Electronic Balloting Now Open; Paper Ballots Mailed March 14

Brighton, CO – Balloting in United Power’s 2025 Director Election is open. Members of the cooperative have the option to cast their ballots electronically through their online account or via paper ballot, mailed to members on Friday, March 14. Electronic and mail ballots must be received by 11:59 a.m. on April 15. Members may also vote in person at the cooperative’s Annual Meeting on April 16.

United Power encourages all members to cast their votes in the annual Director Election. Voting allows members to have a voice in their board representation and helps the cooperative better serve its members. Members may return their mail ballot via the postage-paid envelope included in the ballot packet, or they can log into their online account to cast an electronic ballot. Members voting online can access the ballot by clicking the “Vote Now” button.

Three positions on United Power’s Board are up for election this year – one seat in the North, Central, and South Districts. The director candidates are Ursula J. Morgan (incumbent) in the North District; Keith Alquist (incumbent) in the Central District; and Ryan Keefer and Beth Martin (incumbent) in the South District. Candidate statements are available online. 

Directors represent all members and are elected on an “at-large” basis to four-year terms. This means members may cast a vote for a director in each district and not just their own. Directors serve in geographic districts to ensure equitable representation of United Power’s member base in the cooperative’s governing body.

Director Election results will be announced at the 2025 Annual Meeting, held at the Riverdale Regional Park & Fairgrounds in Brighton on April 16. Registration for the meeting opens at 4:30 p.m. and balloting closes at the beginning of the official business meeting at 6:30 p.m. A livestream of the meeting will be hosted on the cooperative’s website at www.unitedpower.com/annual-meeting. 

About United Power

United Power is a member-owned, not-for-profit electric cooperative, delivering electricity to homes, farms, and businesses throughout Colorado’s northern front range. The cooperative is one of the fastest-growing electric co-ops in the nation, serving nearly 114,000 meters. Its 900-square mile service territory extends from the mountains of Coal Creek and Golden Gate Canyon, along the I-25 corridor and Carbon Valley region, to the farmlands of Brighton, Hudson, and Keenesburg. For more information about United Power, visit www.unitedpower.com or follow the cooperative on Facebook, X, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram.

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Updated Roadmap is Collective Vision to Successfully Deliver on Co-op’s Mission

United Power debuted its landmark action plan for preparing and adapting to industry changes nearly three years ago as it was about to enter new territory as an independent electric utility. Our Cooperative Roadmap (Roadmap) was a coordinated effort by co-op staff to identify a collective vision to guide the utility’s future decisions. The action plan is ever-evolving, proactively responding to anticipated shifts in the electric industry, and ensures United Power maintains its competitive advantage as an industry leader in power supply innovation, system performance, and member satisfaction. 

It was the strategic direction provided in the Roadmap’s first iteration that helped United Power secure a diverse portfolio of power supply agreements to meet the cooperative’s needs as it grows over the next several years. These agreements have already reduced the cooperative’s greenhouse gas emissions by 26% since May. United Power’s commitment to reducing emissions was a driving factor in obtaining nearly $262 million through the Empowering Rural America (New ERA) Program to support its clean energy transition. The Roadmap was also pivotal in providing investor confidence to help finance the move toward independence, deploying an innovative battery energy storage system to mitigate peak costs, and breaking ground on a natural gas plant to ensure resource adequacy and flexibility. 

Five guiding principles were identified to help the cooperative define, implement, and evaluate the Roadmap’s focus areas:

• Safety. Prioritize safety in every decision and action. Safety is reflected in every aspect of United Power’s operations by fostering a culture of transparency, trust, and teamwork.
• Reliability. Striving to deliver high-quality, uninterrupted service to members through the design, operation, protection, and maintenance of a robust and resilient electric distribution system. 
• Affordability. Commitment to securing fair and competitive wholesale rates, managing costs, and responsibly allocating those costs across the membership with stable and transparent rate options.
• Flexibility. Demonstrate maximum agility and adaptiveness through forward-looking plans, versatile and innovative programs and business models, and diverse power supply options as the cooperative responds to changes in its environment and the needs of members and communities.
• Responsibility. Act ethically, sustainably, and in the best interest of members and communities as the cooperative manages operations and secures resources. 

The four strategic focus areas identified in the first version of the Roadmap remain relatively the same in the updated Roadmap, stretching across all the core functions of the cooperative, including power supply; system reliability and resiliency; data safety and security; and member programs and community engagement. 

Empower and Engage with Members and Communities

Electric cooperatives are owned by the members they serve, which means the members are not just consumers but stakeholders in the cooperative’s success. 

Members can vote for who represents them on the United Power Board of Directors through the annual Director Election, but the cooperative also gives back to the community in many ways.

United Power is a community partner, helping them establish their goals and visions. This includes understanding the unique needs and challenges of the communities and businesses the cooperative serves. The co-op supports the economic vitality of local communities through collaboration with local leaders and economic development organizations on growth initiatives and assists businesses with energy advice and expertise to help them meet legislative and regulatory targets. 

Provide Flexible, Affordable, Responsible Power and Services

As the needs of the distribution system have increased, so has the need for United Power to evolve and optimize the supply of power and services to its members.

Becoming an independent electric utility provided United Power with more flexibility over its power supply options. The cooperative added more than 110 MW of battery energy storage to its distribution system last year and broke ground on an innovative gas peaking plant for an additional 160 MW of resource adequacy. The cooperative continues to pursue cost efficient power supply contracts while limiting greenhouse gas emissions.

Continuously Optimize the Electric Distribution System

The optimization of the electric distribution system is paramount as the cooperative confronts increasing demands and complexities driven by rapid electrification, the integration of distributed energy resources, and the evolving expectation of members.

United Power has experienced consecutive years of record-breaking reliability, ranking among the best electric utilities in the country. The cooperative’s strategic maintenance plan and innovative system design continue to provide positive results and demonstrate remarkable success. 

Achieve and Maintain Business Agility and Resilience

Business agility and resilience are key investments of United Power’s strategic and operational plans. 

Advancing technologies play a critical role in how United Power responds to and prevents outages. The cooperative is working to replace its distributed energy resource management system by early 2026 to better manage system operations and plans to roll out new tools to better manage materials and projects. 

Our Cooperative Roadmap, along with news and updates about its implementation, can be found here.