Seven candidates have now filed for the House District 12 vacancy following the resignation of Rep. Tracey Bernett, D-Louisville.

The Boulder County Democratic HD12 vacancy committee will meet on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 1 p.m. The meeting will be held online and live-streamed on the county party’s YouTube channel.

Candidates are continuing to file for the seat, according to acting county party chair Amy Weinstein.

An updated list can be found on the HD12 vacancy committee website, along with the nomination form. 

Nominations will be accepted from the floor on the 28th.

The current candidates are:

• Former U.S. Rep. David Skaggs, who served in the Colorado House from 1981 to 1987, including as House Minority Leader from 1983 to 1985. He then was elected to the 2nd Congressional District, where he served six terms, stepping down in 1999.

• Catherine “Kitty” Sargent of Superior, who serves on the Boulder Valley School District, most recently reelected in 2021.

• Kyle Brown, a member of the Louisville City Council.

• Alfredo Alvarado of Lafayette.

• Peter Terhune of Lafayette.

• Emily Coffee of Lafayette, a vocalist with the local band The Brown Coffees; and, 

• Jennifer Kaaoush, a co-director of Superior Rising, a non-profit formed to support residents in their recovery from the Marshall Fire. She is also a member of the Town of Superior Board of Trustees.

Bernett’s resignation leaves the General Assembly with 50 women and 49 men. Democrats have boasted of Colorado as being only the second state with majority women representation.

Bernett resigned her seat on Jan. 8, hours before the General Assembly was due to convene for its 2023 session. She faces three felony charges and two misdemeanor counts related to residency and voter fraud after an investigation by the Boulder County District Attorney alleged she didn’t live in the apartment she rented to maintain her residency in House District 12.

The 2021 redistricting map had moved her home into House District 19.