August William Ritter Jr. (born September 6, 1956) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 41st Governor of Colorado from 2007 to 2011.

As DA, he created one of the nation's first drug courts, as well as taking on white collar crime in metropolitan Denver.

[citation needed] He worked extensively on the prosecution of sexual abuse and domestic violence, as well as criminals targeting senior citizens.

Upon their return to the Denver area in 1989, Governor Roy Romer appointed Ritter to the DA's office, citing his missionary work as an "important factor" in the decision.

[4] On July 16, 2007, 33-year-old Aaron Snyder stormed the Capitol while holding a pistol and threatening to kill Governor Ritter.

[6] At the start of his term, Ritter was relatively popular with rural Coloradans, who in the past have tended to vote for Republican candidates (particularly Front Range voters).

His popularity also extended to the Democratic strongholds in Colorado: the voters of the continental divide ski resorts such as Aspen and Vail, as well as the Denver-Aurora metropolitan area.

An August 2007 poll conducted by Rasmussen Reports showed Ritter's approval rating at 60%, while 36% were disapproving and 4% remained undecided.

[9] Though Ritter cited family reasons in his January 2010 announcement that he had decided not to run for re-election, he was dogged by rumors that his poor polling numbers led Democratic power brokers to force him out of the race.

During his first campaign, more progressive state Democratic leaders encouraged other candidates, including Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, to pursue the Governorship, because of concerns over Ritter's anti-abortion stance.

[15] However, controversy surfaced regarding plea bargains Ritter had made as DA that prevented the deportation of both legal and illegal immigrants who had been charged with drug, assault, and other crimes.