voters Saturday to make sure when the straw polls are taken that Sanders comes out ahead.

“Sen. Sanders has a 40-year career of supporting labor,” Schauer said. “He walks our picket lines. He is an advocate for labor, and he supports what we believe in. I just don’t feel that Hillary Clinton is that strong of an advocate for labor. I don’t feel that she is there for us.”

Those straw polls will determine the allocation of delegates for the county.

Although the votes don’t correlate directly to who will win the most Colorado delegates for the Democratic National Convention in July, it’ll be the best indicator of who Colorado wants to be the nominee.

Republicans will have to wait another month to name a victor in Colorado.

Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, left, and Hillary Clinton take the stage before a Democratic presidential primary debate at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Tom Lynn)

Tom Lynn