February 18, 2025 11:10 AM UTC

Embattled State Senator Resigns

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• by: Colorado Pols

The Denver Post’s Nick Coltrain reports this morning on the resolution to a human resources problem at the Colorado Capitol created by now-former Democratic state Sen. Sonya Jaquez Lewis, who was facing an ethics investigation over misuse and general mistreatment of her state-funded legislative staff:

Jaquez Lewis, a Longmont Democrat, posted the announcement on her official Facebook page about 5:45 a.m. after notifying the top Senate leader Monday night. The resignation is effective immediately. As the reason for her resignation, she cited an opportunity to serve with a regional not-for-profit that develops women and LGBTQ+ people as leaders. Her announcement did not mention the ethics investigation.

Serving as an elected official “has been the honor of a lifetime,” Jaquez Lewis wrote. “I have been in the General Assembly for 7 years. During that time, I have served my constituents with pride and productivity. I have passed an enormous amount of legislation and policy that hopefully benefits every citizen of Colorado and some have become national benchmarks.”

The ethics committee was set to decide this week if allegations against her were credible enough to warrant a formal investigation into any ethics violation. That work was halted by the resignation — but also rocked by the new claim that Jaquez Lewis faked a letter of support…

The allegations against Jaquez Lewis about her treatment of staff had been compounding long before her resignation today, but these apparently fabricated letters of support appear to have tipped the situation into untenable territory. Even without that clearly disqualifying offense, Jaquez Lewis was already marginalized, having lost her staff and committee assignments after leadership repeatedly tried to intervene last year.

While no one should be defending Jaquez Lewis’ treatment of her staff, the response by Democratic leadership to the complaints about her behavior marks another significant contrast in the way the two caucuses manage the inevitable occasional problem member. The action taken by Senate leadership against Jaquez Lewis compares favorably to the state of general chaos that prevails on the other side of the aisle in the House, with Republicans like Rep. Brandi Bradley raging their way through standards of decency like bulls in a china shop.

The only thing we can add is that, the occasional no-show job beneficiary notwithstanding, legislative aides are hardworking, underpaid, and essential to the operation of the Colorado General Assembly. They should never be taken for granted, used for personal benefit, or otherwise mistreated by lawmakers lucky enough to have them at taxpayer expense.

Democratic leaders thankfully agree.