House District 35

Joe Biden is one of the nation’s most experienced public servants, having served as a U.S. senator from Delaware for 36 years and the U.S. vice president for eight years. Biden is running on a comprehensive progressive platform.

Biden has championed individual rights throughout his career — from spearheading the Violence Against Women Act to passing laws that expanded the definition of hate crimes to include those based on gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability. Biden led the fight to pass the Brady Bill, which established the national firearms background check system, and helped secure a 10-year ban on assault weapons from 1994-2004. As vice president, Biden oversaw the implementation of one of the largest economic recovery plans in American history in 2009, saving the American automobile industry and millions of American jobs in all sectors of the economy. During the Obama/Biden administration, the United States made significant progress toward a clean energy economy and provided health coverage to millions of Americans via the passage of the Affordable Care Act — a law Biden has vowed to expand and improve.

If elected president, Biden has pledged to work to reverse the damage from the last four years of partisan obstruction and executive branch policies solely benefiting the wealthy and well-connected. Biden supports a $15-per-hour minimum wage and 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave for all workers. He also seeks to address the country's racial wealth disparity, equal opportunity, and jobs gaps by empowering small-business creation and expansion in economically disadvantaged areas. On the climate crisis, Biden proposes net-zero CO2 emissions in the U.S. by 2050 and rejoining the Paris climate accords. On the immediate front, Biden has proposed a national crisis response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Biden’s experience handling the economic recovery with Obama after the Great Recession of 2009 will inform his actions to help individuals, families, small businesses, and local and state governments that are struggling badly as a result of the botched response to the pandemic. Biden will restore the long-standing precedent that public health decisions are best made by public health professionals.

Biden has pledged to defend abortion rights, expand and protect union membership, bring together an equitable and diverse group of experts to handle the nation’s institutional racism crisis, and restore dignity to the office of president of the United States.

Biden is the clear presidential choice for progressive voters.

In this election, he faces Donald Trump — considered by progressives to be the most corrupt, incompetent, anti-progressive president in recent memory and perhaps in American history. Trump’s biggest achievement as president was forcing through a massive tax cut that overwhelmingly favored the wealthiest Americans, making the nation’s historic income-disparity problem even worse. Trump unilaterally withdrew from the Paris Climate Accords, making the U.S. one of very few countries that are not signatories. Trump’s administration has encouraged repeated unsuccessful attempts by Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which has provided health coverage to millions of Americans, including a federal court challenge in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic to dismantle the law. Trump has supported racist immigration practices that contravene international law on the treatment of refugees.

Trump’s decisions have trickled into even the most mundane things, affecting Americans on a daily basis. Trump scrapped a bill requiring airlines to disclose bag fees, blocked consumers from suing banks, ignored the growing crisis over student loans, lifted bans on transferring military equipment to local law enforcement which has exacerbated police-citizen conflicts, particularly in relation to Black Lives Matter protests, and has set off a trade war with China that has done tremendous economic damage to American agricultural producers and manufacturers.

Controversies involving Trump’s presidency are too numerous to list here but include lying about mail voting to such a degree that social media platforms have been forced to remove his misinformation, racist, sexist, and defamatory statements against his political opponents, dispatching federal police to attack protesters in unmarked vehicles, installing corrupt and incompetent tools of special interest into every level of government, nominating federal judges and Supreme Court justices who seek to overturn Roe v. Wade, banning transgender Americans from military service, helping spread baseless conspiracy theories, defending the actions of overt white supremacists and racist nationalists, downplaying the severity of the coronavirus pandemic to the public despite detailed foreknowledge of the coming disaster, pursuing diplomacy with dictators while scorning traditional American allies, and changing federal guidelines to undermine racial equality. For a more comprehensive list, we encourage you to visit the Wikipedia page for Trump administration controversies.

Evidence abounds showing that Trump never disassociated himself from his businesses and has used his office for personal enrichment. And let’s not forget he was impeached over revelations he first blocked military aid to Ukraine and then pushed its president to dig up damaging info on his political opponent as a “favor.”

Trump must not only be defeated, but the margin of victory must be so resounding as to prevent him from calling the results of the election into question as he has already pledged to do.

Former Colorado Gov. and incumbent U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper did not take the usual path into public office. After being laid off from his job as a geologist, he opened a successful brewpub. But as a small-business owner, he became involved in his community, and he ran for office. He served two terms each as mayor of Denver and governor of Colorado, using his unique perspective to bring people together to get things done.

When Hickenlooper was sworn in as governor in 2010, Colorado ranked 40th among the states in job creation. By the time Hickenlooper left office eight years later, Colorado had the #1 economy in the nation. Under Hickenlooper, when he was governor, Colorado’s economy grew without leaving Coloradans behind. Hickenlooper expanded Medicaid to cover an additional 400,000 Coloradans and cut the uninsured rate by nearly two-thirds. He signed three landmark gun safety laws in 2013 that banned high-capacity magazines and required background checks for any firearm transfer. On the environment, Hickenlooper made Colorado the first state to limit methane pollution from oil and gas wells. Working with the General Assembly, Hickenlooper signed legislation to ensure every eligible registered voter in Colorado gets a mail-in ballot, made voter registration more accessible, and pushed for numerous other election reforms that have made Colorado a model for election innovation. He also signed historic legislation granting in-state tuition to DREAMers.

Hickenlooper has vowed to improve and build on the Affordable Care Act and supports a federally administered public health coverage option. Hickenlooper recognizes the existential threat of climate change and favors a bold, science-based approach. He supports commonsense policies on gun violence, including restoring an assault weapons ban. Hickenlooper was the first governor of Colorado to apologize for the Sand Creek Massacre and has committed to listening to the voices of marginalized communities and rooting out systemic racism where it lurks in our society, from police brutality to immigration laws to racial disparities in economic status to access to quality education.

Hickenlooper is the progressive voter’s best choice for U.S. senator.

He faces incumbent U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner in this election. While in the Senate, Gardner has been a reliable Republican vote on the overwhelming majority of issues. He has supported Donald Trump’s position on votes 89% of the time, and Politico notes that Gardner is “reliably conservative on most issues.” In 2014, Gardner promised in a campaign ad to speak out when his party is wrong and called on Donald Trump to pull out of the race for president in October of 2016. Since then, however, Gardner has fully embraced Trump and was one of the first senators to endorse Trump’s reelection.

From his earliest votes in Congress, Gardner has consistently sought to repeal the Affordable Care Act. He has voted to repeal the ACA and to replace it with a bill that would dramatically decrease health care coverage and increase the cost of coverage. He was quoted at a private luncheon that failing to repeal the ACA would result in fewer donations to Republicans, suggesting he is not motivated by the common good.

Gardner has rejected most gun safety legislation throughout his career and is a top recipient of donations from the National Rifle Association. He has voted against expanding background checks to include gun show sales, which has been the law in Colorado since just after the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. He even voted against banning gun sales to people on the terrorist watch list.

In a historic change of heart, The Denver Post editorial board declared in 2019 they made a mistake in their 2014 endorsement of Gardner, stating he “has been too busy walking a political tight rope to be a leader.”

This race also has a Libertarian candidate: Raymon Doane. Doane is a Denver native who currently works for the Colorado Department of Revenue as a property tax specialist and business analyst. He previously ran for the state senate in 2016 as a Republican, and in 2018, he first filed to run for state treasurer and then for Congress against Democrat Diana DeGette as a Libertarian.

Doane’s few public statements should give voters pause. While the country has been dealing with the coronavirus outbreak, Doane was quoted as saying, “The federal government should not have to intervene on behalf of local municipalities and states that make poor decisions during a pandemic.” He also has said he thinks public health mandates should be more like “suggestions.” Additionally, among the four policy positions Doane takes on his website, one statement endorsing an unregulated Second Amendment stands out: “The government should NEVER have a monopoly on force. The U.S. Senate must … refuse to vote for any legislation which limits an American’s right to self-defense.” These kinds of statements don’t represent Colorado progressives.

Incumbent U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter is running for reelection in Colorado’s 7th Congressional District. The lifelong Jefferson County resident has been active in his representation of this district since 2006 and is well-known for his relentless brand of door-to-door retail politics. He’s held over 100 constituent meetings in local food markets — events that he calls “Government in the Grocery.”

His main priority since taking office has been improving opportunities for the area by way of fighting to make sure good jobs remain at the National Renewable Energy Lab in Golden and ensuring the completion of the VA Medical Center in Aurora for the benefit of veterans in the Rocky Mountain region.

Another focus of his has been gun safety. As vice chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, he has supported requiring universal background checks and reinstating the federal ban on assault weapons. He also introduced legislation to address the gaps in federal gun policy by clarifying and expanding existing federal prohibitons related to mental health and other common risk factors in gun violence tragedies.

Perlmutter worked to secure passage of the historic Dodd-Frank Act, which placed much-needed regulations on Wall Street and big banks and established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Other fights he has taken on include comprehensive immigration reform, a sweeping investment in America's infrastructure, and the preservation of Social Security and Medicare.

According to Georgetown University’s index, Perlmutter is one of the most bipartisan members of Congress. He is the preferred candidate in this race.

The Republican candidate he faces is Casper Stockham, who has previously run to represent the 1st and 6th Congressional Districts. His platform is that of the generic conservative Republican these days, which goes along with his parachute campaign style. He is “100% pro-life and supports President Trump’s effort to defund Planned Parenthood.” He is against “red flag” laws that keep guns away from domestic abusers and suspected violent criminals. He thinks Obamacare is “a disaster.” And he is a strong supporter of Trump, “loves his record and results,” and thinks that Trump is “winning for all of us.” These positions take us backward, not forward. We suggest voting for Perlmutter.

Karla Esser is an educator through and through. Her career is a prime example of someone who has seen every aspect of the education system, having spent time as a teacher, college professor, school administrator, and assistant superintendent. Esser has seen it all when it comes to education, and we desperately need someone with her experience guiding those decisions in Colorado. She has a strong recommendation.

Her opponent, Nancy Pallozzi, is a small business owner in Lakewood and has no experience for the school board that compares with Esser’s. Neither Pallozzi’s social media nor her website say much if anything at all about education or ideas about what she’d do in office, although the one-time middle-school PTA president does have a lot of right-wing thoughts. She appears to be just another Republican candidate on the ballot.

Nolbert Chavez is the only candidate registered to run in this race.

Incumbent State Rep. Shannon Bird is seeking a second term representing District 35. She has longstanding experience in business, financial negotiations, and local government. Before becoming a representative, she served on the Westminster City Council, where she created an internship program and secured funding for infrastructure improvements at schools.

Bird’s legislative work to date has focused on fiscal policy, education financing, and economic development, and she is the vice chair of the House finance committee. She has also been a strong advocate for public education, particularly fair and equitable funding for schools in all neighborhoods. To help working individuals and families, Bird sponsored bills this term easing credential and licensing transferability in fields ranging from electricians to midwives and another on extending workforce development programs. She also supports DREAMers, affordable housing, and pairing law enforcement with behavioral health specialists for response calls — plus she regularly convenes virtual town halls and socially distant meetups with constituents.

She is the best candidate to lead her district forward in fighting for progressive values.

Challenging her for the seat is Republican Roger Lehman. As of the start of September, he appeared to have not spoken to the media or even created a website or social media pages explaining his campaign or his personal policy positions. If Lehman isn’t going to put his voice on any issues, then he should not be Statehouse-bound.

Alexis King is a former deputy district attorney, magistrate judge, and currently works as an attorney with the Rocky Mountain Victim Law Center. King brings a host of experience as a former deputy DA, but she’s also strongly in favor of many desperately needed progressive criminal justice reforms. While she supports seeking incarceration for violent crime, King also realizes the necessity of alternatives to incarceration for people who really need help more than punishment. Her personal accountability pledge should also give progressive voters hope in the future as King promises data-driven solutions to criminal justice problems and increasing accountability for police officers who break the law.

Progressive voters should feel confident in voting for King.

Running on the Republican side is Matthew Durkin, who is a chief district attorney with the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office. While Durkin pays a lot of lip service to the general idea of criminal justice reform, he often seems more interested in playing politics and being seen with other local and former Republican elected officials. The district attorney’s office is too important to flippantly play politician. We recommend voting for King.

Democratic candidate Brian Mason, who is a deputy district attorney for District 17, has a long track record of seeking justice for victims of violent crime and protecting survivors. He also wants to make some very necessary changes and reforms like seeking alternatives to incarceration and finding new ways to prevent crime instead of just reacting to it. He’s listened to constituents and brought in ideas about addressing racism in the criminal justice system. It’s no surprise that most elected officials in Broomfield and Adams counties are endorsing Mason for district attorney. We also strongly recommend him as the progressive voter’s choice in this race.

His opposition, Republican Tim McCormack, currently works in the district attorney’s office in District 1, but he previously worked for District 17. McCormack certainly has a lot of experience, but his lack of emphasis on criminal justice reform and ending the school-to-prison pipeline should concern voters. Progressive voters would do well to vote for Mason instead.