Colorado Lawmaker Resigns to Avoid Recall
A third Democratic Colorado state senator facing possible recall after voting for gun-control measures said Wednesday she will resign to avoid a recall election.
The resignation of Sen. Evie Hudak of Denver’s western suburbs came less than a week before opponents planned to turn in petitions seeking her recall. The resignation means Democrats will appoint an interim successor, guaranteeing they’ll keep a one-seat majority in the Senate next session.
Two other Democratic senators were ousted from office in September recalls, former Senate President John Morse of Colorado Springs and former Sen. Angela Giron of Pueblo. Both were replaced by Republicans.
The recall efforts came after Colorado’s Democratic Legislature and governor this year approved a slate of gun-control measures including ammunition magazine limits and expanded background checks. The limits were the first gun-control measures adopted outside the East Coast after the Dec. 14 Sandy Hook shootings in Connecticut that left 20 first-graders and six women dead.