DENVER — State Sen. Jeff Bridges, who chairs the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee, announced last month he was jumping into the race for State Treasurer next year, joining a crowded field of Democrats for the primary.
"As Chair of Colorado's Joint Budget Committee, I think every day about how to make sure your tax dollars get the best possible return," Bridges said in a statement announcing his intention to run for the seat.
On Thursday, he sat with Denver7 anchor Jessica Porter to talk about how he would safeguard taxpayer dollars, oversee the state’s $90 billion in assets and make sure Colorado’s investment funds are in top shape to keep the state economy healthy.
“My legislative experience, working on affordability, the budget experience, bringing those dollars together just, I think, is the perfect preparation for the job of treasurer,” Bridges told Denver7 in an interview about his campaign Thursday.
Bridges said that, as State Treasurer, he would change how Colorado invests its money.
“Instead of parking those dollars on Wall Street, we can put those dollars to work right here in Colorado,” Bridges said. “We can build houses, we can build clean energy that lowers people's bills, we can invest in infrastructure that attracts good paying jobs.”
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Bridges currently serves the 26th District of the Colorado Senate, representing Arapahoe County which includes Aurora, Englewood, Greenwood Village and Littleton. He was initially chosen for the seat in 2019 by a vacancy committee and subsequently won elections in 2020 and 2024. He is now term-limited.
Before joining the State Senate, he served in the Colorado House of Representatives.
A Colorado native, Bridges holds a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard University.
In the most recent legislative session, he took on the task of balancing the state’s $16.5 billion budget despite a $1 billion shortfall.
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“We managed to make those cuts without having to reduce our investment in K-12 public education, without having to drastically cut Medicaid,” Bridges said. “We found other places that we could cut, some easy, some really hard, but we managed to get the job done.”
Bridges joins a crowded field of Democrats in the race for State Treasurer. State Rep. Brianna Titone, Jeffco Treasurer Jerry DiTullio and John Mikos have announced their campaigns.
So far, no Republicans have entered the race.
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