By Sara Wilson, Colorado Newsline
State Rep. Iman Jodeh will replace retiring Democratic Sen. Janet Buckner in the Colorado Legislature for Senate District 29, a vacancy committee decided Monday evening.
Jodeh won the appointment with 35 votes in the first round of voting. There were 42 district Democrats who voted in the meeting.
Business owner Maya Wheeler got 7 votes and non-profit leader Christian Caldwell received zero votes.
The result creates a domino effect, as another vacancy committee meeting will need to decide on a replacement for Jodeh. The Aurora Democrat was first elected to the House in 2020 and has run successful legislation on transit-oriented housing development, pricing for epinephrine auto-injectors and the creation of the Office of New Americans.
Jodeh is the first Muslim and first Palestinian-American elected to the state Legislature. She was reelected to Aurora’s House District 41 with about 61% of the vote last November.
“I’m ready to carry forward the values that have guided my work in public service: fairness, inclusion and an unwavering commitment to our democratic principles, and to building a brighter future for all Coloradans,” she said. “I’m deeply moved by the incredible support from our community and my colleagues.”
In a candidate forum before the vote, Jodeh said the Legislature needs to work on protections for immigrants during this upcoming session, which will coincide with Republican President-elect Donald Trump’s first few months in office. Trump vowed during his campaign to initiate mass deportation efforts of undocumented immigrants, singling out Aurora and its growing community of immigrants, many of whom are from Venezuela and South America.
“We need to work with our local governments to maintain or enhance sanctuary policies that prevent local resources from being used to enforce federal immigration laws,” she said.
“We need to invest in programs that support immigrant integration, such as language classes, job training, housing assistance and ensuring families can thrive without fear.”
Buckner announced her resignation from the Senate in November, citing family and health reasons. She was first appointed to the House in 2015 to serve the remainder of her husband’s term after his death and she served in the House until her election to the Senate in 2020.
When a lawmaker resigns or dies during their term, a committee of voters from that lawmaker’s party and district decide on a replacement.
Buckner is one of three senators who stepped down before the start of the upcoming legislative session on Wednesday.
Former Republican Kevin Van Winkle resigned when he won election and then got an early appointment to the Douglas County Board of Commissioners. Republicans appointed former University of Colorado Regent John Carson to replace Van Winkle, according to Colorado Politics.
Democratic Sen. Chris Hansen is also leaving the Senate to take a private sector job. Seven people are running to replace him, including Rep. Steven Woodrow and Rep.-elect Sean Camacho, and Democrats will appoint the new senator on Jan. 7.
The number of resignations and vacancy committees directly following a general election — Buckner and Hansen just won new terms — has prompted calls to reform the process, including from state Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib. The Legislature will have a chance to change how replacements for resigning lawmakers are chosen when they reconvene on Jan. 8.
“I want to congratulate Sen.-elect Iman Jodeh on her win, and I also want to thank Maya Wheeler and Christian Caldwell for running to fill this vacancy,” Murib said in a statement Monday night. “At this critical moment in our nation’s history, we need strong leaders at every level who will fight for everyone to have a fair shot at a great life and a great education in our state. Iman Jodeh will be someone this district can trust to do just that, and I am grateful to everyone who threw their hat into the ring.”
This article originally appeared in Colorado Newsline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Colorado Newsline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Quentin Young for questions: [email protected]. Follow Colorado Newsline on Facebook and X.
