Will this be the team that gets Arizona back to the Final Four for the first time in 25 years, and maybe go further? Who knows. But one thing is for certain, no Wildcats squad has had a better regular season than this one.
Colorado
Noteworthy Colorado legislative primary races draw significant cash • Colorado Newsline
Seven sitting Colorado lawmakers are facing primary challenges this year as they work to retain their seats, leaving them with little break time between the end of the most recent legislative session and the thick of campaign season.
That includes two of the most progressive representatives, who face more moderate opponents and two Republican senators going against candidates who embrace more MAGA-style politics.
State legislative primaries will take place on June 25. Voters can check or update their registration online at the secretary of state’s website. Voters can find what House and Senate district they live in, as well as their current representatives, at the Legislature’s website.
The next financial reporting deadline for candidates is June 3.
Incumbents defend seats
In House District 4, centered on northwest Denver, incumbent Rep. Tim Hernández faces former federal immigration judge Cecelia Espenoza in the Democratic primary. Hernández was appointed to his current term by a vacancy committee last summer, when he won against Espenoza.
Hernández is backed by more than two dozen current lawmakers and a handful of organizations including the Denver chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, the Colorado Working Families Party, New Era Colorado, YIMBY Denver and the Colorado Education Association.
During his first legislative session, Hernández ran successful legislation to create a Chicano special license plate. He also sponsored a bill to ban the purchase of so-called assault weapons in Colorado, which passed the House for the first time in state history but died in the Senate.
To date in this campaign cycle, he has raised over $84,000 and spent close to $36,000. In the most recent financial reporting period, from May 2 until May 15, Hernández raised close to $18,000. That included big donations from the political arms of the Aurora Council for Teachers and Students, the Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights, and the Denver Classroom Teachers Association.
Espenoza has raised a little under $84,000 and spent over $55,000. Nearly $14,000 of that spending was for direct mail to voters in the district, according to campaign finance filings. She raised just over $2,000 and spent about $18,000 in the most recent reporting period. She has received financial support from the Apartment Association of Metro Denver and the Colorado Medical Society.
Another of the closely watched Democratic primary races this year will be between freshman Rep. Elisabeth Epps and attorney Sean Camacho in the Denver-based House District 6.
Epps began the most recent legislative session with a reprimand from the House speaker for her actions during a special session last fall, when she joined pro-Palestinian activists in the chamber gallery. This year, she ran successful bills related to criminal justice and harm reduction. Two bills she sponsored — the assault weapons ban and one to let cities allow overdose prevention centers — passed the House and died in the Senate.
Camacho, who ran unsuccessfully for the seat in 2022, has out-raised and out-spent Epps by a considerable margin. Epps has raised about $35,000 and spent a bit over $9,000, while Camacho has brought in over $125,000 and spent over $84,000.
Camacho has received financial support from the Apartment Association of Metro Denver, the Colorado Medical Society, Associated General Contractors of Colorado and the business group Colorado Concern. He spent $8,000 to collect signatures for his ballot petition, according to campaign filings.
Epps has received money from Colorado WINS, the union for state employees. She reported spending just over $500 to consultants for petition and canvassing work.
Republican Sen. Larry Liston is facing two primary opponents in Senate District 10 in Colorado Springs: Rex Tonkins, the husband of the El Paso County GOP chairwoman, and business owner David Stiver.
Liston accused Tonkins last year of harassment at a party meeting, but a jury acquitted Tonkins. The state Republican Party then censured Liston over the incident.
Liston has raised over $90,000 this election cycle and spent over $72,000. He gathered signatures to get on the primary ballot, while Tonkins and Stiver made it onto the ballot through the party assembly process. He has about $72,000 in cash on hand.
Tonkins and Stiver, however, have barely fundraised. Tonkins has brought in a bit over $3,000 and Stiver has brought in just $520, yet has taken out almost $18,000 in loans for his campaign. Stiver has spent over $13,000, including close to $4,000 on direct mail materials and $400 on flower seeds.
Here is the financial state of the other primaries with incumbents:
- Democratic Rep. Junie Joseph will face Tina Meuh in House District 10 in Boulder. Joseph has raised nearly $99,000, which includes money from the Colorado AFL-CIO union, and spent over $93,000. Meuh has raised about $54,000 and spent a little over $23,000.
- Republican Rep. Mary Bradfield will face former educator Jan Koester and businessman Bill Garlington in House District 21 in Colorado Springs. Koester and Garlington show very little raising and spending. Bradfield reported spending about $31,000 so far, including $13,000 in petition signature gathering efforts. She has also reported about $18,000 in contributions, including over $16,000 rolled over from a previous campaign.
- Rep. Julia Marvin has a challenger in Jacqueline “Jacque” Phillips in Adams County’s House District 31 Democratic primary. Marvin defeated Phillips in a vacancy committee election for the seat earlier this year. Marvin has raised close to $8,000 and spent about $3,000. Phillips has raised a little over $17,000, including about $4,500 from herself, and spent about $10,000. She has received donations from the Denver Pipefitters Local 208 and the Thornton professional firefighters association.
- Republican Rep. Barbara Kirkmeyer is going against construction projects manager Natalie Abshier in Senate District 23 along the Interstate 25 corridor north of Denver. Kirkmeyer, who sits on the powerful Joint Budget Committee, is one of the most influential Republicans at the Capitol and sponsored numerous successful bipartisan bills this year, including a consequential property tax relief bill. Kirkmeyer has a huge cash advantage over Abshier with about $89,000 raised so far and about $25,000 spent. Abshier, meanwhile, has raised about $400 and spent a little over $3,000, relying on loans.
The open primaries
As state senators and representatives term out, there are also about two dozen open seats this year with no incumbent.
The most costly House primary race so far has been between Lakewood City Councilwoman Rebekah Stewart and health care activist Kyra deGruy Kennedy, who are vying in the Democratic primary to replace Rep. Chris deGruy Kennedy, Kyra’s husband, in Lakewood’s House District 30.
DeGruy Kennedy has the backing of close to 30 current state lawmakers, the Colorado Working Families Party and Colorado WINS. She has raised over $86,000 and spent close to $53,000.
Stewart has raised over $116,000 and spent about $42,000. She has received money from the Colorado Medical Society, The Doctors Company’s political action committee, and Architects of Colorado.
In the northwest Aurora-based House District 36, educator Bryan Lindstrom is competing in the Democratic primary against school board member Michael Carter to replace outgoing Democratic Rep. Mike Weissman.
Lindstrom has raised about $76,000 and spent about $61,000 and has received money from Colorado WINS, Colorado AFL-CIO and the Denver Classroom Teachers Association. He has endorsements from Democratic state lawmakers including Rep. Javier Mabrey, Rep. Lorena Garcia and Sen. Lisa Cutter.
Carter, meanwhile, has raised about $56,000 and spent about $54,000. He has endorsements from U.S. Rep. Jason Crow, Rep. Judy Amabile and Rep. Shannon Bird, all Democrats, among others.
There are also four state representatives looking to switch over to the Senate who face primary challengers:
- Rep. Judy Amabile is competing against education consultant Jovita Schiffer in Boulder’s Senate District 18 Democratic primary to replace outgoing Senate President Steve Fenberg. Amabile has raised a staggering $182,000 compared to Schiffer’s $26,000.
- Rep. Lindsey Daugherty faces Westminster City Councilman Obi Ezeadi in Senate District 19‘s Democratic primary to replace Sen. Rachel Zenzinger of Arvada. Daugherty has raised about $129,000 compared to Ezeadi’s $134,000. Ezeadi has endorsements from many progressive lawmakers, while Daugherty has the backing of House Speaker Julie McCluskie, Fenberg and Gov. Jared Polis, among others.
- State Rep. Mike Weissman will face attorney Idris Keith in Senate District 28‘s Democratic primary to replace Sen. Rhonda Fields of Aurora. Weissman has raised about $78,000 and Keith has raised about $59,000. Weissman is endorsed by Attorney General Phil Weiser, Treasurer Dave Young, AFL-CIO Colorado, Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition Action Fund and the reproductive rights group Cobalt, among others. Keith does not list endorsements on his campaign website.
- Republican Rep. Lisa Frizell is facing Timothy Wesley Arvidson, a self-described “America first” candidate, in Douglas County’s Senate District 2 Republican primary to replace Sen. Jim Smallwood. Frizell has raised about $28,000 and taken on $10,000 in loans while Arvidson has raised just under $5,000.
Data centers: What good are they for Colorado?
Re: “Dueling policies for data centers,” March 1 news story
The Denver Post article about two competing bills in the legislature regarding new data centers in Colorado seems to start with the presumption that we want the data centers.
Why do we want them and who wants them? Is it the politicians wanting bragging rights about our state becoming another Silicon Valley? Perhaps they want more businesses so they can collect more taxes from the new residents. Alternatively, they just want more power in Washington by increasing our population. Has anyone stopped to ask why we want to attract more people to our state?
Colorado is in a fight with other Western states to obtain more water for our growing population. Our wildlife is being crowded out by the increased urbanization. The roads are so crowded that it is not uncommon to come to a complete stop on our interchanges during rush hour. We have a serious housing shortage. The air is being polluted by the increased number of cars. These are all the result of a growing population. Did anyone stop to ask why we want more people?
During my 53 years living in Colorado, I have never heard anyone (other than politicians) say, “We need more people.” On the contrary, the conversation is more often about how we are becoming overcrowded. I would like the politicians to explain why we need more businesses and more people in our state. It should not be a presumption that more is better! Are our elected representatives truly reflecting the wishes of their constituents?
Doug Hurst, Parker
Anger and disbelief were our reactions when we read about House Bill 1030, which is under consideration at the statehouse. This outrageous corporate welfare bill would provide some of the world’s wealthiest corporations with massive state tax reductions to build monstrous resource-thirsty data centers. Analysts projected a $92.5 million tax loss in just three years if a bunch of these data centers are built. Just one 160-megawatt facility would gobble up as much power as 176,000 homes once completed. Consider for comparison that the entire DIA airport uses around 45 megawatts of power!
As the state legislature grapples with bone-deep budget cuts, we cannot afford to exempt data centers from paying their own way nor allow their unregulated construction. Taxpayer-funded corporate handouts would entail massive hits to tax revenue that should be used for our schools, roads, infrastructure, and valid state needs. What essential services will potentially be cut or axed to cover the lost revenue to the state from this corporate giveaway?
These data centers also demand massive amounts of our water. A CoreSite data center in Denver alone will use approximately 805,000 gallons of water per day to air-condition its computers. That is the same as the average daily indoor water use of 16,100 Denver homes.
I pray our state legislature will condemn HB-1030 to the corporate welfare hell where it belongs in. Instead, they should support Senate Bill 102 that will hopefully properly regulate these tax-eating, water-wasting, and electricity-gobbling monstrosities.
Terry Talbot, Grand Junction
As a pediatrician, I’ve noticed one key issue missing from the data center debate: public health.
Data centers are extraordinarily energy- and water-intensive. Nationally, they already consume about 4% of U.S. electricity — a figure expected to more than double by 2030. Much of that power still comes from burning fossil fuels. Without strong safeguards, that growth means more air pollution. In my clinical practice, I see firsthand how health is shaped by the air we breathe. More pollution means more asthma attacks, heart disease, and premature deaths, especially in communities already burdened by poor air quality.
Water use is another concern. Large data centers can use enormous amounts of water for cooling. In a drought-prone state like Colorado, this raises serious questions about long-term drinking water reliability and heat resilience.
Energy affordability is also a health issue. When infrastructure is built to serve massive corporate users, costs can shift to households. I see the effects of energy insecurity in families forced to choose between cooling their homes, buying medication, or putting food on the table.
Colorado has an opportunity to get this right. Senate Bill 102 would establish guardrails to protect ratepayers, limit pollution, and ensure large electricity users pay their full infrastructure costs. Other states, including Michigan and Virginia, are reconsidering generous tax incentives after seeing how quickly public costs can outpace public benefit.
Colorado can welcome innovation without sacrificing clean air, clean water, affordable energy, and community health. Public health must be a priority, not an afterthought.
Clare Burchenal, Denver
As the story makes clear, data centers in our communities have real impacts on our health, our pocketbooks and our quality of life. I’m a mom of two small children who are counting on the adults in the room to make responsible decisions that impact their futures. It’s dizzying to see the pace of data centers sweeping the country and confusing as to why leaders are rushing to accommodate them without taking into consideration all of the impacts these massive industrial complexes have on communities.
It’s critical that data centers are powered by clean-burning renewable energy, not fossil fuels. We are in a no-snow winter in Colorado, and we have no safeguards in place against data center water use. Energy infrastructure should be paid for by the billion-dollar big tech companies that will profit from it, not by unfair rate increases for our families and small businesses.
There is a way to do this right. Senate Bill 102 has some important protections for our families and communities while still allowing for the responsible construction and operation of data centers built in appropriate places in our state. It is unacceptable that our leaders do nothing to protect us from big tech excesses. SB-102 will protect all Colorado kids – and their parents and communities. Join me in urging our legislators to pass this important bill.
Sara Kuntzler, Arvada
U.S. women’s hockey players above the game and politics
Re: “Trump tore athletes down on the world’s stage,” March 1 commentary
Dear Megan Schrader,
Thank you for your column on how the president disrespected the U.S. women’s Olympic hockey team. Your excellent commentary hit and sent the puck into the back of the net, so to speak.
To take it a step further, I believe the women’s choice not to visit the White House was more than meets the eye. Ostensibly, they declined the invitation because of the timing, specifically the resumption of play in the professional women’s hockey league.
Yet, I would like to believe it was more an expression of contempt for the president and his policies.
The women were smarter and braver and truer to their values than were the men’s Olympic hockey team, who, with the same timing issues, chose to accept the invitation to the White House. That visit and the visit to the State of the Union Address only helped bolster the president’s optics. An exception was the Colorado Avalanche’s own Brock Nelson, who declined to accompany the men’s team because he valued his family time more than a public charade.
In sports — as in life — we need more people like the women hockey players who will elevate their values above the games and politics.
Bill Allegar, Denver
Backing up to park for safety?
Re: “Do you back into a parking spot or back out?” March 1 feature story
I read this with slight amusement. For someone who has traveled a bit, and especially in Asia (Japan in particular), backing into a parking space is a very common practice (not a new trend) and has been for decades. On my first trip to Japan, around 1992, I was told it was what most people did.
As for the company Imminent Threat Solutions recommending “tactical parking” because they should “prevail against all threats,” seems like marketing hype of the biggest kind, building fear into your daily life of running errands and going to work. Has there been bad behaviour, shootings, and whatnot in a parking lot? Sure, but let’s not build fear for something that happens rarely to the average individual.
Randy DeBoer, Denver
To add to the parking procedures article in Sunday’s paper, there is another option, one that I use and recommend; it’s the “drive-through” to an open space.
After having been hit and having a rental car damaged (a three-month hassle to resolve) by a driver who backed out of an opposite space without looking, I don’t drive into a parking space if I can help it. What I do instead is find an open space where I can drive in straight and continue to a back-to-back adjoining space where I can park and then drive ahead to depart. These parking spots are typically a longer walk to my destination, and I benefit from the additional steps.
G. E. Cole, Centennial
I enjoyed your article on discussing whether to back in or pull straight into parking spaces. Our oldest son is a backer-inner, and I am starting to be one too. What is missing from your analysis, though, is the grocery store, much less Costco or Home Depot. Almost nobody is a backer-inner in these places, since you’re typically loading stuff in your backseat, hatch, or pickup bed. I guess the backer-inners are just not going to be able to escape as quickly once they’ve picked up 50 pounds of dog food, 25 rolls of paper towels, or five sheets of 4′ x 8′ plywood. Hope they survive.
Tim Hickisch, Highlands Ranch
You can support immigrants and the law
Re: “Faith communities show support for immigrants,” Feb. 22 news story
Faith communities do show support for immigrants. I don’t agree with those who stand against the law and ICE. While we may support all people made in the image of God, we should not be for illegal immigrants. They have broken the law, and some are doing great harm while living here. Legal immigrants, please come. Illegal immigrants, please go home and come here legally.
Deanna R Walworth, Brighton
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Early Sunday morning, Colorado rescue crews found the body of a missing skier who was killed in a recent avalanche.
The skier was reported missing in the Boss Basin area in the upper portion of Resolution Creek on March 7.
Summit County Rescue Group, Vail Mountain Rescue and the Summit and Eagle County Sheriff’s Offices began searching the area and discovered the site of the avalanche. They noticed that nearby ski and snowmobile tracks led up to where it occurred.
The Colorado Avalanche Information Center says Flight for Life helped with the search. They found the body of the missing skier in the avalanche debris on Sunday, around sunrise.
CAIC staff said the avalanche started near the treeline on a northeast-facing slope and was about two feet deep. The slope angles ranged from 33 to 36 degrees.
According to CAIC data, this is the first person killed in an avalanche during the 2025-2026 ski season.
Avalanche danger in some parts of the high country is considerable, particularly on north- and east-facing slopes and on large open slopes just below ridgelines.
The CAIC Forecast for Sunday says:
“The avalanche danger will stay at CONSIDERABLE (3of5) on Sunday for the places that picked up the most snow in this last storm (Elk and Sawatch Ranges). Areas that received less than 8 inches will go back to MODERATE danger, but this may vary significantly from drainage to drainage and with elevation. Assume a higher danger if you find a foot or more of new snow. Across the region, wind-drifted slopes will remain the most dangerous regardless of the danger. In the shallower areas (Elks and Sawatch), we’re more concerned about avalanches in motion breaking deeper, failing in buried facet layers.
On Sunday, as the sun pops out, remember that a strong spring sun can make sunny slopes unstable rather quickly. Keep an eye out for roller balls as an indication of a forthcoming shed cycle of loose avalanches.”
Second-ranked Arizona rallied from down 11 late in the first half to win 89-79 at Colorado on Saturday night, putting the finishing touches on its first Big 12 title. The 29 victories are the most in school history during the regular season, breaking a mark done four previous times including in 2021-22 in Tommy Lloyd’s first year running the program.
Brayden Burries had a career-high 31 points, 22 coming in the second half, while Koa Peat scored 19 of his 25 in the first half. The freshmen combined to make 21 of 31 shots and Burries added an 11-of-12 performance at the foul line, and Burries added seven rebounds, five steals and an assist.
Tobe Awaka, Ivan Kharchenkov and Motiejus Krivas each had 10 for Arizona, which shot 70.4 percent in the second half and 55.9 percent for the game. The Wildcats had a 54-26 edge on points in the paint and finished plus-5 on the boards after being down four at the half.
Jaden Bradley went scoreless for the first time this season, missing all three of his shots, but he made up for it with six of the UA’s 22 assists.
Colorado (17-14) got 28 points from Isaiah Johnson, who set the school freshman season scoring record. The Buffaloes shot 40.6 percent and made 7 of 22 from 3 but only hit one triple after halftime.
The UA trailed 38-36 at halftime, only the fourth time this season it has been down after 20 minutes, after being down 11 late in the first half. A Burries 3 tied it at 44, thenKharchenkov gave the Wildcats their first lead at 48-46 with 16:59 remaining.
Arizona got the lead up to five before Colorado fought back. Six straight by Bangot Dak put the Buffaloes ahead 54-52 but then Dak picked up his fourth foul and had to sit.
That began a 4-minute stretch with 10 lead changes before Arizona got a stop and Burries drained a 3 on the other end to put the UA up 66-62 with 9:17 left. The Wildcats made six straight shots, including back-to-back baskets inside byAwaka to make it 73-64 with 7:15 remaining.
A 3 from Kharchenkov put Arizona up 10 with 5:48 to go. The Buffaloes got within six before Peat dunked through a zone defense, and a Burries layup again got the lead to double digits.
Peat had 12 of Arizona’s first 14 points in the first seven minutes, but none put the Wildcats in the lead. The Buffaloes never trailed in the first half, jumping out to an 8-point edge with 8:08 left before halftime and extending that to 36-25 with 4:21 to go in the half, both on 3s by Johnson.
Colorado hit six 3-pointers in the first half, three by Johnson, while Arizona was 0 for 6 from deep
A 9-0 run, capped by a 3-point play by Burries, got the UA within two in the final minute, setting the stage for the second half.
Arizona now gets a few days off before heading to the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City. As the No. 1 seed it has a double bye into Thursday’s quarterfinals, where it will face either No. 8 UCF, No. 9 Cincinnati or No. 16 Utah. They beat those teams this season by seven, 26 and 19 points, respectively.
2026 Big 12 Tournament schedule
No. 12 ASU (16-15) vs. No. 13 Baylor (16-15), 9:30 a.m. (ESPN+)
No. 9 Cincinnati (17-14) vs. No. 16 Utah (10-21), 12 p.m. (ESPN+)
No. 10 BYU (21-10) vs. No. 15 Kansas State (12-19), 4 p.m. (ESPN+)
No. 11 Colorado (17-14) vs. No. 14 Oklahoma State (18-13), 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
ASU/Baylor winner vs. No. 5 Iowa State (25-6), 9:30 a.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
Cincinnati/Utah winner vs. No. 8 UCF (20-10), 12 p.m. (ESPNU)
BYU/Kansas State winner vs. No. 7 West Virginia (18-13), 4 p.m. (ESPNU)
Colorado/Oklahoma State winner vs. No. 6 TCU (21-10), 6:30 p.m. (ESPN2/ESPNU)
ASU/Baylor-Iowa State winner vs. No. 4 Texas Tech (22-9), 9:30 a.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
Cincinnati/Utah-UCF winner vs. No. 1 Arizona (29-2), 12 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
BYU/Kansas State-West Virginia winner vs. No. 2 Houston (26-5), 4 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
Colorado/Oklahoma State-TCU winner vs. No. 3 Kansas (22-9), 6:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
Quarterfinal 1 winner vs. Quarterfinal 2 winner, 4 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
Quarterfinal 3 winner vs. Quarterfinal 4 winner, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
Semifinal winners, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
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