Questions arose about where exactly a Republican gubernatorial candidate lives after he listed an unincorporated area in Douglas County to file his paperwork, instead of the address he used to run for the legislature.

This matters because lawmakers who live more than 50 miles from the state Capitol can claim a per diem of $238 per day.

Sen. Mark Baisley, R-Woodland Park, has claimed that amount for the past year, including for February and the entire month of March this year, according to information obtained through an open records request.

Woodland Park is about 85 miles from the state Capitol. 

Roxborough Park — the address Baisley used on his gubernatorial filing — is only 35 miles away from the state Capitol and that would only make him eligible for $50 per day per diem.

That’s a difference of $5,828 for the month of March, for example. 

When Baisley filed the paperwork to run for governor on Feb. 27, he used his Roxborough Park address, instead of Woodland Park. He still owns the Roxborough Park property and he acknowledged that his wife still lives there full time.

When asked Tuesday about the discrepancy, Baisley initially said he didn’t know how the Roxborough Park address was listed on his candidate affidavit. He attributed it to his campaign compliance firm.

When pressed how the campaign firm knew to use that address, Baisley replied, “I hired a campaign team who made that filing. The treasurer, who lives back East, used that address. That’s not the address I would use if I were doing it myself.”

He said he noticed the Roxborough Park address when he went on the Secretary of State’s website to file a personal financial disclosure. That disclosure filing is now late and a notice from the Secretary of State’s office on Tuesday about the late filing was addressed to the Roxborough Park residence. 

Baisley said he lost the password to the account and that’s why the document has not been filed. He said he will correct the affidavit and emphasized that Woodland Park is his home. 

In 2006, in a run for Senate District 30, Baisley had listed his address as 10398 Totem Run in Roxborough Park. He used the same address in 2018, when he ran for House District 39 and for re-election in 2020.

Then redistricting happened, and the Senate seat held by then-Sen. Tammy Story, D-Evergreen, went from a safe Democratic seat to a solid Republican seat. But the district boundaries also moved south, leaving out Jefferson County and the northern part of Douglas County, which included Roxborough Park.

With an open seat available, Baisley established residency in the new Senate District 4 by renting part of a home in Woodland Park. He also listed that same address — 301 Thunder Ridge Dr. — for a filing for 2024 for the state Senate, although the seat wasn’t up for reelection that year.

The Woodland Park home, according to the Teller County assessor, was built in 2010. Its initial value was set at $230,000. In 2013, it was sold for $115,000. It is now valued at $1.4 million.

Baisley told Colorado Politics in 2022 the residence is used to house people affiliated with Charis Bible College. He has been renting the top half of the two-story house, along with four other Charis tenants.

As for his wife, Baisley told Colorado Politics in 2022 that “the primary answer to your question is that my wife and I live parallel existences that cross as often as we can.”

“Maryann works at Valor High School in Highlands Ranch and cares for our three grandkids during the week who live at our Littleton address, where Maryann frequently stays,” he said. “I work remotely, teach at Charis Bible College in Woodland Park and zip all around the eight counties of SD4, which is my life’s focus. Maryann’s daily activities are north of mine but we are together often.”

Baisley said the property in Thunder Ridge Road in Woodland Park is the “primary residence of my choosing after the new districts came out that encompassed 95% of my House District but excluded Roxborough.”

As of 10:20 a.m. Tuesday, the address on the committee registration form had been changed to Woodland Park. The affidavit has not yet been changed.

After making that change, Baisley told Colorado Politics that he had sent his treasurer a 2017 IRS document with an employee identification number needed to open his campaign account, and that document showed the Roxborough Park address. 

Baisley is one of nine Republicans who have filed for the 2026 gubernatorial primary.