Dear Friends,
Welcome everyone to my first post-election edition of my senate newsletter! Many of you are already familiar with my newsletter updates, but over the course of the campaign, several new people have joined our mailing list. As you know, I send out these newsletters once a month during the interim and on a weekly basis during the legislative session.
Speaking of campaigns, I would like to thank the voters of Senate District 19 for returning me to the legislature. The magnitude of support was humbling, and I am grateful to the many volunteers whose tireless efforts help propel our campaign to victory. I've provided an election recap further down.
I'm sure you've all heard the big news by now! Governor Polis has called for a special session of the legislature to address the worsening pandemic. We will head back to the Capitol on November 30 and will likely conclude in about three days (the minimum amount of time it takes to pass a bill). I plan to host a virtual post-special session town hall meeting to review what happened. You can find more details about the special session and the town hall meeting below.
Lastly, as we head into the holiday week, I want to remind everyone that the pandemic has indeed worsened. Please remember to conduct yourself safely: wear a mask, wash hands, and practice social distancing. Even though these are difficult times, we still have much for which to be thankful, and I wish you the very best holiday!
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Gov. Polis calls for Special Session to address worsening pandemic
Earlier this week, the Governor announced that he planned to call a special session of the legislature in order to address the effects of the worsening pandemic. He issued that call Thursday night and the General Assembly will convene at 10 am on Monday, November 30, 2020.
In a special session, the legislature's work must be confined to the parameters outlined in the call. You can find the details of those parameters here in the Executive Order. The Governor has indicated that we will limit the session to the following areas:
- A small business relief package with direct aid and tax relief
- Housing and rental assistance
- Support for child care providers
- Expanding broadband access to students and educators
- Address food insecurity
- Provide utilities assistance
- Increase the public health response
You may be wondering why a special session is even necessary? It mostly comes down to timing. For months now, we have been waiting for Congress to pass a federal stimulus bill, but those efforts stalled and a relief package will not be coming soon. We also closed out the 2019-20 state budget in a much stronger position than expected, which means we have the ability to provide some one-time stimulus funds. The state legislature is not scheduled to convene until January, but given the worsening conditions and the growing economic insecurity, waiting until next year seems unreasonable.
The Governor could have used his authority to issue the stimulus package all on his own, but I am grateful that he has asked us to step in and collaborate on a solution. The only way for the legislature to do that, however, was for the Governor to call us back into session. Due to the pandemic, the session will be altered to ensure everyone's safety. We are shifting as much as possible to remote participation. Stay tuned for ways that you can follow all the activity online.
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Senate District 19 Election Recap
Again, I want to thank the voters of Senate District 19 for returning me to the State Senate for another four-year term. We have term limits in Colorado, which means this will be my second and final term. I am grateful to everyone who supported this campaign with their time, talents, finances and other resources. I am especially thankful to my hardworking campaign manager, Porter Bennett, for his tremendous work.
Here are some highlights from the election:
- There were 92,434 total votes cast in this election, which is a 13% increase from 2016.
- I received 54,694 (59.17%) votes, which was a 40% increase in total votes.
- My opponent received 37,740 (40.83%) votes, which was a 0.2% increase in total votes.
- Jeffco turned out 90% of its active, registered voters.
- We won the seat with a 19% victory margin--the largest margin a Democrat has received in the history of this district.
The next step in the process will be for the Jeffco Clerk and Recorder to conduct their post-election audit and then certify the results. If you are curious about that process, here is a great video that outlines the steps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KHxb7NIAKo. So far they have completed the first round with zero discrepancies! We expect the results to be certified by the end of the month.
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Virtual Legislative Town Hall Meeting: Saturday, December 19 at 10:30 am |
While we ordinarily do not meet in December, these are not ordinary times! Since the Governor has called a Special Session, we want to be able to catch you up on what went down. We will also provide a preview for the upcoming 2021 session.
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The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) released an updated public health order that provides necessary updates to the COVID-19 dial framework.
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About Senator Rachel Zenzinger |
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Rachel Zenzinger was re-elected to a second term in the Colorado State Senate, representing District 19, in November 2020. Previously, she served on the Arvada City Council. Senator Zenzinger currently resides with her husband in Arvada where she is raising two teenagers.
Contact Information:
200 East Colfax, Denver, CO 80203
SenatorRachelZ@gmail.com
303-866-4840 office
303-748-0770 cell
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