Thornton Mayor Jan Kulmann on Tuesday became the latest Republican to announce a bid to represent Colorado’s new 8th Congressional District.

The oil and gas engineer joins a crowded field for the open seat, which is likely to be the most competitive congressional race in the state next year and could determine which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives. The roughly evenly divided district covers Adams County suburbs north of Denver to Greeley in Weld County.

“The far left won’t give up power without a fight. The thing is they’ve come after me before, and I won,” Kulmann says in a video posted online by her campaign, referring to an unsuccessful 2016 attempt to recall her from office when she was a city council member.

Kulmann is the fifth Republican to declare a run in the district, which was created as part of the once-a-decade redistricting process. The other GOP candidates in the race include state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, Weld County Commissioner Lori Saine, first-time candidate Giulianna “Jewels” Gray and Ryan Gonzalez, a business owner who briefly sought the nomination last year in another congressional district.

Three Democrats are seeking the nomination: state Rep. Yadira Caraveo, a Thornton pediatrician; Adams County Commissioner Charles “Chaz” Tedesco, a former union president; and Johnny Humphrey, a consultant for a Denver-based LGBTQ+ nonprofit who lives in Northglenn.

Republican state Sens. Kevin Priola and John Cooke are considering joining the race.

“I’m an engineer, a mayor and the mom. Solving problems as what I do. I also know, sometimes you’ve got to stand up and fight,” Kulmann says in the campaign video. “School boards focus on political agendas, not learning. Homelessness and crime are inundating our cities. Inflation threatens our quality of life. The elites don’t even care about American energy independence any more,” she says.

Describing herself as an “outsider who gets results,” Kulmann adds: “As an oil and gas engineer, when I see a challenge I find a solution. I helped to build a charter school to give parents more choices for their kids. I stood with small businesses when COVID restrictions went too far. I increased funding for law-enforcement. Defund the police? Not while I’m mayor.”

Kulmann won the race for mayor of Colorado’s sixth-largest city two years ago with about 42% of the vote, defeating Democrat Eric Montoya and Republican Beth Martinez Humenik, a former state senator, who each received about 20% of the vote in the five-candidate field.

The 8th CD is rated as a toss-up by leading national election forecasters. The district’s voters have a history of tilting toward Democrats over Republicans by an average 1.3 points, according to recent benchmark elections. Democrat Joe Biden carried the district last year by a wide margin, but its voters swung toward Republican Donald Trump in 2016.