Latest news with #Caraveo
Axios
17-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
How a primary could shape the 8th Congressional race
Democrat Yadira Caraveo's challenge to Republican U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans for the 8th District seat is making Colorado's most competitive congressional race just a little more complicated. State of play: The district, stretching from the suburbs north of Denver toward Greeley, is currently considered a toss-up — and pivotal if Democrats want to retake a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. Yes, but: Before Caraveo can seek a rematch with Evans, who defeated her in last year's election, she will face a Democratic primary against state Rep. Manny Rutinel of Commerce City, who announced his candidacy in January. Why it matters: Research suggests a competitive primary can translate to higher voter engagement and turnout in the general election, University of Denver political science assistant professor Phil Chen tells us. It will mark the first contested Democratic primary for a district created after the 2020 census; Caraveo ran unopposed in the 2022 and 2024 primaries. The big picture: The strongest primary candidate will probably be whoever can prove to voters they're both willing and able to rebuke President Trump's policies in Congress. Context: Caraveo, Rutinel and other possible candidates will be gunning for the nomination of a party whose favorability has sunk statewide since last November. Many Democratic voters are frustrated over what they see as an inadequate response to Trump. What they're saying: Voters want "fighting Democrats" who will stand up to the president, Colorado Working Families Party state director Wynn Howell tells us. Friction point: "We're a little too early to really know whether the [Democratic] primary will be competitive," Chen adds. Zoom in: Caraveo, in a statement, said Evans has "already shown that he will always put Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and his MAGA backers in Washington first." Rutinel tells us in a statement he's focused on priorities people in his district care about, including protecting Medicaid, making housing more affordable and supporting workers. The other side: "Democrats officially have a base problem and are in an all-out primary battle to the left," Evans' spokesperson Delanie Bomar said in a statement, adding there's a "messy" primary ahead. Zach Bannon, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee, in a statement labeled Caraveo "another out-of-touch liberal" and called Rutinel an "extreme Democrat." By the numbers: Rutinel has an early fundraising edge, collecting $1.2 million during the year's first quarter, outraising the roughly $811,000 haul by Evans during the same span, per federal record filings.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Colorado Democrat Yadira Caraveo launches bid for seat she narrowly lost
Former Rep. Yadira Caraveo (D-Colo.) announced Tuesday that she's running for her old House seat in Colorado's 8th Congressional District, which she narrowly lost last cycle to Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.). 'The 8th District deserves a representative who's looking out for them but Gabe Evans has already shown that he will always put Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and his MAGA backers in Washington first,' she said in a post on Facebook. 'I can't stand by while Gabe Evans tries to rip away health care from tens of thousands of Coloradans, including the very families I served as a pediatrician, and make life harder for working families,' she continued. 'Now more than ever, Coloradans need a leader who will stand up for them and do the right thing – I'm ready to continue doing just that.' Caraveo was first elected to the Colorado seat, which is situated between Fort Collins and Denver and includes Greeley, in 2022, after the state added another district following the decennial census. But the pediatrician-turned-lawmaker lost her seat to Evans in November by roughly three-fourths of a percentage point. Caraveo, however, isn't the only Democrat who's already announced a bid — state Rep. Manny Rutinel has thrown his hat into the ring as well as John Szemler, a process improvement consultant. Others could join the field, too. Zach Bannon, a regional press secretary with the National Republican Congressional Committee, said Caraveo 'is jumping in a competitive primary that is certain to be a fight to the far left to stay relevant.' 'Whoever emerges from the Democrats' radical rat race will be just another out-of-touch liberal ready to be rejected by Coloradans,' he added in a post on social platform X. The seat is rated by the nonpartisan election handicapper Cook Political Report as a 'toss up.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former Rep. Yadira Caraveo launches bid to win back Colorado's 8th District seat
U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo, a Democrat from Thornton, speaks at a press conference in Brighton on Aug. 2, 2023. (Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline) Former Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo is seeking a rematch in 2026 against Rep. Gabe Evans, the Republican who unseated her in Colorado's 8th Congressional District last year. 'The 8th District deserves a representative who's looking out for them but Gabe Evans has already shown that he will always put Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and his MAGA backers in Washington first,' Caraveo said in a press release Tuesday announcing her 2026 campaign. 'I can't stand by while Gabe Evans tries to rip away health care from tens of thousands of Coloradans, including the very families I served as a pediatrician, and make life harder for working families.' Caraveo was elected in 2022 as the first-ever representative for the 8th District, drawn by an independent redistricting commission after Colorado was awarded an additional congressional seat following the 2020 census. The district encompasses parts of Denver's northern suburbs as well as more rural areas in southern Weld County. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The district is the state's most diverse — about 40% of its residents are Latino — and most competitive House seat. Caraveo won election in 2022 by about 1,600 votes out of more than 236,000 ballots cast, then lost to Evans by about 2,500 votes last year. During her time in Congress, Caraveo faced criticism from some progressive Democrats for her moderate voting record, which represented a move to the center relative to her tenure in the state Legislature, where she was a representative. She said during her 2024 reelection bid that her political shift reflected what she called a 'responsibility to portray the opinions of my constituents' in a 'very evenly divided' district. By contrast, Evans, also former state representative, has been an unapologetic supporter of his party's agenda. He has affirmed his support for Trump's plans to carry out mass deportations of tens of millions of undocumented immigrants, and remained silent on the administration's effort to end birthright citizenship. Last month, Evans voted for House Republicans' sweeping budget resolution to cut taxes and slash social spending, and he has since falsely claimed that the plan would not force drastic cuts to Medicaid, as nonpartisan congressional budget analysts conclude that it would. Caraveo's announcement sets up a primary contest with Democratic state Rep. Manny Rutinel, who previously announced he would challenge Evans and reported a strong first-quarter fundraising haul of over $1 million. With Republicans holding just a three-vote majority in the House, the 8th District race could again prove crucial in determining control of Congress in the 2026 midterms. The National Republican Congressional Committee on Tuesday quickly slammed Caraveo as a 'radical' and predicted the Democratic primary would be a 'race to please the far left.' 'While Gabe Evans is delivering commonsense solutions, whoever emerges from the Democrats' radical rat race will be just another out-of-touch liberal ready to be rejected by Coloradans,' said NRCC spokesperson Zach Bannon. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
The Hill
15-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Colorado Democrat Yadira Caraveo launches bid for seat she narrowly lost
Former Rep. Yadira Caraveo (D-Colo.) announced on Tuesday that she's running for her old House seat in Colorado's 8 th Congressional District, which she narrowly lost last cycle to Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.). 'The 8th District deserves a representative who's looking out for them but Gabe Evans has already shown that he will always put Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and his MAGA backers in Washington first,' she said in a post on Facebook. 'I can't stand by while Gabe Evans tries to rip away health care from tens of thousands of Coloradans, including the very families I served as a pediatrician, and make life harder for working families,' she continued. 'Now more than ever, Coloradans need a leader who will stand up for them and do the right thing – I'm ready to continue doing just that.' Caraveo was first elected to the Colorado seat, which is situated between Fort Collins and Denver and includes Greeley, in 2022, after the state added another district following the decennial Census. But the pediatrician-turned-lawmaker lost her seat to Evans in November by roughly three-fourths of a percentage point. Caraveo, however, isn't the only Democrat who's already announced a bid – state Rep. Manny Rutinel has thrown his hat into the ring as well as John Szemler, a process improvement consultant. Others could join the field, too. Zach Bannon, a regional press secretary with the National Republican Congressional Committee, said Caraveo 'is jumping in a competitive primary that is certain to be a fight to the far left to stay relevant.' 'Whoever emerges from the Democrats' radical rat race will be just another out-of-touch liberal ready to be rejected by Coloradans,' he added in a post on X.
