4 NOVEMBER 28-DECEMBER 4, 2024 westword.com WESTWORD | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | Empty Promises TWO COLORADO STATE SENATORS RESIGNED WEEKS AFTER THEY WERE RE-ELECTED TO THEIR SEATS. A THIRD IS STEPPING DOWN HALFWAY THROUGH HIS FOUR-YEAR TERM. BY HANNAH METZGER Three weeks ago, Colorado voters selected state senators to represent them in the Capi- tol for the next four years. But in two dis- tricts, the winning candidates have already stepped down. Democratic senators Chris Hansen and Janet Buckner both submitted letters of resig- nation mere weeks after they were re-elected to their seats on November 5. A third senator, Republican Kevin Van Winkle, announced his resignation on Friday, November 22, two years into his fi rst four-year Senate term after he was elected to be a county commissioner. Replacements for all three senators will be chosen via vacancy committees — groups led by the outgoing senators’ political party, consisting of local precinct organizers, party offi cers and other registered members. The committees, which typically comprise a few dozen people, are a far cry from the tens of thousands of Coloradans who just voted Hansen and Buckner back into offi ce. Now, some are calling for change to the state’s vacancy system. “The growing number of senators and representatives of both parties serving in offi ce as a result of vacancy committee se- lections and not traditional elections should concern every Coloradan, and it certainly concerns me,” says Shad Murib, chair of the Colorado Democratic Party. “The time is now to consider ways to make this process better.” The Colorado Democratic Party isn’t alone. The state Republican Party is also discussing reform options, and the Liber- tarian Party is speaking harshly against the current system, saying the vacancy commit- tee process “undermines the very essence of democratic representation” in a social media post responding to the resignations. Critics say the vacancy system allows state legislators to strategically step down after elections instead of beforehand to ensure their party maintains control of their district or to have a stronger say in who re- places them — but Buckner, Hansen and Van Winkle claim that’s not the case for them. Why They Resigned “The past year has been very challeng- ing,” Buckner says. “People sometimes forget that lawmakers are human, too, facing life’s unpredictabilities just like anyone else.” Buckner’s niece and her godson recently passed away, she says. On top of mourning those deaths, Buckner expe- rienced a health scare in the fall that turned out to be a false alarm. “That really put life in perspective. In the interim, I talked to my family and close friends about my priorities. That’s when I decided to prioritize myself,” Buckner says. “It was time for me to go. I have been as consider- ate as I could be with my timing, but it happened sud- denly. This is just life.” Upon leaving offi ce in January, Buckner says, she wants to spend time with her family and mentor members of her community on how to run for public offi ce. Buckner represents Senate District 29 in Arapahoe County. She ran unopposed in the general and primary elections this year. Her district is solidly blue, leaning 29.4 percent in favor of Democrats, according to the state redistricting commission, so it wasn’t a seat the party was in danger of losing this election. “I knew when I resigned that there might be controversy. I took all of that into consid- eration before I gave my resignation, because I do care what people think. But I also know that sometimes situations happen that are out of your control,” Buckner says. “I’m hoping that people will give me some grace and know that I did this because I needed to step back for personal reasons.” Buckner herself fi rst entered the legis- lature via a vacancy committee, taking over her husband, John Buckner’s, House seat after he passed away in 2015. She says she trusts the vacancy process to fi nd the right replacement for her, adding that she hasn’t endorsed anyone to fi ll the vacancy and doesn’t plan to. Hansen was also previously appointed via a vacancy committee, replacing Senator Lois Court in 2020 after she resigned due to illness. He’s now leaving after being hired as CEO of La Plata Electric Association Inc. Hansen says he had no plans to leave the Senate while running for re-election. He claims he wasn’t seeking other employ- ment, but says the company reached out to him in early September and offered him the position in October. By his timeline, he accepted the offer on November 9, four days after the election. “This timing was not of my choosing,” Hansen says. “It was a very hard decision. Ultimately, though, this was an opportunity that was a pretty incredible way to continue my career and a way to continue to serve in the state of Colorado, and something that I think fi t my background and skills very well.” Hansen says it was also the “best decision for my family,” noting that his two sons are about to start college: “It’s very diffi cult to send your kids to college on a state Senate salary.” Hansen has received the bulk of the fl ak for his resignation — in part because unlike Buckner, Hansen endorsed a replacement to fi ll his Senate seat: Representative-elect Sean Camacho, whom voters just elected this month to serve two years in the House. Hansen then endorsed a replacement for his replacement, advocating for Katie March to take Camacho’s House seat, spurring accusa- tions of backroom deals and insider politics. While calling for vacancy reforms, Murib specifi cally raised concerns about growing public speculation “that lawmakers strategize their resignations to hand-pick their replace- ments, or climb the ladder of elected offi ce.” In addition, the fact that Hansen unsuc- cessfully ran for Denver mayor in 2023 cre- ates the perception that he intended to leave the Senate long before his re-election this month. Hansen says that was not his plan. “I couldn’t reject that more strongly,” he says. “That is defi nitely not the case. I was poised to be back on the [Joint Budget Committee for the Senate]; I was looking at running for state treasurer. So that is totally a false narrative.” Hansen’s Senate District 31 in Denver is the fourth most Democrat-dominated district in the state, leaning 60.4 percent blue, accord- ing to the redistricting commission. Hansen won 83.92 percent of the vote this year, over Libertarian David Aitken’s 16.08 percent. He faced no Republican challenger and ran unop- posed in the Democratic primary. Van Winkle is also resigning from his Sen- ate seat, though he was elected in 2022. He was elected to become a Doug- las County Commissioner on November 5, receiving 57.7 percent of the vote over Democrat Josh Smith. “I’ve been incredibly transparent about my in- tention to run for Douglas County Commissioner, and I’m grateful to the people of Douglas County who have placed their trust in me to pursue this new role,” Van Winkle says. While Van Winkle has largely avoided public backlash, with his resigna- tion falling further from his election than the others, he still wants to clarify: “I don’t get to hand-pick any succes- sor. There will be several candidates and an open, transparent meeting of the vacancy committee.” “The rules are fair, and don’t favor any one candidate,” he adds. “If others want to change them, take over your party and change the statutory bylaws like the process is designed. Whatever issues we may have, more transparency and democracy by rule of law is always the best way to go.” All three of the resignations will take effect on January 9, the day after the 2025 legislative session begins. Vacancy com- mittees will be held in early January. The replacements will serve in the Senate for the next two years, needing to run for election in 2026 to continue holding the seat. Potential Change on the Horizon Colorado is one of only fi ve states that use party-led vacancy committees to fi ll open legislative seats when a lawmaker resigns, is removed or dies before a term is fi nished. Most states use special elections to choose a replacement for legislators who leave offi ce early; others allow the governor or Board of County Commissioners to appoint a re- placement. During the 2024 legislative session, nearly three in ten Colorado legislators had at one point been placed in the Statehouse via a vacancy committee. Next session, that number will be at least nineteen out of 100, with more possible depending on whether House representatives are chosen to fi ll the Senate openings, according to Colorado Politics. Advocates of Colorado’s vacancy com- mittee system champion it for being faster and cheaper than special elections, which can take months to accomplish and cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. The faster the vacancy process, the quicker the district’s citizens get representation in the State Capi- tol, they say. And NEWS KEEP UP ON DENVER NEWS AT WESTWORD.COM/NEWS continued on page 6 “People sometimes forget that lawmakers are human, too,” one of the outgoing senators says. HANNAH METZGER
