State Sen. Jessie Danielson, a Wheat Ridge Democrat and veteran political organizer who helped write Colorado’s election laws, on Tuesday announced she’s running in the 2026 primary for secretary of state, the state’s top election official.

“I’m running for secretary of state to defend a democracy under threat and stand up for the patriotic election workers who make sure voting remains free and fair,” Danielson said in a statement. “I helped build the system that has made Colorado a national model for secure, fair and accessible elections — and now I’m running to protect it.”

Danielson, a former state political director for America Votes and NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado, joins Jefferson County Clerk and Recorder Amanda Gonzalez in the Democratic primary to succeed term-limited Democratic Secretary of State Jena Griswold, who is running for attorney general.

Two Republicans and an unaffiliated candidate have filed to run for the office, but so far none of them appear to be campaigning for the job.

Griswold, the first Democrat elected to the position since the early 1960s, won reelection in 2022 by a 13-point margin.

When she headed America Votes in Colorado in 2013, Danielson pushed for passage of the state’s bipartisan election law overhaul, which moved Colorado to all-mail balloting. After its passage, then-Gov. John Hickenlooper appointed Danielson to the Voter Access and Modernized Elections Commission help implement the law.

In her announcement Tuesday, Danielson said she’s running to protect Colorado against the Trump administration’s efforts to “interfere” in state and local elections.

“Donald Trump seeks to empower federal agents to seize our ballots, seize election equipment and interfere in mail-in ballot counting for his benefit,” Danielson said. “Trump’s dangerous and unconstitutional attacks on election integrity require all of us to unite in defense of our way of life.”

The fourth-generation Coloradan grew up on her family’s farm in Weld County. First elected to the state House in 2014, Danielson is in her second term representing Jefferson County’s Senate District 22.

Danielson and her husband, Democratic strategist and direct mail guru Andy Kabza, are raising their two children in Wheat Ridge.

In her decade in the legislature, Danielson has steered multiple high-profile bills into law, including the state’s equal pay law, a bill that established automatic voter registration, and legalizing the use of rain barrels to collect rooftop runoff. The Colorado AFL-CIO named Danielson a “Labor Champion” in 2022, citing her record sponsoring bills that promote workers’ rights.

Arapahoe County Commissioner Rhonda Fields, a former state lawmaker, called Danielson a “fierce advocate for democracy and for the people of Colorado” in an endorsement released by Danielson’s campaign.

“I’ve seen Jessie build coalitions, lead with integrity and fight for those whose voices too often go unheard,” Fields said.

Vicki Cowart, the retired CEO of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains, praised Danielson in a statement, calling the lawmaker “a proven leader who is deeply committed to protecting our democracy and the rights of Colorado’s most vulnerable.”

Added Cowart: “She will stand up to Trump and all efforts to interfere with or corrupt our elections.”