STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 37: Clifford vs Thompson
AURORA | Incumbent Democratic Rep. Chad Clifford faces Republican Jill Thompson in the election for Colorado House District 37, which includes southern portions of Aurora and parts of Centennial.
Clifford was originally appointed through a vacancy committee to represent the district shortly before the 2024 legislative session and then was elected that year to a full term.
Clifford is a Colorado Ranger and government operations lead for the American Red Cross. Before becoming a legislator, Clifford worked as a lobbyist and he has a background in emergency management. He is the founder of the Creating Leaders PAC, which supports Democratic candidates for office at all levels.
Clifford’s campaign priorities include increasing affordable housing, supporting public education, expanding healthcare and protecting reproductive and LGBTQ+ rights. He is endorsed by One Colorado, the Sierra Club, the Colorado Education Association, the Colorado Association of Realtors and more.
In the 2026 legislative session, Clifford sponsored and passed bills to expand eligibility for mortgage loans through the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority to first responders, increase traffic violations penalties and outline accommodation requirements for service animals for people with disabilities.
Thompson, a graduate of Cherry Creek High School, is a small business owner and industrial contractor. She also goes by GMRMOM.
Thompson’s platform advocates for protecting TABOR, increasing natural gas production, requiring in-person same-day voting and protecting Second Amendment rights. Her campaign website says the Affordable Care Act is “evil” and calls former President Barack Obama a “non-stop POS.”
Thompson’s campaign website says she supports measures on this year’s ballot to increase penalties for child sex trafficking (Proposition 133), ban transgender students from competing on certain sports teams (Proposition 134) and prohibit gender-affirming surgeries for minors (Proposition 135). She opposes Proposition NN, which would raise the TABOR cap to fund public education, while advocating for capping the flat income tax.