Colorado House of Representatives District 65

Colorado House of Representatives District 65 is represented by Michael Lynch (R).

As of the 2020 Census, Colorado state representatives represented an average of 88,956 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 77,614 residents.

About the office

Members of the Colorado House of Representatives serve two-year terms with term limits.^[1] Colorado legislators assume office on the first day of the legislative session after their election. The legislative session must begin no later than 10:00 AM on the second Wednesday of January.^[2] The state constitution requires the newly elected governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer, and secretary of state to take office on the second Tuesday of January.^[3] In the year after those offices are elected, the legislative session must begin before the second Tuesday of January to declare the winners of those races.^[4]^[5]

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

Article 5, Section 4 of the Colorado Constitution states:^[6]

“

No person shall be a representative or senator who shall not have attained the age of twenty-five years, who shall not be a citizen of the United States, and who shall not for at least twelve months next preceding his election, have resided within the territory included in the limits of the district in which he shall be chosen.^[7]

”

Salaries

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

State legislative salaries, 2024^[8]
Salary	Per diem
$43,977/year for legislators whose terms began in 2023. $41,449/year for legislators whose terms began in 2021.	For legislators residing within 50 miles of the capitol: $45/day. For legislators living more than 50 miles from the capitol: $237/day.

Term limits

See also: State legislatures with term limits

The Colorado General Assembly is one of 16 state legislatures with term limits. Voters enacted the Colorado Term Limits Act in 1990. That initiative said that Colorado representatives are subject to term limits of no more than four two-year terms.^[9]

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures

If there is a vacancy in the Colorado General Assembly, then the political party that last held the seat is responsible for selecting a replacement.^[10] A vacancy committee consisting of members representing the political party holding the vacant seat must conduct an election to appoint a replacement. The person selected to fill the vacant seat must be approved by a majority of the members of the vacancy committee. The committee must submit and certify their selection to the Secretary of State within 30 days of the vacancy. If, within those 30 days, the committee fails to certify a selection, the governor must select a candidate within five days that meets the appropriate qualifications. The person who is selected to fill the vacancy remains in the seat until the next scheduled general election.^[11]

If the outgoing officeholder was politically unaffiliated, or was a member of a minor-party, nominations to fill the vacancy follow the nomination procedure for regularly scheduled general elections.

See sources: Colorado Art. 5, Sec. 2(3) Colorado Rev. Stat. §1-4-802 and Colorado Rev. Stat. §1-12-203

District map

Redistricting

2020-2022

See also: Redistricting in Colorado after the 2020 census

On November 15, 2021, the Colorado Supreme Court approved the state legislative redistricting plans approved by the state's Independent Legislative Redistricting Commission on October 11 and 12, 2021.^[12] These maps took effect for Colorado’s 2022 state legislative elections.

The Colorado Sun's Thy Vo wrote that the House and Senate maps "appear to favor Democrats' maintaining their majority in the General Assembly."^[12] Colorado Politics' Evan Wyloge wrote that the new maps created nine House districts where previous election results fell within a five percentage point margin and eight such Senate districts. At the time of approval, Democrats held a 42-23 majority in the House and a 20-15 majority in the Senate.^[13]

How does redistricting in Colorado work? On November 6, 2018, Colorado voters approved two constitutional amendments, Amendment Y and Amendment Z, establishing separate non-politician commissions for congressional and state legislative redistricting. Each commission consists of four members belonging to the state's largest political party, four members belonging to the state's second-largest party, and four members belonging to no party. Commission members are appointed by a panel of three judges selected by the Chief Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court. The amendment requires at least eight of the commission's 12 members, including at least two members not belonging to any political party, to approve a map.^[14]

The Colorado Constitution requires that state legislative district boundaries "be contiguous, and that they be as compact as possible based on their total perimeter." In addition, "to the extent possible, districts must also preserve the integrity of counties, cities, towns and–where doing so does not conflict with other goals–communities of interest." There are no similar requirements for congressional districts.^[15]^[16]

Colorado House of Representatives District 65
until January 8, 2023

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Colorado House of Representatives District 65
starting January 9, 2023

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Colorado House of Representatives District 65

Lori Sander defeated Will Walters in the general election for Colorado House of Representatives District 65 on November 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Lori Sander (R)	60.9	27,714
	Will Walters (D)	39.1	17,776

	There were no incumbents in this race. Source	Total votes: 45,490
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 65

Will Walters advanced from the Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 65 on June 25, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Will Walters	100.0	5,365

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 5,365
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Isaiah Cordova (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 65

Lori Sander defeated Trent Leisy in the Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 65 on June 25, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Lori Sander	62.4	8,765
	Trent Leisy	37.6	5,275

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 14,040
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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