Colorado House Republican leader Patrick Neville and conservative commentator Michelle Malkin announced they’re suing Gov. Jared Polis over the statewide mask order Wednesday afternoon

The Democratic governor issued his executive order on July 16 to combat the spread of coronavirus. Opponents, mostly Republicans, have seen it as government overreach more than public safety.

While Polis is the defendant, the lawsuit questions the constitutionality of the Colorado’s Disaster Emergency Act, when the Colorado Constitution “clearly” separates powers between the legislative and executive branches, the plaintiffs said Wednesday afternoon.

The legislative branch is supposed to create laws that the executive branch enforces, they assert, and Polis is crossing that “dividing line.”

“Governor Polis’ Executive Orders have been devastating to the people of Colorado,” Neville said in a statement. “People have been ordered to stay at home; their right to travel has been trampled; their right to worship has been taken away; businesses have been shut down; and countless jobs have been lost. The governor has overstepped his constitutional powers. We have checks and balances and Governor Polis needs to follow them.”

Malkin is an El Paso County resident. They are represented by conservative radio talk show personality and lawyer Randy Corporon.

The governor’s office stood by the decision.

“We are free to be on the side of a deadly virus that has taken the lives of too many friends, parents, and loved ones, or on the side of Coloradans,” Polis said in a statement. “I’m on the side of Coloradans.”