Primary Campaigns to Watch in Colorado, Part One

Photo: Colorado state senators listen as Colorado Senate President James Coleman, a Denver Democrat, delivers opening remarks on the first day of the 2025 session of the Colorado Legislature on January 8, 2025, at the Colorado Capitol. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline)

This story by Sara Wilson appeared on Colorado Newsline on January 5, 2026. We are sharing it in two parts.

Every single seat in the Colorado House of Representatives and about half of seats in the Colorado Senate will be on the ballot this year.

Democrats have controlled both chambers of the state Legislature since 2019. They currently hold a 43-22 majority in the House and a 23-12 advantage in the Senate. One more vote in each chamber would give Democrats a rare two-thirds supermajority in both houses.

Partisan primaries will be in June, though many will be uncontested. In Colorado, unaffiliated voters can choose which party’s primary to vote in. Primaries with multiple candidates tend to occur in seats where the current lawmaker is term-limited or decided not to seek reelection.

The following are primaries for such seats and those where the incumbent faces a challenge, focused on the political party that currently holds the seat and candidates actively registered with the secretary of state’s office.

Senate District 3
This Pueblo-based district is currently represented by Sen. Nick Hinrichsen, who announced in June that he would not seek reelection. Democrats have held the seat since 2014, and Hinrichsen won with 51.2% of the vote in 2024. Three Democratic candidates are running for the seat:

• Aaron Gutierrez is an attorney and former public defender. He started his own firm in 2022, according to his LinkedIn profile.
• Charles Perko is the president of United Steelworkers Local 3267. He worked at the EVRAZ steel manufacturing plant in Pueblo for nearly 10 years between 2011 and 2021, according to his LinkedIn profile.
• Taylor Voss is the director of philanthropy for Sangre de Cristo Community Care, which provides home health and hospice services. He was previously the president of the Pueblo District 60 Board of Education.

Senate District 34
This Denver district is currently represented by Sen. Julie Gonzales, a term-limited Denver Democrat who is running to unseat U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper next year. Gonzales ran unopposed in 2022. The Democratic primary in the district features three candidates:

• Andrés Carrera is a former political director for Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and worked on policy around affordable housing, homelessness and migrant newcomers to the city, according to his LinkedIn profile. He previously worked as the Deputy Director of Community Engagement for Gov. Jared Polis. He has endorsements from a handful of elected Democratic officials, including Hickenlooper, Sen. Dylan Roberts, Sen. Lindsey Daugherty, Rep. Sean Camacho, Rep. Meghan Lukens and Rep. Sean Camacho.
• Graciela “Chela” Garcia Irlando is the executive director of the Next 100 Coalition, a national organization focused on conservation and the environment. She previously held positions at the Hispanic Access Foundation, Latino Outdoors and the Colorado Democratic Latino Caucus, according to her campaign website. She has endorsements from Rep. Lorena Garcia, Rep. Elizabeth Velasco, CEO of the Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights Dusti Gurule and Voces Unidas CEO Alex Sanchez.
• Michael Guzman has been the director for District C on the RTD Board of Directors since 2023. He most recently worked at Starbucks until September 2025, according to his LinkedIn profile.

House District 2
Democratic Rep. Steven Woodrow announced in August that he is not seeking reelection next year for the Denver district. Woodrow won the seat in 2024 with 74.2% of the vote. Three candidates are running in the Democratic primary:

• Michael Neil is a Denver-based organizer and activist. He volunteers as a citizen lobbyist for the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition.
• Owen Perkins is a journalist with extensive experience covering baseball and other Colorado news. He serves as an election judge in Denver.
• Tracy Winchester was the Deputy Chief of Staff for former Denver Mayor Michael Hancock. She serves as a precinct organizer in the district.

House District 3
Democratic Rep. Meg Froelich represents the Englewood-based district and is term limited. She won the seat in 2024 with 64% of the vote. Two candidates are contesting the district’s Democratic primary:

• Mike Barlow-Roach graduated from law school at the University of Denver in 2025, according to his LinkedIn profile. He has professional experience as a law clerk and in the public defender’s office.
• Gena Ozols is a political consultant with campaign experience for Colorado’s FAMLI leave measure and the constitutional amendment to protect reproductive rights in the state. She was previously the state director for the Colorado Labor Electoral Action Project. She is endorsed by Froelich and many other elected Democrats.

House District 5
Term-limited Democratic Rep. Alex Valdez represents the Denver district. He won in 2024 with 79.6% of the vote. Three Democratic candidates are running in the primary:

• Trevor Jones is the founder and owner of Lynx, an artificial intelligence software company that tracks environmental, social and governance (ESG) conditions for various industries. He serves on the advisory board for the American Clean Resources Group, according to his LinkedIn profile.
• Justine Sandoval is the political director for DeGette’s congressional campaign and statewide engagement manager for Cobalt, according to her LinkedIn profile. She was previously an organizer for the Colorado chapter of Reproductive Freedom for All.
• Rayna Kingston, a Denver-based influencer and community organizer was running and is still registered with the secretary of state’s office, but announced the end of her campaign over the weekend on social media.
  House District 9

Democratic Rep. Emily Sirota currently represents the Denver-based district. She won the seat in 2024 with 74.5% of the vote. She is running to replace Sen. Robert Rodriguez in Senate District 32. Four candidates are running in the Democratic primary:

• Matthew Curry is a chef and small business owner.
• Samuel Valeriano is the health policy manager at Be Well Health and Wellness Initiative, a health advocacy organization. He also has experience as a field organizer for the Colorado Democratic Party and intern in the Legislature, according to his LinkedIn profile.
• Monica Van Buskirk is the vice president of partnerships for Stroke Onward, an organization focused on stroke recovery. She is the former chief policy and relationships officer at Colorado’s individual insurance marketplace. She previously ran in the vacancy election to replace former Sen. Chris Hansen last year.
• Neal Walia most recently worked as the director of policy and government relations at the Colorado Academy of Family Physicians until October 2025, according to his LinkedIn profile. He ran against U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette in the Democratic primary for the 1st Congressional District in 2022. He is endorsed by Coleman, Gonzales, Rep. Steven Woodrow, Rep. Naquetta Ricks, Rep. Eliza Hamrick and Rep. Junie Joseph.

House District 11
House District 11, centered in Longmont, is currently represented by Democratic Rep. Karen McCormick, who was first elected in 2020. She won the seat with 69.3% of the vote in 2024. Two candidates are running in the Democratic primary:

• Brian Brown declared candidacy for the Democratic primary scheduled on June 30, 2026. He will not appear on the ballot for the Democratic primary on June 30, 2026.
• McCormick is running for her fourth term. She is a veterinarian. In the Legislature, she chairs the House Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Committee and sits on the Health and Human Services and Appropriations committees.

House District 16
Republican Rep. Rebecca Keltie announced in October that she will not run for a second term. She won the Colorado Springs-based seat by three votes in 2024 in the closest race in the state. Two Republican primary candidates are running for the seat:

• Jill Haffley is the vice president of the Colorado Springs School District 11 Board of Education, elected in 2023. She is retired history and government teacher in the district. She is endorsed by Keltie.
• Jamie Koch is a secretary and practical government school coordinator at Charis Bible College.

Read Part Two…