Denver Sen. Chris Hansen takes job in Durango but is mum on timing to resign his seat

Denver Sen. Chris Hansen, a one-time mayoral candidate who was elected to his second term in the state Senate last week, has accepted a job leading a Durango-based electric authority. But it was still unclear when he planned to resign his seat.

The La Plata Electric Association confirmed Hansen as its new CEO in a statement Tuesday, and an agenda for a board meeting next week includes a “CEO welcome and introduction.” Minutes from a previous board meeting indicated the electric cooperative was prepared to offer an unnamed candidate the CEO position in mid-September.

A spokeswoman for the company did not return recent messages from The Denver Post. Hansen has also not returned messages from The Post in recent days. He told the Durango Herald on Tuesday that he “would resign his seat sometime in the coming months, likely the week of Jan. 9.”

The 2025 legislative session begins Jan. 8, meaning Denver would be down a senator for the beginning stages of the session.

In a written statement Tuesday, Hansen confirmed that he was taking the electric authority job. But he provided no other details about his future at the Capitol.

“Over the coming weeks, I remain committed to serving my constituents and district, and I will be working through the details of the remainder of my time in the Senate,” he wrote.

Hansen was comfortably reelected to the state Senate last week, winning 84% of the vote against his challenger, Libertarian David Aitken.

Hansen served two full terms in the state House before moving to the Senate in early 2020 via a vacancy committee. In recent years, he was at the forefront of the property tax negotiations that stretched over multiple legislative sessions, including two special sessions. In 2023, he was one of the 16 candidates who appeared on the ballot to run for Denver mayor; he was eliminated in the first round of voting, coming in sixth.

Hansen’s new job has been an open secret in Democratic circles for at least the past week. When he resigns, he will be replaced through a Democratic vacancy committee. The chairs of that vacancy committee did not return messages seeking comment Friday.

Behind-the-scenes discussions have focused on several potential contenders for Hansen’s seat. Rep. Steven Woodrow, who represents Denver’s Washington Park neighborhood in House District 2, confirmed he’s interested in running for the seat and has been talking with vacancy committee members.

“A large portion of the district is (House District 6) and (House District 2). I’ve represented both districts effectively down at the Capitol,” he told The Post on Tuesday afternoon.

But he suggested Hansen has been working to bolster another potential vacancy candidate, Rep.-elect Sean Camacho, behind the scenes. Camacho defeated Rep. Elisabeth Epps in a Democratic primary in June and officially won his first term in the House last week. Both Hansen and Woodrow supported Camacho’s run against Epps.

“Sen. Hansen has made his support clear for … Rep.-elect Camacho,” Woodrow said. “And that kind of attempted handoff — I don’t know if that’s going to go over well.”

Camacho did not immediately return a message Tuesday afternoon. He told The Post on Thursday that he was “still thinking about” seeking Hansen’s seat. He said he had “heard the rumor (of Hansen’s resignation) like everybody else” but would not confirm plans to pursue the seat when it becomes available.

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