2022 Colorado Primary
Republican
STATE REPRESENTATIVE HD14 CANDIDATES
ROSE PUGLIESE
Candidate Information
Campaign Website URL: www.RoseforColorado.com
Email Address: Rose@RoseForColorado.com
Occupation/Vocation: Attorney
Resident of El Paso County: 1.5 years
Experience
What experience (personal, professional, other) would you bring to your role as Representative that will benefit our state?
I have significant experience testifying before state legislative committees and regulatory agencies. Most of my work over the past decade has been focused on statewide issues, such as co-leading the ballot initiative for a citizen’s repeal of the National Popular Vote in Colorado. During my 2-terms as a County Commissioner, I held various statewide leadership positions. My statewide work has enabled me to grow my grassroots network and develop relationships across the state with legislative, local government and state leaders. I currently operate my own small business (a law firm) with a practice focused primarily on local government law. I have extensive experience working with federal, state and local governments, as well as understanding many of the funding streams.
Vision
What is your vision for being a Colorado State Representative?
My vision is to consistently engage with my constituents to truly understand the issues that are important to them and hold stakeholder meetings and townhalls so that I communicate directly with the people I serve. Legislation does not happen in a vacuum so it is important to utilize my statewide relationships to get positive legislation that helps our community passed and to gain allies in fighting against harmful legislation. I will also be proactive in informing the grassroots community about opportunities for them to get involved and have their voices heard.
Election Reform
Do you believe that elections in Colorado should be conducted differently? Should voters in Colorado be required to verify their identity and residential status in the respective counties in which they vote? Are you in favor of a single-day, in-person voting system consisting of all-paper ballots? Why or why not?
I believe that voter identification, including the county of their residence, should be required to vote and am against ballot harvesting, as it opens the door to election fraud. I also believe that the voter rolls must be cleaned up so that they are accurate. I support giving people options to vote and allowing them to decide which option works best for them, including mail-in ballots and in-person voting, on paper ballots or on machines that generate paper ballots so people can confirm that their votes were recorded accurately.
TABOR
What is your position on the Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR)?
I chose to live in Colorado because of the Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights (“TABOR”). I thought any state that allowed their people to vote on tax increases was a free state. It is unfortunate that TABOR is currently being eroded and circumvented by the State Legislature. I have a proven record of fighting for TABOR and against fees disguised as taxes and tax increases.
Education
As a State Representative, what will you do to improve the education of our K – 12 students? What is your position on parental authority in education, including school choice?
As a State Representative, I would support vouchers and believe strongly that money should follow the child. As a mother of a child with special learning needs, I understand first-hand that one size does not fit all in education and I have a record that supports parents advocating for their children in education, parental rights in education and school choice.
Government Authority
Do you believe that the government has the legal power and authority to dictate what a person does with his or her body? If so, how?
I do not believe that the government has the legal power or authority to dictate what a person should do with their body and I support medical freedom. However, I am a devoted Catholic and Pro-Life so I do not support abortions or euthanasia.
Protecting the Most Vulnerable
As a Representative, how would you seek to protect the most vulnerable in our state, including the lives of the unborn, the trafficked, and the elderly?
As a State Representative, I would vote against abortion laws and the government funding of abortions. I worked for several years to raise awareness locally and statewide about the signs of human trafficking and worked on legislation to help victims, especially those in the child welfare system. I would advocate for resources for increased education and training on human trafficking for parents and our children to help teach them how to stay safe while on the internet. As an estate planning attorney, I have seen elder abuse, both financially and physically, and would look for opportunities to strengthen our current laws and protections for the elderly.
1st Amendment
What will you do as Colorado State Representative to protect our 1st Amendment rights to: the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech, peaceably assembly, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances, all of which are becoming more difficult to exercise in America (and around the world)?
As a State Representative, I will always fight against censorship in all forms and protect our First Amendment rights. During the Covid- 19 pandemic, as a County Commissioner, I fought hard against closing churches and strongly advocated that they were essential. I worked to re-open churches as quickly as possible after the lock-down. Our re-open plan was the template statewide for re-opening businesses and churches, based on freedom; not force.
2nd Amendment
Do you believe that gun ownership is a civil right, and what are your positions in regards to red flag laws, magazine capacity bans, legislation that regulates gun storage, and permitless “Constitutional carry”?
I have a strong record of fighting to protect our Second Amendment rights and it is a constitutional right. As a County Commissioner, I personally wrote Mesa County’s Pro-Second Amendment Resolution, stating that we not only supported the Second Amendment but would defend our constituents against unconstitutional laws. I was an active proponent of the Cameo Shooting Range, which gave people statewide and nationally, especially our youth, a place to shoot and fought against shooting range closures. I strongly opposed the red flag law and wrote testimony in opposition to it. I am against magazine capacity bans and against storage laws as it limits people’s rights to protect themselves and their families. I am a supporter of permitless Constitutional carry.
Infrastructure Spending
How do you believe that tax revenue in Colorado should be best utilized to improve our infrastructure?
Infrastructure spending, for example investments in transportation and broadband, is within the proper role of government. It is an economic development driver that helps support our existing businesses and attract new businesses to our communities. I have a record of prioritizing existing tax revenue for infrastructure and public safety purposes, such as safe routes to school to protect our children, and finding federal and state funding to leverage existing funds to make tax revenue go further for my constituents.
JOE WOYTE
Candidate Information
Campaign Website URL: www.JoeForHD14.com
Email Address: JoeForColorado@gmail.com
Occupation/Vocation: Project Management
Military Background: USAF Veteran
Resident of El Paso County: 20 years total (2006 – 2022 + 4 years USAFA Cadet)
Experience
What experience (personal, professional, other) would you bring to your role as Representative that will benefit our state?
When I left the military 20 years ago, I wanted to apply my USAF Academy management degree, my MBA, and 6 years of experience as an Air Force officer. I accepted a position in supply chain management at a large manufacturing plant, which required working with many stakeholders (suppliers, technicians, engineers, etc.) to understand the issues, risks, and improvement ideas before developing a plan. The lessons I learned applied to my career in defense contracting, with many opportunities to find win-win solutions in managing proposals, projects, subcontracts and contracts. I know they’ll be just as useful to me as a legislator, where I’ll keep my personal (and Academy class) motto in mind: “We’ll find a way… or MAKE one!”
Vision
What is your vision for being a Colorado State Representative?
Because career politicians tend to create more problems than they solve, I intend to be a citizen statesman instead. As a long-term resident of Colorado Springs, I will represent the values of our community, only support legislation that is unquestionably Constitutional, and seek to limit government intervention in our lives and livelihoods rather than limiting Coloradans’ freedoms. Too many politicians say they’ll uphold conservative values in order to get elected, but then they waffle and vote like liberals when they’re in office. I’ll keep my commitments, including THIS PROMISE: I will tell my constituents WHY I voted “YEA” or “NAY” on every single vote I make in the legislature.
Election Reform
Do you believe that elections in Colorado should be conducted differently? Should voters in Colorado be required to verify their identity and residential status in the respective counties in which they vote? Are you in favor of a single-day, in-person voting system consisting of all-paper ballots? Why or why not?
Because confidence in our elections is critical to our form of government, I support common sense measures such as requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote and a government-issued photo ID to request a ballot. County Clerks must be empowered and expected to remove from their voter rolls anyone who has died, moved away, or no longer wishes to vote. I am in favor of single-day, in-person voting and a State holiday for election day. Additionally, we should use auditable paper ballots in all cases, not paperless computer systems. And, if anyone is in doubt about the need to end ballot harvesting, I would recommend that they watch the documentary “2,000 Mules.”
TABOR
What is your position on the Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR)?
I WILL defend the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR), and work to eliminate dishonest legislative practices like the inappropriate use of the “safety clause” in far too many bills, and the labeling of taxes as “fees” to circumvent TABOR requirements. Because taxes and “fees” are too high already, I have already signed the Colorado Union of Taxpayers’ candidate & legislator “CUT Pledge” as a commitment to the citizens of Colorado, which can be viewed at the ColoradoTaxpayer website.
Education
As a State Representative, what will you do to improve the education of our K – 12 students? What is your position on parental authority in education, including school choice?
I’ve chaired School Accountability Committees at 3 schools and was a parent representative for years on D20’s District Accountability Committee, so I understand parents’ and educators’ concerns. I support school boards, along with private & charter schools and home school parents, in directing their own curriculum, policies, and security; and I oppose State and federal mandates that impose things like sex education of 1st graders and Critical Race Theory (CRT). One of the first bills I co-sponsor will be legislation to fully fund Colorado’s commitment to K-12 per pupil funding, by eliminating the so-called “Budget Stabilization” shortfall, commonly known by educators as the “B.S. factor.” I’ll also work on legislation to create an Education Tax Credit for Coloradans.
Government Authority
Do you believe that the government has the legal power and authority to dictate what a person does with his or her body? If so, how?
Health freedom is a right, not a privilege, which is why I am anti-mandate! I am against governments forcing or coercing citizens to accept a vaccine, medication, or other medical procedure. Likewise, decisions about what treatments people can try should be left up to patients, in coordination with their doctors, and not dictated by bureaucrats. I would also work to expand Health Savings Accounts and tax credits for Coloradans’ health care costs.
Protecting the Most Vulnerable
As a Representative, how would you seek to protect the most vulnerable in our state, including the lives of the unborn, the trafficked, and the elderly?
I am 100% Pro-Life and have completed the “Colorado for Life” 2022 Colorado Candidate Survey with 10 out of 10 positive responses. Because the right to life is the foremost of all human rights, I will defend the most vulnerable, including the unborn and the elderly, starting with working to end late-term and taxpayer-funded abortion in Colorado. It is a sad fact that slavery DOES exist in America, in the form of human trafficking, and more needs to be done to end it. For example, the City of Colorado Springs recently passed legislation to address the proliferation of “massage parlors” that are actually fronts for sex slavery rings and other organized crime, and this approach could be applied Statewide.
1st Amendment
What will you do as Colorado State Representative to protect our 1st Amendment rights to: the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech, peaceably assembly, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances, all of which are becoming more difficult to exercise in America (and around the world)?
If you’d like to see an outline of our free speech zone, just type “map of the United States” into your favorite privacy-oriented search engine like DuckDuckGo. Seriously, the 1st Amendment doesn’t just apply to speech that we agree with, and it doesn’t just protect freedom of worship when we’re not in a pandemic. I will do more than just oppose legislation that violates the 1st Amendment or any of the Bill of Rights: I will actively seek to repeal provisions of existing laws that limit our rights. For example, I support putting the Petition Rights Amendment (PRA) on the ballot, because legislators and bureaucrats have been chipping away at our right to petition for decades.
2nd Amendment
Do you believe that gun ownership is a civil right, and what are your positions in regards to red flag laws, magazine capacity bans, legislation that regulates gun storage, and permitless “Constitutional carry”?
I will oppose infringements on our God-given rights, especially those that the Bill of Rights was written to protect. This includes standing up to those who are undermining both the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Article II of the Colorado Constitution, which is why I’ve recently earned the endorsements from Gun Owners of America (GOA) and from Rocky Mountain Gun Owners (RMGO). Colorado’s red flag gun confiscations, magazine bans, and gun storage requirements should either be repealed or at least significantly re-written. I would also support carefully worded legislation to join the 25 other States that have enacted Constitutional Carry legislation.
Infrastructure Spending
How do you believe that tax revenue in Colorado should be best utilized to improve our infrastructure?
I will prioritize infrastructure spending on addressing vulnerabilities in our power distribution systems and fixing our deteriorating highways and bridges. Because we need more transparency and attention given to infrastructure spending, I also propose to make the transportation commissioner an elected position rather than a political appointee. I would also support a bill requiring the Office of Economic Development to conduct a feasibility study regarding small modular nuclear reactors, including technologies for safer alternatives such as Thorium reactors, as a potential carbon-free energy source for Colorado.
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Christian voting
Voting is a simple, yet significant way to do something about public policy in our country. As people of faith, we will be held accountable for our actions, as well as our lack of action. (Luke 12:48)
Biblical worldview
By diligently learning, applying, and trusting God’s truths in every area of our lives, we can begin to develop a deep comprehensive faith that will stand against the unrelenting tide of our culture’s non-biblical ideas.
Vote your values
The issues of the day change. Political parties and platforms change. God’s Word never changes. The vote of every Christian should be based on the principles of Scripture and not persuasive personalities.
Electing righteous leaders
Bad governance and our loss of freedom is the direct result of the church’s failure to disciple. When the citizenry do not seek to be obedient to God’s Law, they vote in wicked and corrupt candidates, who then trample underfoot the God-given liberties of the people.