Club 20 to host debates on Western Slope elections Saturday virtually and in-person

Western Slope voters will get a chance to hear directly from local candidates for statehouse, federal and state board of education elections during debates in Grand Junction this Saturday. Club 20, an advocacy organization with representation from 22 counties on the Western Slope, will host the event at the Colorado Mesa University campus and stream them online. Voters can use the state’s “Find my Legislator ” website to see which state Senate and House districts they are included in and the U.

S. House “Find Your Representative” website for the congressional elections happening this year. The state House debates are scheduled to take place in the morning, the state Senate and State Board of Education debates will be in the afternoon and the two congressional debates will be in the evening.



The debates are set to last about 30 minutes each. The House District 57 debate, between Democratic incumbent Rep. Elizabeth Velasco of Glenwood Springs and Republican Caleb Waller of Silt, will be at 9:55 a.

m., according to a schedule of events. House District 57 includes all of Pitkin and Garfield counties and the southwestern portion of Eagle County.

The House District 26 debate, between Democratic incumbent Meghan Lukens of Steamboat Springs and Republican Nathan Butler, a Craig city councilman, will be at 11:25 a.m. Lukens said she will not be in attendance due to a wedding.

House District 26 is a competitive district covering the northwest corner of the state, including all of Moffatt, Rio Blanco and Routt counties and almost all of Eagle County. The House District 13 debate, between Democrat Julie McCluskie, a Frisco resident and Speaker of the Colorado House, and Republican Dave Williams, a Buena Vista resident and the chair of the Chaffee County Republicans, will be at 11:50 a.m.

House District 13 covers all of Summit, Grand, Park, Lake and Jackson counties and most of Chaffee County. The Senate District 5 debate, between Republican Rep. Marc Catlin of Montrose and Democrat Cole Buerger from Glenwood Springs, will be at 1:30 p.

m. Senate District 5 is a highly competitive district including all of Pitkin, Hinsdale and Gunnison counties and parts of Garfield, Montrose, Delta and Eagle counties. It is currently represented by Republican Perry Will, who decided not to run for reelection to instead enter the race for Garfield County commissioner.

A State Board of Education debate for the residents of Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District, between Democrat Ellen Angeles and Republican Sherri Wright, will be at 2:50 p.m. The 2nd Congressional District debate, between Democratic U.

S. Rep. Joe Neguse and Republican Marshall Dawson is scheduled for 6:05 p.

m. Neguse hasn’t confirmed if he will attend. The 3rd Congressional District debate, between Democrat Adam Frisch, a former city councilman for Aspen, and Republican Jeff Hurd, a Grand Junction attorney, will be the final event of the night, beginning at 6:35 p.

m. Candidates in uncontested elections on the Western Slope will also have an opportunity to address the crowd throughout the day. The debates will be in the university’s Moss Performing Arts Center’s Robinson Theatre, 1221 N.

12th St., Grand Junction, and livestreamed on the group’s Facebook page by visiting TinyURL.com/WestSlopeDebate.

The Summit Daily will run more information about the state and federal candidates in these districts, including their policy positions, as the Nov. 5 election nears. Election Day is Nov.

5. Ballots will be sent out beginning Oct. 11.

You can register to vote at the Colorado Secretary of State’s website, SOS.State.CO.

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