US Rep. Joe Neguse faces repeat election challenge from tech worker in Colorado's 2nd Congressional District

DENVER — Three-term U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse again faces a challenge for his seat in the House of Representatives from a Longmont-based tech worker.

Neguse won the 2nd Congressional District race in 2018 and has held the position since then. He’s risen through the ranks in House Democratic leadership, becoming assistant Democratic leader earlier this year in the minority party caucus.

If reelected in the Nov. 5 election, Neguse, 40, a Lafayette resident, said his top priorities would be enacting policies to grow the middle class, address climate change, protect public lands and reduce gun violence.

Prior to running for Congress, Neguse, an attorney, worked as the executive director of the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies and served on the University of Colorado Board of Regents.

His Republican challenger, Marshall Dawson, 58, works as a manager and engineer for a California-based computer company and, if elected, pledged to try to limit the federal government’s power.

Dawson ran for the seat in 2022 and lost by more than 146,000 votes to Neguse, who garnered 70% of the vote. Also on the ballot this time are Cynthia Munhos de Aquino Sirianni of the Unity Party, Jan Kok of the Approval Voting Party and Gaylon Kent, a Libertarian.

The Democrat-dominated 2nd District spans north-central Colorado and includes Boulder, Fort Collins, Vail, Steamboat Springs, ski-centric Summit County, and ranching communities in Grand, Jackson and Routt counties.

Neguse touted his work on wildfire, public lands and water in an interview with The Denver Post and in responses to a questionnaire sent to all House candidates.

He co-founded the Colorado River caucus and the wildfire caucus to address pressing needs on the shrinking and overused river and in forests impacted by climate change, respectively. He helped launch the Climate Corps — a jobs program for young people who want to address effects of climate change — and introduced bills to restore watersheds after wildfires.

Neguse supports expanding tax credits for the middle class, increasing the federal minimum wage and protecting abortion rights in federal law. If reelected, he would also look to increase investments in renewable energy and prioritize climate change and environmental protection.

Bipartisanship is an important principle of his work in Congress, Neguse said. Since taking office, he has had 18 bipartisan bills signed into law by presidents from both parties.

“Notwithstanding the political divisions in the country, there’s a lot we should and can get done to improve people’s lives,” he said.

Dawson did not respond to an interview request from The Post, nor did he fill out its candidate questionnaire. His campaign website does not list any specific policy proposals.

He attended a debate in September in Grand Junction that was hosted by Club 20, a coalition of Western Slope groups, which Neguse did not attend. Many of Dawson’s remarks focused on reducing regulation and federal bureaucracy. In his comments, Dawson said lack of affordable housing was a regulatory problem because it took too long to obtain building permits.

In the Boulder Daily Camera’s recent questionnaire, Dawson said talking to voters had reinforced his priorities from the 2022 race.

“Overspending and regulatory costs continue to drive higher costs, making it more difficult to make ends meet,” he wrote. “Our open-border administration continues to allow unchecked national crime and fentanyl availability.”

Asked how he would represent the district’s communities, Dawson wrote: “I hear frequently from Gilpin and Clear Creek voters about how they feel underrepresented, however it’s even worse on the Western Slope. I plan to maintain an office on the Western Slope. And, having grown up in a small town, I place a lot of value on protecting lifestyles outside of our urbanized areas.”

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