Colorado state Rep. Shannon Bird, a Westminster Democrat, has jumped into the fray to unseat Congressman Gabe Evans in the closely watched 8th Congressional District next year.
Bird, vice chair of the powerful Joint Budget Committee in the state legislature, is the third Democrat to announce their bid for the congressional seat. It is one of the most competitive districts in the country and could prove pivotal to which party controls Congress in 2027.
In an interview before her announcement, Bird highlighted her experience in the legislature passing laws to fully fund public schools for the first time in a decade, to ease new construction by reforming construction liability regulations, and to create new tax credits for higher education.
She said economic stability and cost of living will be keystones to her campaign — while also taking shots at Evans for, in her view, putting President Donald Trump’s agenda ahead of his constituents. Democrats have repeatedly hammered Evans for a lack of in-person townhalls. He held a telephone town hall in April.
“The more I thought about the situation that we find ourselves in today, and watched what this administration is doing, with Gabe Evans’ support, one thing became clear to me: There’s going to be a time when people ask, ‘What did you do when Donald Trump came back into office for a second term?’ ” Bird said of her decision to run. “Especially in light of what he’s doing to our country, I know that I want to have the right answer.”
She would not commit to investigations or impeachment inquiries into Trump, but did not dismiss them outright. Asked twice, Bird said she would focus on “volatility” in Washington and how it is affecting the economy and cost of living, and pledged to “show up and be accountable” to constituents.
“I can’t tell you the number of people who have thought they were going to be able to retire, have seen their 401(k)s take a nose dive, and now have no idea how long they’re going to need to stay in the workforce,” Bird said.
The 8th Congressional District stretches from Thornton to Greeley. It was drawn following the 2020 census. Voters there elected Democrat Yadira Caraveo as their first member of Congress in 2022, and ousted her in favor of Evans in the following election. Each race was determined by fewer than 2,500 votes.
Bird said she didn’t have any particular thoughts on what tipped the district in the victor’s favor in the two elections, but would commit to “being everywhere” during the campaign to break it in her favor and best represent the people there.
Bird also contrasted her approach to Evans and blasted him for voting for a spending package that would slash Medicaid in a district where nearly one in four residents rely on the public health insurance.
A nonpartisan analysis from the Penn Wharton Budget Model found the GOP spending package would vastly benefit the richest Americans, according to the New York Times, and lower the take-home income of the poorest. Republicans argue the package would spur economic growth in the country, which the analysis did not factor in.
Bird will have to win a Democratic primary next summer before she faces Evans in the general election. Caraveo, the former congresswoman, announced last month that she intends to win back the seat. State Rep. Manny Rutinel, a Commerce City Democrat, announced his bid to oust Evans just weeks after the new congressman took office in January. It helped him win an early fundraising advantage.
Bird said she respects anyone who throws their hat into the political ring — but that her six years at the state Capitol, and time on the Westminster City Council before that, set her apart.
“I have worked already and passed substantive legislation to lower housing costs, I’ve passed bills to lower health care costs, to fully fund public education, my work shows that I support small business,” Bird said. “All of this record that I have already established shows that I’m effective and the people of the 8th that I’m the right person to represent Colorado in Congress.”
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