During the past two years, our community has faced many challenges — a pandemic, attacks on our democracy, unprecedented wildfires and drought, and more. And yet, every time our community has been tested, we’ve risen to the occasion, demonstrating the incredible resiliency, innovative spirit, and kindness that Coloradans are so well known for. As your representative in the U.S. Congress, I’ve been honored to serve our community at such a critical time and to work together — with each of you — to overcome these obstacles. And the strength and spirit I have seen in our community and our state has only deepened my belief that our best days truly lie ahead.

Since 2019, I have had the privilege of representing Eagle County and the Western Slope in the House, where I’ve worked hard to deliver for our community. As political polarization has become more pervasive, we’ve tried a different approach — to work collaboratively, listen to those with whom we may disagree, and find common ground.

Whether it is as the founder and co-chair of the Bipartisan Wildfire Caucus, or through our nationally recognized “Service Town-Halls” that we’ve hosted right here in our mountain communities, I’ve worked to bring together folks from across the political spectrum to build consensus and solve problems. It’s why our office was identified by the Center for Effective Lawmaking as one of the Top 10 most effective Democrats in the House — and the most effective on public lands in the entire Congress. The 18 bills we’ve had signed into law — expanding opportunities for small businesses, supporting our public schools, addressing supply chain challenges and more — reflect my commitment to working collaboratively and listening to everyone, as we work to address the defining challenges of our time.

And we’ve made important progress on that front. From the passage of the most significant climate action legislation in our country’s history, which I helped shape as a member of House Leadership, to our leadership on securing resources for wildfire mitigation and drought resiliency for Colorado, I’ve long made combating climate change and protecting our environment a top priority. Likewise, I’m proud of the progress we’ve made in enacting common-sense gun violence prevention measures, which I’ve championed as vice-chair of the House’s Gun Violence Prevention Task Force.

Our work, however, is far from finished. We must do more to improve our infrastructure, keep our community safe, and lower costs for Coloradans. In Congress, I was proud to play a key leadership role in the passage of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act, and successfully secure millions of dollars for local infrastructure projects here in Eagle County, including improvements to Vail Pass. I was also proud to support a comprehensive public safety package that would deliver new federal resources to build safer communities, and to lead a bipartisan effort to provide schools with the resources to tackle the fentanyl epidemic through my Protecting Kids from Fentanyl Act legislation.

While we’ve made progress on our work to reduce prescription drug prices through the Inflation Reduction Act, we must do far more to reduce inflation and the exceedingly high cost of living for families, including through supply chain improvements and regulatory reforms I’ve championed at the Federal level. 

And finally, we must also continue our effort to tackle the threat of climate change. As Chair of the House Subcommittee on Public Lands, I’ve worked to ensure our treasured public lands are preserved through the CORE Act, and will continue to do so. Just this month, we made significant progress with the designation of Camp Hale-Continental Divide as America’s newest national monument, an effort I was proud to help lead. And as the only member of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis from the Rocky Mountain region, we’ll keep working to secure more investments in renewable energy and resources for the incredible scientific research being done here in the 2nd Congressional District.

In sum, it has been such a privilege to serve Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District, and if given the opportunity, I would be honored to continue representing our community so we can keep working — together — on building a more hopeful future.

Joe Neguse is the incumbent candidate for the Democratic Party seeking reelection for the U.S. House of Representatives for District 2.