Colorado District 8: who’s in the race to represent the most competitive seat in the state? – Colorado Public Radio

When Colorado was looking for a place to put its new congressional district, it quickly settled on the communities northeast of Denver. It makes sense much of the population growth that helped earn Colorado an eighth seat in the U.S. House of Representatives has taken place in the booming suburbs of the northern Front Range.

The final district boundaries that the states Independent Redistricting Commission drew stretch from Thornton, Northglenn and Commerce City in the south, up through Brighton, Fort Lupton and Frederick, to include almost all of Greeley. Politically, its the states most evenly divided district. Unaffiliated voters make up 44 percent of active registered voters, while Democrats make up 28 percent and Republicans 25 percent. Averaging the outcome of eight recent races shows how narrow the divide truly is, with Democrats coming out with a negligible 1.3 percent advantage.

The district also has the highest proportion of Hispanic or Latino residents in the state; only 52 percent of residents described themselves as non-Hispanic white on the U.S. Census, while 38.8 percent of residents identify as Hispanic. 4.1 percent of the people living in the district are of Asian background and 2.3 percent are Black.

With control of the U.S House hanging in the balance, and no incumbent to throw the rest of the field in shadow, Colorados newest congressional district presents a rare opportunity for politically ambitious members of both parties or no party at all.

Heres a list of people who have announced their plans to run for the district seat (this list is limited to candidates who have filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission and will be updated).

Yadira Caraveo The state Representative from Thornton is in her second term in the Colorado House. A practicing pediatrician and daughter of Mexican immigrants, Caraveo has focused on health care policy, voting and reproductive rights during her time at the state house. She was the first Democrat to enter the race, before the new district lines were even official.

Charles Chaz Tedesco A Navy veteran, Tedesco has served on the Adams County Board of Commissioners since 2012, representing a district anchored by Commerce City. Before getting into politics, Tedesco worked in the steel industry and served as president of United Steelworkers for eight years. During his time on the county board, hes focused his work, in part, on the foster care system and veterans issues.

Johnny Humphrey Humphrey, a political newcomer, is making his first run for political office. The Northglenn residents professional background is in IT and marketing, before making a shift into helping organizations improve on their diversity, equity and inclusion. He currently works for a large LGBTQ nonprofity, the Center on Colfax.

Joshua Rodriguez Rodriguez works in quantum computing and is the founder of a three-year old nonprofit, One Arvada, with the mission of serving homeless youth. He ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Arvada in 2018. He was charged with multiple felonies related to identity theft last year.

Giulianna Jewels Gray This is Grays first time running for office, though she has been involved in local Republican politics before. As the owner of a photography business, Gray has been active with the local chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business.

Lori Saine Saine is serving her first term on the Weld County board of commissioners. The Dacono resident previously served in the state house of representatives, where she chaired the Legislative Audit Committee and served as the Republican House caucus chair. She also introduced legislation to broaden access to firearms and worked on reforming liability rules for condo construction.

Barbara Kirkmeyer Kirkmeyer is a first time first-term state senator and joined the legislature after serving on the Weld County Board of Commissioners over the course of two decades. During her time on the board she was involved in a short-lived effort for Weld County to leave the state, and a more recent declaration that the county would not honor new state gun laws, and become a Second Amendment sanctuary.

Jann Kulmann Kulmann is the current mayor of Thornton, a job she was elected to three years ago. Prior to that she served on the Thornton city council. She works as an engineer in the oil and gas industry and serves on the board of a local charter school. During her time on city council, Kulmann survived a recall attempt by residents upset that she wouldnt support a local ban on oil and gas drilling.

Tyler Allcorn Allcorn is a former Green Beret who served four combat deployments. He now works for a company that helps members of the military find private sector employment after they leave the service. An immigrant whose family arrived in the United States for his fathers work, Allcorn was naturalized in 2010.

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Colorado District 8: who's in the race to represent the most competitive seat in the state? - Colorado Public Radio