Candidates in the 2012 general election expressed why they should be elected. Note: This list is not inclusive of all races in this election year.

UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT 1

Rep. Diana DeGette, Democrat

“I’m honored to have represented the First Congressional District and all its many diverse communities for the past 16 years. As the Senior Member of the Colorado delegation, Chief Deputy Whip of the Democratic caucus, and a member of leadership of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, I am able to bring our community’s concerns to the highest levels of leadership in Washington, ensuring Colorado always has a voice at the table. I’m proud to have fought for quality, affordable health care for all our families; led the charge on the promise of stem cell research; spearheaded reforms to ensure the safety of our food; and worked tirelessly to protect our air, water, and land, while driving a vision of a clean energy technology future. I hope to continue bringing our shared Western values to bear on these critical issues, building a better Colorado and a better nation, together.”

Danny Stroud, Republican

“I have the knowledge, skills and motivation. I do not view this as a career. It is a call to duty just as our founding fathers envisioned. I am a West Point graduate with 13 years active and reserves service knowledge of military spending. I earned the Meritorious Service Medal (twice) and am a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. I have started and run successful small businesses. I know how to balance a budget and spend within my means. I was a Director at the non-profit Mental Health Association in California. My two daughters have successfully tackled college, work and community service. I have been active as a volunteer in their school and sports teams for 13 years as a coach and parent. We are a nation of immigrants. That is what has made this country strong. However, I do not believe illegal immigrants should have any special status in this process. We need to improve the current immigration laws for legal immigration.”

UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT 6

Rep. Mike Coffman

“Aurora is the heart of the new district. I grew up in Aurora, went to school in Aurora, and started a successful small business here in Aurora. My principle opponent, Denver state Representative Joe Miklosi, has only lived in Aurora for less than six months.

Small business is critical to creating jobs and moving our economy forward. From my background as a small business owner, I understand what it takes to balance a budget, meet a payroll, and to create jobs.

I have brought my small business background to the House of Representatives where I now sit as a subcommittee chairman on the House Small Business Committee.

I’m a leader on the House Armed Services Committee on military and on veterans issues. I’m the only veteran serving in the Colorado delegation. I have a combined 21 years of military service and have had five overseas deployments including the first Gulf War and the Iraq War.”

Rep. Joe Miklosi

“I’m the most qualified candidate because of my pragmatic approach to problem solving, my diverse professional experience, and my strong desire to bring both a servant-leadership style and Colorado common sense solutions to Washington. I’m committed to finding bipartisan solutions like the proposals I have worked on with Republicans and Democrats in the Colorado state legislature. Along with other state legislators, I cut my take-home pay two percent, and I was on an audit committee that found over $70 million in savings for state government to help balance the budget. I want to take that same pragmatic approach to Washington.”

UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT 7

Rep. Ed Perlmutter, Democrat

“As a lifelong resident of Colorado’s 7th Congressional District, I share the values important to hardworking people in our community. Whether at the grocery store, on the phone or the door, I want to listen, be accessible and work to get things done. I’ve been a champion for Colorado in Congress. I’m proud of my work to ensure the new VA Medical Center is being built to serve our veterans, and fighting to keep good jobs for people here in our country. The Denver Post called me the most bipartisan member of the CO delegation, and I support a balanced approach to reducing our deficit. Investing in education and innovation are key to improving our economy. I’ll continue working in a bipartisan way making sure folks in our community have good jobs, can afford to pay their mortgages, send their kids to college and have enough left over for retirement.”

Joe Coors, Republican

“Joe is running for Congress to help save the American Dream. He believes that Washington D.C. needs leaders who have actually created American jobs, built organizations and know how to compete in the global economy.

Joe attended North Carolina State University where he majored in Math and minored in Ceramic Engineering. Together, Joe and his wife Gail have raised four children and are the proud grandparents of eight grandchildren. This year, Joe and Gail celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.

When Ed Perlmutter was sworn into Congress, Colorado’s unemployment rate was 3.7 percent. Today it is over 8 percent. Joe knows how to create jobs and help get the economy moving again because he did it at CoorsTek. These experiences coupled with Joe’s good nature allow him to bring people together from both sides of the aisle to solve the issues our country faces today.”

STATE SENATE DISTRICT 32

Sen. Irene Aguilar, Democrat

“Through raising a family and working for 23 years as a primary care physician at Denver Health’s Westside Family Clinic, I’ve been inspired to try and make a better world – first at home, and then in our community and state. I am committed to ensuring that all Coloradans have access to quality, affordable health care, that we have a strong safety net in place for our most vulnerable citizens, and that we all have equal opportunity to live healthy, loving, and prosperous lives.

Over the past two years, I have reached out to constituents to develop the meaningful relationships that make it possible for me to represent their concerns, beliefs, and values in the Senate. We’ve worked together to build strong bipartisan support to protect education funding, to champion people with disabilities, to invest in jobs, and to introduce innovative health care reform.

Together, we will make a difference!”

Roger D. Logan, Republican

“I’m a working class citizen from a small family farm in Ohio where I learned to appreciate hard work and a respect for faith, family and country. I felt our state was in trouble, and it was time to get involved.

Since I don’t have a public record to evaluate, I can only tell you my basic philosophy. First, I believe that we are taxed enough already. My opponent believes Colorado citizens are under taxed.

Second, I don’t believe government should be involved in healthcare except in the establishment of a properly constructed safety net for those unable to provide for themselves.

Finally, we need to promote an environment in this state that will encourage businesses to move to Colorado to set up headquarters and create jobs. Jobs are the life blood for any flourishing community. We can do this by reducing and eliminating unnecessary regulations and lowering taxes.”

STATE REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT 4

Rep. Dan Pabon, Democrat

“Dan Pabon serves as State Representative for House District 4, where he was raised and now lives with his wife Heather and daughter Maria. Representative Pabon has been a fierce advocate for the middle class, introducing several bipartisan measures designed to reform the unemployment insurance process in Colorado. Representative Pabon is also a staunch supporter of equal civil rights, where he was the forefront of the debate on civil unions, voting for the measure in 3 separate committees. He has also been an active participant in the Latino community, demonstrating his awareness and dedication to building a strong middle class. Representative Pabon’s bipartisan efforts to bring the community together has not gone unnoticed as he was awarded the Denver Democratic Party’s annual Democrat of the year this past Saturday, Oct. 3.”

David W. Dobson’s campaign did not return La Voz’ request at the time of publication.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT 5

Rep. Crisanta Duran, Democrat

“There was a lot of work to be done last session and thanks to your help we were able to improve our quality of life in Colorado. When I arrived in January at the state Capitol, job one for me was ensuring that hard working Coloradans who want a job have the skills they need to get one. I passed bipartisan legislation that invested 8 million dollars in job training for Coloradans to work for a local employer or start their own business. Second on the list was encouraging parental involvement in K-12 education in our low-performing schools and eliminating the use of trans fats in student lunches to address child obesity. I also worked with my colleagues to cut the bureaucratic red tape in state departments that handle affordable housing, childcare access and higher education. Finally, we gave Metro State College the opportunity to reflect their 21st century degree programs by changing their name to the Metropolitan State University of Denver. I humbly ask for your vote so we may continue to work together to bring necessary change to our community.”

Ronnie Nelson’s campaign did not return La Voz’ request at the time of publication.