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Jill Haffley Republican
Residence: Colorado Springs
Profession: Retired teacher, current member of the Colorado Springs School District 11 Board
Education: Masters Degree
Experience: 30-year high school U.S. History and government teacher; elected D11 Board of Education member and current vice president; longtime Colorado Springs community leader.
What are your top three priorities, if elected?
1. Affordability: Lower the cost of living by opposing unnecessary taxes and fees, reducing burdensome regulations, and making Colorado more affordable for working families.
2. Public Safety: Support law enforcement, hold violent offenders accountable, and ensure Colorado communities remain safe places to live, work, and raise a family.
3. Constitutional Rights, Individual Liberty & Parental Rights: Protect the constitutional rights and individual liberties of Coloradans, including free speech, religious liberty, the Second Amendment, and the fundamental right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children. Government should protect our freedoms, not continually encroach upon them.
What specific actions would you support to improve affordability for Coloradans, whether aimed at housing costs, tax burdens or other impacts?
Colorado has become increasingly unaffordable, and government should not make it worse. I would oppose unnecessary tax and fee increases, reduce burdensome regulations that drive up housing and business costs, and support policies that increase housing supply while respecting local control and property rights. I would also work to lower energy costs by prioritizing reliability and affordability over costly mandates. Finally, I would scrutinize state spending, eliminate waste and unnecessary programs, and look for opportunities to return more money to taxpayers. Coloradans should be able to afford to live, work, raise their families, and retire in the state they call home.
Whether your party is in the majority or minority next year, where do you see actionable common ground with the opposing party?
Coloradans expect us to solve problems, not argue about them. I believe there is actionable common ground on improving public safety, expanding access to mental health care, addressing Colorado’s housing shortage, strengthening our workforce, supporting small businesses, and ensuring students receive a strong education. I will work with anyone who brings forward a good idea that benefits the people of Colorado. Working across the aisle does not require abandoning principles; it requires listening, finding areas of agreement, and being willing to do the hard work of governing. My focus will be on practical solutions and results, not who gets the credit.
A new governor will take office next year. What opportunities are there for legislation or other changes that did not gain traction under Gov. Jared Polis?
A new administration creates an opportunity to reconsider policies that have increased costs or expanded government at the expense of individual liberty. I would support reducing taxes and mandatory fees, cutting unnecessary regulations that burden families and small businesses, and pursuing an energy policy that prioritizes affordability and reliability. I also believe we have an opportunity to strengthen public safety, protect parental rights, restore greater respect for local control, and safeguard constitutional rights, including the Second Amendment. Colorado needs a government that lives within its means and focuses on making our state safer, freer, and more affordable.
Steph Vigil Democrat
Residence: Colorado Springs
Profession:
Education:
Experience:
What are your top three priorities, if elected?
Transportation and housing: Coloradans deserve choices for where to live, work, and play that actually work for them, and that will make our state’s economy vibrant and sustainable.
Worker empowerment: we need new tools and protections to ensure that the future of work pans out for the good of all Coloradans.
Civil liberties and human rights: there’s no sugar-coating this – the Federal government under Trump 2.0 is hostile to core Colorado values like the right to self-determination and free expression, punishes our state for not submitting to the Presidentap will, and terrorizes immigrant families. We must protect Coloradans from this overreach.
What specific actions would you support to improve affordability for Coloradans, whether aimed at housing costs, tax burdens or other impacts?
Coloradans’ wages have not kept pace with the cost of living, and it doesn’t have to be like this. I will be a co-sponsor for the Worker Protection Act so that more working people can organize for better pay and working conditions, cracking down on corporate abuses like wage theft, surveillance pricing, and environmental damage, and creating more housing and transportation choices for Colorado families. We should be investing our dollars, and our precious natural resources, in services and opportunities for ordinary people in Colorado. Itap our money, and the state should spend it on our wellbeing instead of corporate giveaways.
Whether your party is in the majority or minority next year, where do you see actionable common ground with the opposing party?
This sometimes surprises people, but bipartisanship is the norm in the Colorado General Assembly. Most bills get at least one vote from the minority, and many of those are even prime sponsored by a minority caucus member. I’ve observed a couple of policy areas that go beyond partisanship in Colorado, such as preserving the great outdoors and protecting our beautiful state, and having reliable and efficient public services, even if we disagree on what all should be public. I always welcome the opportunity to find common ground across the aisle, both in committee and on the House floor.
A new governor will take office next year. What opportunities are there for legislation or other changes that did not gain traction under Gov. Jared Polis?
One of the clearest opportunities is taking a firm stand for working people. This notably includes reforming Colorado’s Labor Peace Act, which requires workers to conduct a second election, and achieve a steep 75% of the vote, to fully unionize. Diminished worker power combined with escalating corporate consolidation has played a major role in the decline of working-class prosperity, and we are feeling the squeeze. I believe our next Governor will be stronger overall in putting ordinary working people first and holding corporate actors accountable for how their behavior affects our communities.
John Hjersman Libertarian Party
Residence: Colorado Springs
Profession: Marine Engineer, Retired
Education: B.S. Marine Engineering
Experience: Supervision of merchant seamen, engine department. Operation and maintenance of American container ships.
What are your top three priorities, if elected?
de-politicized public education; more public oversight of medical insurance practices; lowest possible energy costs; honoring the Second Amendment as originally intended.
What specific actions would you support to improve affordability for Coloradans, whether aimed at housing costs, tax burdens or other impacts?
I would oppose taxing Coloradans for programs of which they do not approve.
Affordable energy is closer to an existential issue than CO2 emissions, so I would support nuclear energy for Colorado.
Whether your party is in the majority or minority next year, where do you see actionable common ground with the opposing party?
Opposing new legislation regarding abortion. Reducing medical costs for Coloradans. Sane, aware climate policies.
A new governor will take office next year. What opportunities are there for legislation or other changes that did not gain traction under Gov. Jared Polis?
Reducing harassing and unconstitutional restrictions on gun possession and usage. Eliminating sanctuary locations designed to block national law enforcement.
