Special Update – Let’s Put A Face To A Name

It’s Tuesday, January 7, 2025. The 2025 Colorado General Assembly will convene in less than 24 hours.

As the 2025 legislative session begins tomorrow, Colorado will see a significant influx of fresh faces in the State Capitol, with about a quarter (23) of its legislators stepping into their roles for the first time. These newcomers will be navigating the legislative process as they embark on their inaugural terms, bringing new perspectives and energy to the state’s governance.

In the House, Democrats will hold a slightly reduced majority of 43-22, following Republicans’ successful efforts to flip three seats in the recent elections. Meanwhile, the Senate remains under Democratic control, with a 23-12 majority, though the chamber saw some shifts with two seats changing hands.

With such notable changes taking place, it can be hard to keep track of who’s who. To help you get acquainted with the new members of the 75^th Colorado General Assembly, I’ve put together an overview of the individuals who will be joining the ranks in 2025. These new legislators are poised to address the state’s pressing issues, such as housing, education, and fiscal policy, while adjusting to the evolving political landscape.

In addition, here are a few more updates:

• Denver mayor releases report card for 2024 – Denver Mayor Mike Johnston touted what he described as successes in reducing homelessness and crime and cited voters’ approval of a $570 million investment and expansion of the Downtown Development Authority as fueling new interest in the heart of the city. Johnston admitted that some areas need improvement. Most notable on the list was Johnston’s pledge to move 2,000 homeless people off the street and into shelters by the end of 2024. At the end of the year, 2,233 people were brought indoors into various forms of housing. That effort has been expensive.

• 2025 will be the year of the budget cut at the Colorado Capitol – After years of steadily increasing funding for K-12, higher education and health care, Colorado lawmakers now face the difficult task of deciding which of their top priorities the state can no longer afford. The state legislature reconvenes in Denver on Wednesday to kick off its 120-day legislative session, an event usually marked by optimism, as newly elected officials and returning lawmakers gather to make good on the promises they made to voters on the campaign trail. But this year’s pledges to improve the lives of Coloradans will be overshadowed by a state budget crunch that ranks among the worst the legislature has faced since the Great Recession. By one estimate, the state faces about a $750 million shortfall. But that doesn’t account for another $350 million in new law enforcement spending that voters approved in November with the passage of Proposition 130.

• Arapahoe County Democrats choose Rep Iman Jodeh to replace District 29 Sen. Janet Buckner – A Democratic vacancy committee in Arapahoe County on Monday night chose Rep. Iman Jodeh of Aurora to succeed state Sen. Janet Buckner. Buckner resigned last month, just weeks after winning an uncontested race for her second term in the state Senate. Jodeh, who won her third term in the House by 25 percentage points in November, defeated two challengers for the seat, including Maya Wheeler and Christian Caldwell. Jodeh won with 35 votes out of 42 cast; Wheeler got seven votes, and Caldwell did not receive any votes.

• Another vacancy up for grabs tonight – On Tuesday, seven candidates are expected to face off to succeed Sen. Chris Hansen of Denver for Senate District 31. Hansen resigned to take a job as CEO of La Plata Electric in Durango. The meeting will begin at 6:30 with a candidates’ forum, with the election following at 7:40 p.m. It will also be livestreamed. The candidates are:
  • Rep-elect Sean Camacho who was elected to represent House District 6 in November. In the June primary election, he defeated the incumbent, Rep. Elisabeth Epps.
  • Rep. Steven Woodrow, who was re-elected to his fourth term in November. Woodrow, known for sometimes inflammatory rhetoric on social media, was the other House sponsor of Polis’ transit-oriented communities bill as well as the 2023 version. His 2024 legislation also included regulations on use of prior restraint and an attempt to prohibit the use of algorithms to set rent.
  • Matthew Ball is the director of policy for the city of Denver.
  • Christian “Chris “Chiari is CEO of Denver-based The 420 Hotels.
  • Iris Halpern is an attorney and partner at Rathod Mohamedbhai LLC.
  • Shaneis Malouff is chief of staff at the Auraria Higher Education Center, which houses the Metropolitan State University of Denver, the Community College of Denver, and the University of Colorado-Denver.
  • Monica VanBuskirk is the CEO of the consulting firm Meapta, Inc. She previously served as chief policy and relationships officer for Connect for Health Colorado.

• Homelessness among families with children in Colorado grew by 134% in 2024, according to federal report – Colorado saw one of the biggest increases in the nation in the number of families who were homeless in 2024 — a 134% jump from the previous year, according to a federal report that painted the state’s homelessness crisis in a harsher light than previous regional counts. The rise put the state among four in the country, including Illinois, Wyoming and Hawaii, where the number of homeless families more than doubled. The results have advocates in Colorado calling for further investment in prevention programs to keep more families from slipping into homelessness.

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Have a great Tuesday!

Best,

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