A Grand Junction city councilman is halting his bid , saying undisclosed “family health issues” will require his attention moving forward.
“To all those who have supported me during this process I am humbled by your generosity and selflessness and friendship,” Democrat Chris Kennedy said in a Wednesday Facebook post. “I could not in good conscious continue this campaign knowing that I would not be able to devote 100 percent of my time and energy over the days and months ahead. You deserve no less than that from your next representative in Congress.”
one of three Democrats running to replace Tipton in next year’s election.
Former , a Steamboat Springs Democrat, has been in the race since July, and Karl Hanlon, a Glenwood Springs Democrat who is the town’s chief legal counsel, .
Tipton’s 3rd Congressional District spans the entirety of the Western Slope and San Luis Valley and also covers Pueblo County.
The district is mainly Republican, and the GOP has a significant advantage in voter registration.
In 2016, Tipton, who was first elected to Congress in 2010 and lives in Cortez, won re-election by about 14 percentage points, by Democrat Gail Schwartz, a former state senator.
