House District 5 Candidate Forum Summary

 

 

Crisanta Duran began by stating she was the best candidate to reach out to all communities in House District 5. She stressed her professional qualifications as a lawyer and lobbyist and argued she has the political and legal skills to succeed in the legislature. As for her legislative priorities, a common theme involved working families and education. For example, she called for more collaboration among students, parents and teachers as well as increased efforts to recruit talented teachers that can be role models. With regards to immigration, she argued the current system is broke and highlighted her previous legal work on behalf of deported immigrant workers. With regard to local issues, she pledged to work for the community’s interests and cited her work with several organizations in the district. She also voiced concern about the proliferation of medical marijuana dispensaries and supports the bill introduced by Senator Romer. In other responses, Crisanta emphasized personal experiences and her Democratic credentials.  

José Silva began by stating his campaign was about helping the middle and working class of House District 5. He stressed his educational background, as a graduate of Denver Public Schools, and his continued involvement with local youth such as the College Summit program. As for his legislative priorities, he believes our immigration system needs to be addressed fundamentally and, if elected, pledged to submit legislation immediately at the state level. With regard to local issues, he expressed concern about the adverse effects of industries in local neighborhoods and argued that the state legislature should consider environmental proposals such as “Cap and Trade.” He also voiced concern about the proliferation of medical marijuana dispensaries in the area and believes regulation could limit their growth while also providing tax revenues to help the local community. Regarding budgetary constraints, he believes TABOR should be repealed and a “line-by-line” approach should be employed. In other responses, José drew from his own personal experiences with regard to teen pregnancy and higher education.

 

JJ Swiontek began by describing his 30 years in the CWA Union at AT&T and how he became involved with local politics. He stressed that he has the skills to communicate with both parties and would work with Republicans to enact legislative proposals. He later explained that he previously ran as a Republican because he believed voters should have a choice. As for his legislative priorities, he called for changes to TABOR and highlighted a plan related to property taxes in order to better fund priorities such as higher education. With regards to education in general, he argued respect for students would help improve their performance. He also believes the immigration system is broke and that we needed to start over to make it right. With regard to local issues, he decried the pollution problem in North Central Denver. He also voiced concern about the proliferation of medical marijuana dispensaries but noted that hindsight was 20/20. In other responses, JJ called for increased family education to combat teen pregnancy.

 

Mark Thrun began by stating this election was about the economy and voiced strong support for investing more in state services such as pre-school and higher education. He stressed his professional credentials, as a doctor at Denver Health, and active involvement with the local community on the board of Project Angel Heart. As for legislative priorities, he decried current levels of funding for education and, if elected, pledged to expand opportunities for pre-school and higher education. With regard to immigration, he called for a more thoughtful approach and spoke about providing medical care for many undocumented workers. On local issues, he mentioned the residents of Elyria and the need for their voice to be heard on proposed plans regarding Interstate 70. He also voiced concern about the proliferation of medical marijuana dispensaries and supports legislative efforts to define doctor-patient relationships. In another response, Mark highlighted his Democratic credentials and noted the composition of House District 5 would allow its elected representative to push for Democratic issues.