Our choices for the Colorado House

Published October 12, 2006 at midnight

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Today we endorse in state House districts for metro Denver. Our decisions are based on the candidates' political views, of course, but also their effectiveness (if they've been in office), persuasiveness and their experience both within and outside politics. We do not endorse in races where the candidate is unopposed.

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House District 1 (southwest Denver, Arapahoe, Jefferson): Republican Aimee Rathburn, a community activist with extensive experience in fund-raising for nonprofits, gets our nod in this open seat for her sensible ideas on expanding water supplies on the Front Range, education reform and fiscal responsibility. Her opponent is Democratic attorney Jeanne Labuda, a former liaison to southwest Denver in Mayor Wellington Webb's administration.

HD 2 (southwest Denver): Incumbent Democrat Mike Cerbo is unopposed.

HD 3 (south Denver, Arapahoe): Incumbent Democrat Anne McGihon is unopposed.

HD 4 (northwest Denver): Democrat Jerry Frangas is an effective lawmaker who is running for the third time against Republican Rick Nevin. Among his accomplishments, Frangas co-authored the law that doubled traffic fines in construction zones.

HD 5 (Denver): Incumbent Democrat Joel Judd is unopposed.

HD 6: (Denver, Arapahoe): House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, who faces Republican Jeffrey Hecht, clearly deserves another term. As speaker, he helped push fiscal reform onto the state ballot and then saw to it that the resources from Referendum C were allocated according to what voters were promised.

HD 7 (Denver): Incumbent Democrat Terrance Carroll is unopposed.

HD 8 (Denver): Incumbent Democrat Rosemary Marshall is unopposed.

HD 9: (Denver, Arapahoe): Incumbent Democrat Alice Borodkin is unopposed.

HD 10 (Boulder): Incumbent Democrat Alice Madden is unopposed.

HD 11: (Boulder): Incumbent Democrat Jack Pommer of Boulder shepherded through the legislature a law that would require private toll roads like the proposed Super Slab project to withstand the same state oversight as public highway proposals. Give Pommer credit for his persistence, since Gov. Bill Owens vetoed a similar measure last year. Pommer has earned re-election over Republican Catherine Jarrett.

HD 12 (Boulder): Incumbent Democrat Paul Weissmann is unopposed.

HD 13 (Boulder, Clear Creek, Gilpin): Democrat Claire Levy is too far to the left for our taste, but her only opponent, Libertarian Rand Fanshier, calls Ref C a "scam." No, it wasn't. Vote for Levy.

HD 22 (Jefferson): Two newcomers seek this open seat. Republican Kenneth Summers, a minister with experience managing nonprofit groups, is pitted against elementary school civics teacher Jayson Haberkorn, a Democrat. Summers has garnered support from a broad base of Republicans, including former state Sen. Norma Anderson, and would be a thoughtful advocate for government restraint in regulatory matters..

HD 23: (Jefferson): This rematch pits first-term Democrat Gwyn Green of Golden against Republican Ramey Johnson, who lost the seat by 41 votes in 2004. Green stood out in the legislature for mainly negative reasons, including her embrace of an anti-business agenda. We backed the moderate Johnson in 2004, and she again deserves to win the seat.

HD 24 (Jefferson): Incumbent Democrat Cheri Jahn is unopposed.

HD 25 (Jefferson): Republican incumbent Rob Witwer, who succeeded his father, pushed to ensure that the gift-reform law passed by the legislature incorporates quarterly rather than annual disclosure. He's considered a rising star in his party. Witwer is the clear choice over Democrat Mike Daniels, who would limit the expansion of charter schools.

HD 26 (Jefferson): Democrat Andy Kerr, picked to replace Betty Boyd this year when she took a vacant Senate seat, is seeking his first full term in this Lakewood district, and deserves to win it. Kerr assumed office after much of the legislature's business was complete, but he hit the ground running and is well regarded by his colleagues. His Republican opponent, Glenn Rhoades, founder and former president of the Colorado Nanotechnology Initiative, is too comfortable with the idea of using public funds and tax breaks to prop up fledgling technology businesses.

HD 27 (Jefferson): Incumbent Republican Bill Crane stood out this session by sponsoring House Bill 1326, the law that made identity theft a felony. He gets our nod over Democrat Sara Gagliardi, a licensed practical nurse.

HD 28 (Jefferson): Republican Jim Kerr was appointed to this seat when his predecessor resigned in November 2004. He's eager to push market-oriented health-care reforms and as a former property appraiser in the Jeffco Assessor's Office, has demonstrated sound knowledge of state finances. His Democratic opponent is the populist-sounding Thomas Dittemore.

HD 29 (Jefferson): We recommend talented Republican challenger Affie Ellis over first-term incumbent Debbie Benefield. Ellis has policy experience at both the state and federal level, having worked both for the Owens administration and as a senior adviser to U.S. Sen. Craig Thomas, R-Wyo., specializing in natural resource and American Indian issues.

HD 30 (Adams): We endorsed Democratic incumbent Mary Hodge in 2004 and haven't had cause to think we were wrong. But Republican challenger Darrin Dutcher has a future in politics.

HD 31 (Adams): Republican challenger Rex Pierce is our clear choice over the anti-business incumbent, Democrat Judy Solano, who introduced the dreadful "Wal-Mart" bill intending to force a few companies to pay more for their employees' health insurance. She also introduced a bill that would have seriously weakened Colorado's standards and testing policies. Pierce is a former Marine Corps captain and a substitute teacher and coach.

HD 32 (Adams): This open seat previously held by Democrat Val Vigil has drawn two attractive newcomers. Republican Tracey Snyder is a member of the Commerce City Council while Democrat Ed Casso has been active in party politics since college. We like them both, but our nod goes to Snyder.

HD 33 (Adams, Boulder, Broomfield and Weld): Republican Bill Berens has done a good job in his first term, and he is especially effective at working across party lines. A former Broomfield mayor, he brought a wealth of experience to the legislature and earns our support over Democrat Dianne Primavera.

HD 34 (Adams): Incumbent Democrat John Soper is unopposed.

HD 35 (Adams): Democrat Cherylin Peniston is a thoughtful alternative to a Republican candidate, Ruben Pacheco, who has not run a very active campaign.

HD 36 (Arapahoe): First-term Democrat Morgan Carroll has proved to be an energetic and effective legislator, and even though we didn't endorse her in 2004, we are pleased to be able to do so now. Her Republican opponent is Brian Boney.

HD 37 (Arapahoe): This open seat was previously held by Republican Laurie Clapp, and we recommend Republican Spencer Swalm as her successor. He has some good ideas about insurance reform and how to improve statewide testing, while Democrat Angela Engel supports measures that would render testing largely ineffective.

HD 38 (Arapahoe, Jefferson): Democrat Joe Rice - a veteran of the war in Iraq - is the best choice for this open seat vacated by Republican Joe Stengel. A former mayor of Glendale, he has experience corralling fractious groups into successful coalitions, a skill likely to serve him well in the legislature. But Republican Matt Dunn, a dentist who serves on the state's Medical Services Board, also offers valuable experience.

HD 39 (Arapahoe): Republican David Balmer has been able to work effectively with the Democratic leadership while also being an effective opponent of such jobs-killing legislation as the Wal-Mart bill that lawmakers considered last session. He is opposed by Democrat Mollie Cullom.

HD 40 (Arapahoe, Elbert): Republican Debbie Stafford deserves re-election over Democratic challenger Matt Bryant, who can't match her experience. She wants to increase transparency in health care, in Medicaid specifically, so that people making treatment decisions are able to compare costs.

HD 41 (Denver, Arapahoe): First-term Democrat Nancy Todd, who is opposed by GOP newcomer Clyde Robinson, has shown she can work with members of both parties to craft policies. She served on a panel appointed by Gov. Owens to move toward tougher academic standards for high school juniors and seniors.

HD 42 (Arapahoe): Democrat Michael Garcia, a member of the House since 2001, worked his way up to the position of assistant majority leader in the past session. Sensible and experienced, he deserves re-election. There is a Green Party alternative, Tim Babbidge, but no Republican opponent.

HD 43 (Douglas): Two good candidates are running in this district formerly represented by Ted Harvey. We give the edge to Republican Frank McNulty, assistant director for water in the Department of Natural Resources. Water is a big issue in Douglas County, and McNulty's experience will serve the district well. Democrat Allen Dreher is a worthy challenger, having served as a member of the Highlands Ranch Metropolitan District for six years.

HD 44 (Douglas): Republican Mike May, the House minority leader, is our choice over Democratic challenger Lois Huff. May did a good job replacing Joe Stengel, who left the leadership post after embarrassing revelations about his abuse of per diem pay. May is easy to get along with, not overly combative and was able to work with majority Democrats. His conservatism reflects the thinking of his district. Huff is a traditional liberal who supports a single-payer health care system.

HD 45 (Douglas and Teller): Former telecom entrepreneur Victor Mitchell, a Republican, gets the nod over Democrat Linda Constantine, a technology consultant. Mitchell has founded a series of successful companies and started Project Lifesaver in Douglas County, an affiliate of an international organization that works with families of Alzheimer's patients. He'll be a strong voice for school reform and fiscal conservatism.

The News will endorse in state Senate races on Friday. See all of our endorsements at http://www.rockymountainnews.com/ drmn/elections/

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