Colorado Republican Party Chairman Dave Williams on Monday declared his candidacy for the 5th Congressional District seat held by U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, who said on Friday that he won’t seek reelection.

Describing himself as a “conservative wartime fighter,” Williams, a former three-term Colorado Springs state lawmaker, took equal aim at “corrupt Democrats” and “sell-out Republicans” in a written statement announcing his run.

“Our district deserves a new congressman with a proven conservative record of always fighting for regular workers and families while never selling out to corrupt D.C. establishment power brokers who always find ways to get more power and taxpayer money for themselves at the expense of hardworking citizens,” Williams said.

“Authentic Christian leadership means serving others above self and not letting failed, say-anything politicians in Washington D.C. get away with taking citizens for ride,” he added.

A strong ally of Donald Trump, Williams has embraced the former president’s unsubstantiated claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

The 37-year-old told Colorado Politics that he doesn’t plan to step down as state GOP chairman ahead of the June primary.

Williams, who finished second in a four-way primary against Lamborn in 2022, is the first of what could be as many as a dozen GOP candidates in the El Paso County-based district.

Lamborn stunned Colorado political circles last week when he announced that he wouldn’t seek a 10th term, setting off a scramble for the solidly Republican seat, which has never sent a Democrat to Washington.

The incumbent’s surprise move means that all three of the state’s GOP-held congressional districts will be open this year, following U.S. Rep. Ken Buck’s decision last fall not to seek reelection and U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert’s recent announcement that she would run for Buck’s seat rather than face a tough race in the Western Slope-based district she represents.

During his tenure representing state House District 15 from 2017-2023, the pugnacious Williams cultivated a reputation for taking on members of his own party with the same vigor he confronted Democrats.

Williams ran an aggressive primary against Lamborn last cycle, including filing a criminal complaint that accused the incumbent’s campaign of lying about Williams in an ad, though the county’s Republican district attorney later declined to prosecute.

During the primary, Williams lost a lawsuit demanding that Colorado’s Democratic secretary of state list his name on ballots as Dave “Let’s Go Brandon” Williams, despite arguing that the phrase – code in some GOP circles for a profane insult directed at President Joe Biden – was his nickname.

Williams asked voters to look to his record to see what he’ll do in Washington.

“It’s not difficult to know what kind of congressman I will be because during my service in the state House and, now, as the chairman of the Colorado Republican Party, I’ve been a wartime fighter for the working families of Colorado and been an outspoken leader to expose crooked Democrats who are engaging in election interference against President Trump or increasing the amount of illegal aliens who pour across an unprotected border,” said Williams.

“I’m 100% pro-life, 100% pro-second Amendment, and have never voted for a tax or spending increase, and I know that corrupt establishment politicians in both parties are to blame for the mess our country is in.”

As state party chairman, Williams led an unsuccessful attempt to prevent unaffiliated voters from casting ballots in Colorado’s Republican primaries. He’s also spearheaded an ongoing lawsuit seeking to overturn the state’s voter-approved, semi-open primary system.

The state Republican Party’s central committee will decide later this month whether to endorse Trump ahead of Colorado’s March 5 presidential primary, Williams announced last week.

The state GOP argued in court last year against a complaint filed by Colorado voters aiming to remove Trump from the state’s primary ballot under a constitutional provision that bans officials from holding federal office if they have “engaged in insurrection.” Following a Colorado Supreme Court ruling that barred Trump from the ballot, Trump and the state party appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which has agreed to hear the case in February.

Williams told state Republicans in an email sent Monday morning that he plans to keep his party position while running for Congress, citing numerous projects he’s overseeing.

Said Williams: “As our State Party Bylaws allow, I will remain as chairman through the course of the primary election where we will continue our work of rebuilding Party infrastructure, preparing for caucus and assemblies, continuing our important lawsuit battles to keep President Trump on the ballot and overturn the open primary, and exposing out-of-touch Democrats for being radical and corrupt.”

Williams added, “The Party and its leaders will ensure fairness and transparency while avoiding any conflicts of interest as more competitors enter the CD5 race.”

Other Republicans considering a run for Lamborn’s seat include former Secretary of State Wayne Williams, state Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen, state House Minority Leader Rose Pugliese, state Rep. Bob Gardner, former U.S. Senate candidate Eli Bremer, talk radio host Jeff Crank, El Paso County Commissioners Stan VanderWerf and Longinos Gonzalez, former County Commissioner Mark Waller, former state Rep. Tim Geitner and former El Paso County GOP Vice Chairman Karl Schneider.

Lamborn said last week that he has no immediate plans to endorse a successor.

Five Democrats and several unaffiliated and third-party candidates have also filed to run in the district.

Precinct caucuses are scheduled for the first week of March. Candidates hoping to petition into the primary can begin gathering signatures later this month, with petitions due in March.

Colorado’s primary election for congressional and state-level offices is June 25.