Colorado will send a fresh face to Washington after next year’s election.

Before this week, there was a chance the state’s House delegation would see some turnover in the wake of the 2024 election – two seats are rated as toss-ups and could change hands – but Republican Ken Buck’s announcement on Nov. 1 that he won’t seek a sixth term ensured at least one congressional newcomer will be taking the oath of office on Jan. 3, 2025.

It will be the fourth cycle in a row that a newcomer will join Colorado’s ranks of lower-chamber legislators, who boast tenures ranging from near-rookie status to seasoned veterans.

That’s a remarkable stretch with at least some adjustment each cycle for a state whose House delegation has seemed relatively stable over the decades.

Still to be determined: whether Republican Lauren Boebert and Democrat Yadira Caraveo will return with the next crop of lawmakers representing Colorado’s eight congressional districts.

Boebert is facing multiple primary and general election challengers in the 3rd Congressional District, including fundraising powerhouse Adam Frisch, the Democrat who came within a whisker of unseating the incumbent last year.

Caraveo, who won the newly created 8th Congressional District last year by a margin nearly as slim as Boebert’s, faces a pair of Republicans hoping to deny her a second term: Weld County Commissioner Scott James and state Rep. Gabe Evans, R-Fort Lupton.

Both races could prove pivotal in determining which party wins the House majority next year, and both incumbents have been targeted by national Democratic and Republican campaign organizations.

While Boebert’s reelection bid has so far drawn vastly more spending and sparked more attention – blame that on the Rifle Republican’s celebrity status and talent for attracting headlines – Caraveo’s run can be expected to heat up in coming months, if only because the Thornton Democrat represents a solid swing seat, compared to Boebert’s GOP-leaning district.

Until this week, it looked like those two districts would steal the spotlight in an otherwise sparse state election year – without a competitive presidential contest or any major statewide races – but Buck’s move for the exit means the 2024 Republican primary in the bright red 4th Congressional District could rival the rest of the ticket for blockbuster distinction.

Buck’s departure from Congress appears to have happened the same way Ernest Hemingway’s classic, “The Sun Also Rises,” describes a character’s descent into bankruptcy: “‘Two ways. Gradually, then suddenly.”

Midway into his fifth term, Buck surprised no one by announcing he plans to retire after the Windsor Republican’s current term concludes.

The former Weld County district attorney, 2010 U.S. Senate nominee and chairman of the Colorado GOP has voiced complaints about Washington since his arrival there in 2015, including writing a book published in his second term that promised to expose the everyday corruption that prevents Congress from grappling with big problems, much less solving them.

Although he’s mused publicly over the years about leaving his safe House seat behind, this year Buck’s burgeoning discontent spilled over and – to hear Buck tell it – made his decision to head for the exit an obvious one.

While Buck has continued to toe the line on fiscal matters – voting against spending bills has become a Buck trademark – he increasingly broke ranks from fellow Republicans on issues he lamented this week have come to define the party. Those range from having to maintain an unwavering loyalty to former President Donald Trump and his claims of stolen elections, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, to measuring lawmakers’ success not by legislative accomplishments but by the outrage and volume they produce on social media.

In recent months, Buck has become a fixture on traditional media, striking a contrary note in regular appearances on cable news channels. Whether it was criticizing his fellow Republicans for pursuing an inquiry into impeaching President Joe Biden, announcing that he won’t support Trump’s election if the former president is convicted of a felony, or voting to remove former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Buck could be counted on to provide a take that bucked the GOP party line.

As House Republicans struggled for weeks to name a replacement for McCarthy, Buck drew intense pressure and sharp criticism from fellow Republicans – including the state party he chaired for a term just over two years ago – for opposing Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan’s ascension to speaker. After making clear that he couldn’t back a speaker candidate who refused to declare that Biden’s election was legitimate, Buck says he received death threats and an eviction notice from one of his in-state offices.

Days after blocking Jordan, whose support dropped in three successive speaker votes, Buck bent, voting along with every other House Republican for Louisiana Rep. Mike Johnson, a four-term lawmaker who led a lawsuit and the House Republicans’ floor efforts to prevent certification of Biden’s win on Jan. 6, 2021.

Just over a week later, Buck broke the long-anticipated news in an interview on MSNBC that he was ready to hang up his congressional hat. Within the hour, Buck’s office released a statement and posted a blistering message online recounting his reasons for pulling up stakes. He also hinted at what might be next.

In a recorded video, Buck expressed gratitude to voters for sending him to the House, where he said he’s “fought against the left’s policies that have had real world consequences,” but warned that Americans’ hope for Republicans to take decisive action may be in vain.” Republican leaders “are lying to America,” he continued, citing the stolen election canard among the GOP’s “insidious narratives (that) breed widespread cynicism and erode Americans confidence in the rule of law.”

“This trend among Republicans is a significant departure from the enduring principles of conservatism,” Buck said. “We belong to the party of Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan. Our movement has always been fueled by immutable truths about human nature, individual liberty and economic freedoms. The Republican Party of today, however, is ignoring self-evident truths about the rule of law and limited government in exchange for self-serving lies.”

“I made the decision to leave Congress,” Buck said, “because tough votes are being replaced by social media status. It’s time to stop feeding popular narratives and start addressing the long-term solutions. I believe America’s exceptionalism lies in answers developed from the governed, not the government. My passion is to work with Americans to encourage advocacy for the long-term reforms that we need to implement.”

While Colorado’s electorate leans decidedly blue these days, Buck’s district – covering most of Douglas County, parts of Larimer and Weld counties and the Eastern Plains – stands out as the state’s most reliably Republican congressional seat. Barring the unforeseeable, the 4th CD will stay in Republican hands, making next year’s June primary the decisive contest.

It’s certain to be a crowded field.

Prior to his announcement, Buck had already drawn two primary challengers from his right flank: Weld County Council member Trent Leisy and first-time candidate Justin Schrieber. The next day, they were joined by nonprofit head, filmmaker and former talk radio host Deborah Flora, who ran last year for the U.S. Senate.

A slew of others might run, including current and former state lawmakers, county commissioners and a handful of candidates who came up short in their last campaigns. Some of those on the fluid roster are state Rep. Richard Holtorf of Akron, House Minority Leader Mike Lynch of Wellington, former state Sen. Tom Wiens of Castle Rock, Logan County Commissioner Jerry Sonnenberg, Douglas County Commissioners Abe Laydon and Lora Thomas, former University of Colorado Regent Heidi Ganahl, former 18th Judicial District Attorney George Brauchler and former Fort Collins City Councilman Gino Campana.

Many of the potential candidates have been preparing campaigns for months – Holtorf, a third-generation cattle rancher, fired a shot across Buck’s bow a month ago, likening the incumbent to “a stray cow that’s lost his way” – while others are assessing their chances quickly.

Although Buck might have appeared to have one foot out the door for much of his current term, he’s been clear for years that he wasn’t in it for the long haul.

He related a telling anecdote at a pre-publication event for his first book, 2017’s “Drain the Swamp: How Washington Corruption is Worse Than You Think.”

Proclaiming that he wasn’t shy about revealing secrets and calling out politicians of all stripes – including allies – Buck said he understood that he risked retaliation for his candor.

Buck recalled an exchange with Jordan, who co-founded the House Freedom Caucus with Buck and served as its first chairman. After Jordan had read an advance copy, Buck said his fellow lawmaker asked, “”Ken, how long you planning on staying in Congress?’ And I said, ‘Not real long,’ and he said, ‘That’s a good thing.'”