Of the 17 candidates vying to be Denver’s next mayor, five are female and one of them may just make city history.

Denver has never had a female mayor and early polling data show Kelly Brough and Lisa Calderon ahead of the pack. Others, like state Rep. Leslie Herod, current at-large Councilwoman Debbie Ortega, and political newcomer Renate Behrens fell somewhat behind. 

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However, with about 60% of Denver voters undecided and less than two weeks until ballots are mailed, the race is truly anybody’s to win.

Town Hall Collaborative, a woman-owned business, hosted a debate with the five female candidates on March 1, the first day of Women’s History Month.

While the debate questions concerned homelessness, housing and public safety, as other debates have, moderator and reporter Micah Smith asked “What would it mean to you to be the first woman to serve as Denver’s mayor?”

“Women are making a difference in different sectors that people never thought they should be in, and women have had to continue to break through that glass ceiling,” Ortega said. “I would be truly honored to have that role representing the city and to be a leader for so many of our young girls.”

Herod and Brough both know the weight of being “the first” to do something.

Herod was the first Black LGBTQ person elected to public office in the state.

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Brough has been the first three times in her life. She was the first female on-call snow plow driver at the Stapleton airport, the first female president and CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, and the first woman to head the HR department for the city of Denver.

Both know it comes with pressure and often unfair expectations.

Brough asked the community to “show up,” and support whoever the new mayor is, especially if one of the women on stage was elected. 

Herod acknowledged many of the same challenges, but also delivered a promise to the audience. 

“The next mayor of Denver will be a woman,” she said. “There is no reason why Denver should be the ‘queen city’ and not be led by a queen.” 

Herod’s comments were met with thunderous applause from the audience. She also took time to remember her family and community, who sacrificed much to give her the opportunity she has. 

Other candidates recognized the significance of the race. Calderon –  who would be the first Afro-Latina woman to hold the office – used the words of Anna Julia Cooper, a Black feminist who was “ahead of her time.”

“‘Where and when I enter, my people enter with me,’ and that means I would be bringing all of my people in terms of our community,” she said. “I would also mark the end of patriarchy in the highest leadership offices in our city.” 

In addition to mayor, Calderon said Denver has never had a female police chief, sheriff or fire chief. She had just come from what she called a “fiery” forum hosted by the Police Foundation, where the question “will they be qualified?” was asked. The audience audibly groaned when Calderon shared that.  

Homelessness started the conversations, with Brough and Calderon going back and forth on Brough’s support of arresting people who refuse shelter. Brough recognizes the issues with Denver’s shelter systems, saying they do not work for everyone. 

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However, her stance of arresting people for violating the camping ban – which she supports – drew the ire of Calderon, despite Brough’s insistence that arrest would only be a last resort. 

“People of color are disproportionately unhoused, so the fact that someone would actively promote incarceration of a population that is already over incarcerated, boggles my mind,” Calderon said.

She added this would only expand the cycle of criminal legal system debt. Calderon also clashed with Ortega over the idea of “community policing,” saying it just doesn’t work. She wants to see a complete re-envisioning of policing in Denver. 

Getting police out of their cars and into the communities they serve made a huge difference during Denver’s so-called “summer of violence,” Ortega retorted.

Denver is authorized to have a police strength of 1,600 officers, though it is short of that by about 10%. Mayor Michael Hancock’s final budget appropriated money to hire 188 additional officers, and Ortega supported expanding the police department to be in line with city growth. 

“It’s important to have staffing levels that reflect the population as we continue to grow,” Ortega said. “Our Sheriff’s Department is significantly understaffed as well, so we have to look at both of them.” 

Other candidates have similar ideas. Mike Johnston wants to hire 200 additional first responders, and Trinidad Rodriguez has a plan similar to Ortega’s to bring police strength in line with population growth. 

Calderon remained adamant that more police is not the answer. 

“I envision policing that is not 40% of our general fund and instead invest in things that we actually know reduces crime, including housing, healthcare, social workers and librarians, where we are looking at root causes and strengthening our social safety net,” she said. 

Calderon harkened back to Dwight D. Eisenhower, former president and the supreme commander of Allied military forces in World War II. He said every gun made, warship launched and rocket fired is a “theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed.” 

Herod also joined in, lobbing some criticism at the Denver City Council for their sluggish adoption of a co-responder program. The community had been asking for a program like Support Team Assisted Response for a decade, and the council and mayor’s office chose not to fund it. It took her foundation, Caring for Denver, putting up $200,000 before action was taken, she said.  

“Let’s be real about real solutions when it comes to actually dealing with the root causes of crime,” she said. “Let’s move the needle. Let’s put our funding where we know we can actually help people.”