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Michelle Lee Republican
Residence: Commerce City
Profession: Executive Advisor
Education:
Experience: I am a longtime Colorado community advocate, business owner, and public-service professional with more than 30 years of experience living and working in Colorado.
What are your top three priorities, if elected?
Make Colorado affordable again by addressing rising housing costs, lowering the cost of living, and helping working families make ends meet.
Address homelessness by expanding access to mental-health services, addiction treatment, shelter, and permanent housing.
Bring businesses and jobs back to Colorado while protecting our children by supporting local businesses, strengthening the economy, and ensuring kids are safe and have the opportunity to succeed.
What specific actions would you support to improve affordability for Coloradans, whether aimed at housing costs, tax burdens or other impacts?
I would support increasing affordable housing, reducing unnecessary regulations, controlling property-tax increases, and holding HOAs and special districts accountable. I would also work to cut wasteful government spending, support small businesses, and lower everyday costs for Colorado families
Whether your party is in the majority or minority next year, where do you see actionable common ground with the opposing party?
Regardless of which party is in the majority, I believe we can find common ground on two priorities: protecting kids and making Colorado more affordable.
We can work together to strengthen child-safety protections, support parents, improve transparency in schools and youth-serving institutions, and ensure that children are protected from abuse, exploitation, and harmful policies. These should be shared responsibilities—not partisan issues.
On affordability, both parties should be able to support increasing housing supply, reducing unnecessary regulations, controlling property-tax growth, cutting wasteful spending, and helping small businesses create jobs. I’m willing to work with anyone who is serious about delivering practical results for Colorado families.
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 governor could create an opportunity to advance legislation focused on affordability, parental rights, and accountability—priorities that have not gained enough traction under Gov. Polis.
We should pursue meaningful property-tax relief, reduce regulatory barriers to housing, streamline small-business licensing, and improve oversight of special districts and state agencies. We can also strengthen parental access to education and accountability in child-serving institutions. These practical reforms would help lower costs, protect families, and restore trust in government.
Chris VanDijk Democrat
Residence: Commerce City
Profession: Firefighter
Education: MPP, University of Colorado Denver
Experience: Active Firefighter/Engineer and EMT; IAFF Local 5124 Union Representative; U.S. Navy Reserve Veteran; Master of Public Policy (UC Denver); Stay-at-home dad.
What are your top three priorities, if elected?
Healthcare Access & Affordable Living: Expanding accessible care, including first-responder-led community medicine, while tackling housing affordability and everyday costs facing local families.
Public Safety & Community Resiliency: Proactive community safety, emergency preparedness, and building neighborhoods that are resilient to wildfire threats through my experience as a frontline firefighter.
Fair Wages & Worker Rights: Championing fair pay, stronger union protections, and relief for regular working families based on my labor advocacy background.
What specific actions would you support to improve affordability for Coloradans, whether aimed at housing costs, tax burdens or other impacts?
To lower costs for working families, I will tackle corporate price-gouging and ban algorithmic surveillance pricing that artificially inflates everyday expenses. On housing, the state legislature must play an active role in building partnerships among municipal leaders, trades, finance, and builders. By expanding programs like the Middle-Income Housing Tax Credit, cutting red tape, and unlocking creative financing, we can significantly increase supply and build real workforce housing. As a firefighter and dad, I know Coloradans need actionable solutions, not just talk, to keep living costs manageable.
Whether your party is in the majority or minority next year, where do you see actionable common ground with the opposing party?
Healthcare access is a bipartisan priority, and I see major common ground in expanding community-led healthcare programs. I plan to introduce legislation to establish a statewide framework for integrating fire departments and 911 dispatch into proactive community care.
By partnering with local family practitioners and hiring nurse practitioners and physician assistants, fire departments can deliver non-emergency medical care, routine checks, and post-discharge follow-ups directly in homes. Empowering first responders and primary care clinicians to manage basic health needs in neighborhoods reduces emergency room overcrowding and lowers local tax burdens. This collaborative model offers a sensible, cost-effective solution both parties can support.
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?
With a new administration taking office, a fresh gubernatorial transition reopens the door to advance critical labor and safety protections:
Reintroducing worker protection legislation allows Colorado to modernize state labor laws, empowering workers to organize through a streamlined single-election process and ensuring fair wages, safer workplaces, and stronger collective bargaining rights.
Creating a dedicated State Fire Marshal will replace fragmented oversight with unified leadership. A centralized marshal establishes consistent statewide fire codes, coordinates rapid emergency response across municipal lines, streamlines wildfire mitigation efforts, and ensures standardized safety inspections and investigator support, directing critical resources to high-risk areas.
