Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District is the third-largest geographically in the state and includes 11 of the state’s counties: Boulder, Weld, Clear Creek, Eagle, Gilpin, Grand, Jefferson, Larimer, Summit, Jackson and Routt counties.
The Northern Front Range, Central Mountains and Western Slope regions of Colorado all fall within the district’s boundaries, making the demographic makeup of the district varied and diverse. Many of the state’s prominent mountain ski towns and several long-established agricultural communities are represented by Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District.
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The district is also home to Colorado’s two largest universities: the University of Colorado Boulder and Colorado State University, both of which are top research institutions and have Division I athletic programs.
There are five candidates on the ballot for the 2nd Congressional District, and voters will select one candidate to represent the district in the 119th Congress as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Joe Neguse
Democratic candidate Rep. Joe Neguse is currently serving his third term in the U.S. House of Representatives. Neguse has represented the 2nd district since being sworn into office in January 2019 following his win in the 2018 midterm election, earning 60.3% of the vote.
Neguse attended the University of Colorado Boulder for both his undergraduate degree and law school. Prior to his election to Congress, he served as a member of the Colorado Governor’s Cabinet and on the University of Colorado Board of Regents as the representative from District 2.
Currently, Neguse serves on the House Committee on Natural Resources, House Committee on Rules and House Committee on the Judiciary and is the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Federal Lands. As a congressman, 25 bills sponsored by Neguse have been passed and signed into law.
Neguse has introduced several pieces of legislation focused on natural disaster assistance, land conservation, education and workplace reforms and economic development programs. Neguse’s priorities this election are to continue working to protect public lands, focus on economic opportunities and work for more affordable housing and education.
“I’d like to continue doing the work that needs to be done to build a brighter future for every Coloradan,” Neguse said. “Public service should be rooted in precisely that: service, which means listening first, building coalitions, being willing to have conversations with folks who might have a different worldview than yours and ultimately coming together, collaborating to find ways to build consensus on tough issues — all of which is focused on trying to build more opportunities for every American to be able to live their dreams.”
Marshall Dawson
Marshall Dawson is the Republican candidate for the Colorado 2nd Congressional District for the second time, having first run against Neguse in 2022. He won 28% of the vote in the election, earning a total of 97,700 votes.
Originally from Kentucky, Dawson earned a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Kentucky. He previously worked for IBM prior to moving to Colorado in 1997. Currently, Dawson resides in Longmont, Colorado, and works in development for Advanced Micro Devices, a semiconductor corporation that develops computer parts.
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His campaign focuses on individual liberties through promoting government transparency and limiting the role of the federal government. These goals are summed up by Dawson in his campaign slogan, “Peace. Power. Prosperity.” which is the philosophy by which he has modeled his campaign platform.
In a Ballotpedia survey, Dawson defined the goals of peace and power as collectively protecting individual freedoms and shifting power from the government to the people. His campaign has focused on his third goal of prosperity regarding economic policy.
“Our poor economy and high inflation is harming many Americans,” Marshall said in the survey. “By continuing to borrow and print money, Congress is effectively robbing us of our purchasing power, so we must unleash the economy by getting the spending under control. A responsible Congress will put an end to the practice of continuing resolutions.”
Cynthia Munhos de Aquino Sirianni
Cynthia Munhos de Aquino Sirianni is on the ballot in the general election this year as the Unity Party’s candidate for Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District. She previously ran for elected office as Unity Party candidate Paul Noel Fiorino’s running mate in Fiorino’s campaign for Colorado governor in 2022.
Currently, Sirianni works as a security guard and is an active proponent of mental health care access and environmental policy. Sirianni’s campaign has primarily focused on foreign aid and American intervention in foreign conflicts.
In an interview with the Coloradoan, Sirianni said her top concern as a candidate is foreign military aid, specifically to Israel.
“I support political self-determination for all people within the context of respect for human rights,” Sirianni said. “I feel morally compelled to stand against crimes against humanity funded by our tax dollars. I support an arms embargo to end military aid to Israel.”
Beyond this, Sirianni prioritizes addressing environmental concerns and the cost of living, highlighting carbon tax policies, changing pesticide standards and supporting universal basic income and universal health care policies.
Jan Kok
Jan Kok is the Approval Voting Party’s candidate for the Colorado 2nd Congressional District. Kok signed a declaration to serve no more than three terms if elected to office, something all Approval Voting Party candidates on the ballot in Colorado did.
Kok received a Bachelor of Science in computer science from CSU in 1994 and previously served as an election judge in Larimer County. He is currently a software engineer residing in Fort Collins.
As a member of the Approval Voting Party, Kok’s campaign platform echoes the main goal of the party, which is to change the electoral system in the United States. Kok is concerned that the current voting methods used in the country do not reflect the will of the people, an issue he said he believes can be fixed by changing the country’s voting system to a proportional approval voting system rather than the single-member district first-past-the-post system currently in place.
The Approval Voting Party was founded in Colorado and does not platform any issues outside of electoral reform. Therefore, Kok focuses exclusively on raising awareness for the approval voting method of voting, which would allow voters to vote for multiple candidates as a form of approval rather than selecting a single candidate.
Gaylon Kent
The final candidate on the ballot in the Colorado 2nd Congressional District is Libertarian Party candidate Gaylon Kent. Kent has been a candidate in the general election three times prior to this year’s election. He was the Libertarian candidate for Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District in 2016 and 2018 and was the Libertarian candidate for U.S. Senator from Colorado in 2014.
Kent is a writer who currently resides in Hayden, Colorado. His campaign focus has primarily been imposing a flat tax rate of 5% on incomes over $50,000 and getting rid of a federal minimum wage, reflective of his belief that there should be no government interference on the American worker’s income. Kent proposed decriminalizing drugs to address shortcomings in the war on drugs in America, and he emphasizes supporting free markets and upholding ideals of personal freedom and individual accountability.
Kent also expressed support for abolishing the death penalty. His campaign reflects the Libertarian Party’s principles of keeping government out of the personal lives of American voters. His candidacy in this election marks the third time he has run in a general election for the U.S. House in Colorado, but it is the first time he’s run in the Colorado 2nd Congressional District.
Reach Hannah Parcells at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @HannahParcells.
