While the El Paso County Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday said goodbye to a longtime member, a familiar name in local and state politics put her hat in the ring as a possible replacement.

Cami Bremer, who recently announced her resignation from the County Commission after she was hired in September as the CEO of Pikes Peak United Way, served her last day on the commission Tuesday. Bremer was elected to the District 5 seat, which serves the central portion of El Paso County, including most of Colorado Springs.

As a Republican, Bremer’s replacement is up to the El Paso County Republican Party to appoint. Party chair Ken Davis confirmed on Tuesday that former county party chair Vickie Tonkins and current Colorado Springs School District 11 board member Lauren Nelson have announced as candidates. 

Other candidates still have time to put their names forward. The party plans on holding a vacancy committee election on June 17, within the 10-day period allowed for appointments under state law. 

‘A broken system’: El Paso County commissioner announces resignation days after major changes to appointment process

Tonkins was elected county party chair in 2019 and left the position earlier this year. A well-known name in Colorado GOP politics, Tonkins threw her support behind former state chair Dave Williams last year amid efforts from other members of her party to oust him.

El Paso County GOP censures Vickie Tonkins, calls for Dave Williams’ removal in disputed meeting

She was both the subject of and initiator behind censures as the local party experienced conflict from a longstanding split between factions. 

El Paso County GOP chair Vickie Tonkins leads censure against party’s vice chair, demands he resign

Nelson is an at-large member of the D-11 school board first elected in 2021. Her term ends later this year. According to her biography, she is a graduate of D-11 and currently a stay-at-home mom after a career in food science. 

Bremer’s appointment from the vacancy committee process is not guaranteed to serve her full term, which ends in 2026. The commissioner said the passage of new state legislature changing the process affected the timing of her departure, which was first announced eight months ago.

Bremer was announced as the new CEO of Pikes Peak United Way in September of last year. The nonprofit is one of the region’s most influential service organizations. Initially saying she would resign as a commissioner in early 2025, Bremer announced her departure date about eight months later.

Just two days before her resignation announcement, state legislators signed a bill that would shorten the tenure of Bremer’s replacement appointee. As a Republican, Bremer’s replacement would under the old rules be chosen by a vacancy committee made up of members of the El Paso County Republican Party. The appointee would serve out the remainder of Bremer’s term until 2026.

Now, under the provisions of House Bill 1319, the Republican Party’s replacement will only serve until the next odd-year primary, which will come this fall. Then, Republican and unaffiliated voters will vote on candidates to fill out the term.

Davis said the party was going ahead with the appointment process. He previously told The Gazette he had concerns about the new process outlined in the bill, namely how he felt money could influence the outcome of the election. 

Bremer’s is not the only vacancy committee being organized by the party; on Monday, state Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen also announced his resignation. The Republican from Monument left his position for a leadership role with the American Excellence Foundation in Washington, D.C.

The Colorado legislature also passed a bill concurrent to HB-1319 altering the vacancy process for state senators, but that law doesn’t take effect until 2027, according to Davis. 

During a ceremony Tuesday, Commissioner Holly Williams called Bremer a “characteristically steady” presence on the board, especially through the county’s COVID-19 response.

“Commissioner Bremer always had the ability to pull us back together and get us to the heart of the solution,” she said. 

“Commissioner Bremer and I have not agreed on everything, but I am very grateful that we were able to work together on the things that we both cared about,” said Commission Chair Carrie Geitner.