Rep. Gabe Evans (R-CO) will find out his opponent on Tuesday from a contentious Colorado primary that has reopened some of the Democratic Party’s old political wounds.
State Rep. Manny Rutinel, a Hispanic progressive, takes on former state Rep. Shannon Bird, a white moderate, in a race that has been shaped by who is best fit to succeed in a battleground, Latino-plurality district.
Latino members of Congress in recent weeks chastised the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for its involvement in primaries after Randy Villegas prevailed in California’s 22nd District, a Central Valley battleground held by Rep. David Valadao (R-CA). The DCCC endorsed Jasmeet Bains, a moderate assemblywoman, but Villegas and Valadao advanced to the general election.
But the triumph of the progressive Villegas sparked outcry on Capitol Hill after the DCCC spent on Bains only to come up short.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), an outspoken progressive and member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, told NOTUS at the time Villegas’ race was “an under-the-radar fight with the establishment.”
The race in the northern Denver suburbs is fundamentally different, however, than the contest to defeat Valadao. Whereas Valadao is an entrenched incumbent who has won in a blue seat, Evans is a freshman in a newly created seat during the 2022 cycle.
The DCCC also played in Texas’ 35th Congressional District, where it backed Johnny Garcia in a Latino-majority seat. Garcia, who was also backed by the Hispanic Caucus, prevailed in the runoff after outside support from the committee.
Despite the focus on identity politics, Alex Sanchez, president of Voces Unidas Action, a Latino advocacy group that backs Rutinel, told the Washington Examiner it’s about more than “symbolic representation.”
“The question is whether candidates and parties are aligned with their Latino voters on the issues that they care most about,” said Sanchez.
Sanchez’s group polls Latino voters in Colorado, which they sort by congressional district. He said they’ve found that Latinos in the 8th District are concerned about affordability, wages, and healthcare.
“They want practical solutions, they want accountability. They don’t want political theater,” said Sanchez.
Bird, for her part, has touted her outreach to the Latino community and her deep ties in the area while emphasizing her recognition as the most effective lawmaker in the state Legislature. Rutinel grilled Bird on her lack of Latino heritage at a recent debate.
The DCCC did not get involved in the race, but that may not matter to those pushing for the establishment to back more Latino candidates. Multiple sources familiar with the race told the Washington Examiner that Rutinel is the likely favorite on Tuesday.
Some have lamented the committee’s hands off approach in the critical seat, who would have liked to see more of a coalescing effort behind the more moderate Bird.
“If we wake up Wednesday and Manny Rutinel is our nominee, the DCCC is going to have a lot of egg on their face and for not the first time this cycle,” one Democratic strategist familiar with the race, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told the Washington Examiner.
“If you’re upsetting people anyway, and you have a district where you know one candidate is viable and the other isn’t, why not just double down on what your goal should be, which is flipping the House,” they added.
The source also said the level of investment needed in the seat would be greater if Rutinel wins the nomination.
Bird’s campaign has shown signs of weakness in the closing days of the campaign. The campaign’s spending has significantly decreased over the last three weeks, according to nonpartisan tracking firm AdImpact, while Rutinel has remained steady on television.
The DCCC, however, was confident they’d defeat Evans, no matter the nominee.
“When Gabe Evans isn’t lying about his own personal story, he’s lying about how his extreme agenda hurts Colorado. Evans broke his promise to lower costs by repeatedly voting to gut health care, protect price-spiking tariffs, and greenlight a reckless war of choice in Iran that’s raising prices across the board. Coloradans know they can’t trust Evans, and that’s why they’ll fire him this November,” DCCC spokeswoman Lindsay Reilly told the Washington Examiner in a statement.
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The race has seen a late surge of outside money from tech-aligned groups in support of Rutinel. He’s benefitted from more than $5 million, including nearly a $1 million from a PAC funded entirely by a California cryptocurrency executive.
Bird has received aircover from Women Vote, the independent expenditure arm of abortion rights group EMILYs List.