With Republican State Rep. Spencer Swalm being pushed out of office by term limits, the race for State House District 27 sees two new faces. On the Democratic Side, Nancy Cronk is seeking the seat. For the Republicans, Jack Tate is running. The district includes Centennial as well as much of southeast Aurora.
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By BRANDON JOHANSSON, Staff Writer
Term limits mean two new faces are squaring off in a Centennial race for state House.
In the race for House District 37, which includes the city of Centennial and neighborhoods surrounding southeast Aurora, Republican Jack Tate is running against Democrat Nancy Cronk in the race to replace Republican Spencer Swalm. Swalm was pushed out by term limits.
Cronk, who has served on the Cunningham Fire Protection Board, said she entered the race in part because she wants to see state lawmakers do more to support local schools.
“Our schools are really our shining stars and we need to protect them so that they stay great,” she said.
Cronk said she chose her neighborhood near South Tower Road and Smoky Hill Road 20 years ago because the area was home to high-performing the Cherry Creek School District.
She said if elected, she would place less emphasis on standardized testing, and more emphasis on letting teachers and local school districts make decisions about what is taught.
Any conversations about school reform should include more input from local teachers and school districts, and less from state lawmakers, Cronk said.
“It’s absolutely mandatory to have the professional educators at the table,” she said.
For Tate, the race is his second crack at elected office after a brief and unsuccessful run for Centennial City Council last year.
Tate said he, too, thinks there is too much focus on standardized testing, and that — especially in high-performing districts like Cherry Creek — the state should leave most issues to the district.
Tate said that if elected, his focus will be on helping the many small businesses in the district, several of which have complained about government regulations harming business.
“The siren song I have heard nonstop for the whole year is really just how small businesses have suffered as a result of the current regulatory environment,” he said.
The complaint has been related to the Affordable Care Act and the state health care exchanges, which Tate said have lead to increased premiums for small businesses.
The district has historically favored Republicans, who enjoy a 41 percent to 28 percent edge in voter registration over Democrats. In recent years, that has translated to republican success there in state House races and other elections.
Cronk said that while the district has historically been pretty conservative, it has grown more moderate in the more than 20 years she has lived in the area.
She said she is hopeful that voters there will take a closer look at a Democratic candidate.
“I think the Republican party in general has swung very far to the right and it has left out women, it’s left out families, it’s left out reasonable people,” she said. “And I think most of our voters are moderate people.”
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Nancy Cronk is the Democrat seeking the House District 37 seat. She is currently serving her second term on the Cunningham Fire Protection District Board of Directors.
Cronk grew up in Michigan in a blue-collar household with eight brothers and sisters. Cronk received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Michigan. It was there she met her husband, Saul Greenhut, PhD. They moved to Aurora in 1991.
Cronk has worked as the owner of a licensed Child Care business, as an Early Childhood Education teacher, and as a Director of Religious Education. She has done contract work for non-profits, and volunteered extensively in the community on various boards, and in the Cherry Creek School District. She has worked as a registered Interfaith Officiant, performing outdoor and interfaith weddings and memorial services, mostly for friends. Nancy is currently the President of an organization which educates its members on current events, and encourages women community leaders to run for political office. — Biography is from her election website, www.nancycronk.com.
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John “Jack” Tate is the Republican candidate for House District 37. He hails from Nashville, Tennesse and has lived in Colorado for 16 years, 10 years in Centennial. He is married and has three children. He received a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Duke University and his MBA from University of Denver..
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Coming soon.
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Coming soon.
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https://tracer.sos.colorado.gov/PublicSite/SearchPages/CandidateDetail.aspx?Type=CA&SeqID=30975
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https://tracer.sos.colorado.gov/PublicSite/SearchPages/CandidateDetail.aspx?Type=CA&SeqID=28851
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Federal Elected Officials
Former U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar
U.S. Senator Michael Bennet
U.S. Senator Mark Udall
U.S. Congressman Ed Perlmutter
U.S. Congresswoman Diana DeGette
State Elected Officials
State Senate President Morgan Carroll
State Senator Nancy Todd
State Senator Linda Newell
Speaker Pro Tempore Rhonda Fields
State Representative Tracy Kraft Tharp
State Representative Cherylin Peniston
State Representative Brittany Pettersen
State Representative Daniel Kagan
State Representative Angela Williams
State Representative Jovan Melton
State Representative John Buckner
State Representative Steve Lebsock
State Representative Jenise May
Former State Senator Suzanne Williams
Former Speaker of the House Andrew Romanoff
Former State Representative Joe Miklosi
Former State Representative Alice Borodkin
Local Elected Officials
Arapahoe County Commissioner Nancy Jackson
Centennial City Councilman Vorry Moon
Centennial City Councilman CJ Whelan
Aurora City Councilwoman Debi Hunter Holen
American Federation of Teachers – Colorado
Blueflower
Carpenters Local 55
Ceasefire
Cherry Creek Education Association’s “Fund for Educational Progress”
Colorado AFL-CIO
Colorado Alliance of Retired Americans
Colorado Association of School Executives
Colorado Education Association
Colorado Professional Firefighters
Colorado Voters for Animals
Colorado WINS
Communication Workers of America
International Association of Firefighters Local 3027
International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 455
One Colorado
Planned Parenthood Votes Colorado
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Sen. David Balmer, representing Colorado Senate District 27
Ms. Nancy Spence, Former State Senator and Member Cherry Creek School Board, Resident of Centennial and HD-37
Rep. Spencer Swalm, Current State Representative for HD-37
Ms. Dorothy Gotlieb, Former State Representative, Resident of Arapahoe County and HD-37
Ms. Lauri (Clapp) Welch, Former State Representative – HD-37
Ms. Nancy Doty, Member of the Arapahoe County Board of Commissioners, Representing District 1
Ms. Kathy Turley, Councilwoman, District 1 for the City of Centennial, Colorado.
Ms. Sue Bosier, Former Councilwoman, District 2 for the City of Centennial, Colorado
Ms. Doris Truhlar, Councilwoman, District 2 for the City of Centennial, Colorado.
Mr. Mark Gotto, Councilman, District 3 for the City of Centennial, Colorado
Mr. Ken Lucas, Councilman, District 3 for the City of Centennial, Colorado
Ms. Stephanie Piko, Councilwoman, District 4 for the City of Centennial, Colorado
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