This story was produced as part of the Colorado Capitol News Alliance. It first appeared at cpr.org.
Jefferson County Commissioner Lesley Dahlkemper will join Democrat Phil Weiser as his running mate for governor this fall. The Colorado attorney general selected Dahlkemper to join him on the ticket and made the announcement at the Democratic Party headquarters in Denver.
“The first and foremost priority I had in mind was someone who could be a governing partner,” Weiser told press on Wednesday. “That means if God forbid anything happened to me, someone who could step in and serve Colorado ably as governor.”
In 2022, Dahlkemper was elected to her second, four-year term as county commissioner. She has a master’s degree in journalism and previously worked for the Colorado Education Initiative.
Weiser’s campaign said the selection makes it clear that local governments will have a seat at the table in his administration, and that the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and Ute Mountain Ute Indian Tribe will have a key partner.
“I’m proud of my work finding common ground and workable solutions that deliver for Coloradans as a county commissioner – and I’m ready to take on this work with Phil as lieutenant governor,” Dahlkemper said in a written statement.
Dahlkemper, a former education reporter with CPR News, said her background in journalism “laid the foundation” for her seven-year career as county commissioner, and now as the potential next lieutenant governor.
“It's always coming at issues with a curious mindset,” she told CPR News on Wednesday. “It's analyzing information. It's taking complex issues and trying to communicate them in a way that connects with community members, but always beginning by listening first. Those are all skill sets that are an important part of being a reporter. And they have carried me through my career.”
Republican gubernatorial candidate Victor Marx has not announced his running mate and his campaign did not respond to a request for comment about Weiser’s pick.
The lieutenant governor serves as governor's second-in-command and steps in as the governor when the governor is absent or incapacitated, which happened a few times under Polis’ two terms in office.
The lieutenant governor typically chairs the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs. But beyond that, and their role in constitutional succession, the lieutenant governor’s specific duties are largely delegated by the governor.
“I am far more interested long-term in who a Gov. Weiser would appoint to cabinet positions and boards and commissions and senior level administration positions, because those are policy, those will determine what kind of governorship we’re going to get, not the lieutenant governor,” said Republican Dick Wadhams, who served as the press secretary under former Gov. Bill Owens.
Wadhams views Dahlkemper as a mainstream left-of-center Democrat.
“I think she’s certainly within the mainstream of the Democratic party,” he said
While it’s not yet clear how big of a role she wants to play in the administration and what her aspirations are, he said it’s a good launching pad if she wants to seek higher office.
“She has the opportunity to set herself up as a prominent statewide elected official,” Wadhams said.
Editor's Note: Dahlkemper formerly worked as an education reporter for Colorado Public Radio. She left CPR in 1997.
