Jonathan Ambler, Tisha Mauro look to succeed Rep. Esgar in Colorado House District 46 race

Republican Jonathan Ambler and Democrat Tisha Mauro are competing to succeed Colorado House District 46 Rep. Daneya Esgar in November.

Esgar, a Democrat from Pueblo, has been a representative in the Colorado House since 2015. Since January 2021, she has served as the House Majority Leader. Approaching eight years in the House, she was ineligible to run for re-election in 2022. Her fourth and final term ends Jan. 11.

Mauro, a lifelong resident of Pueblo County, defeated Jason Munoz in the 2022 Democratic primary on June 28. She grew up on a farm south of Boone, graduated from the University of Southern Colorado and has over 20 years of experience in the automotive industry managing finance and sales. She said she'd look to continue Esgar's work as a "strong voice for Pueblo."

"We want to focus on safety — safe streets and crime in the area," Mauro said. "The whole purpose is trying to make everyone's lives a little bit better in our community ... working on our schools and education, protect our national resources, water especially, and just keep moving those things forward."

Ambler is no stranger to the Colorado House District 46 race. The Colorado City resident and former educator was the Republican nominee for the district in 2018 and 2020. He was defeated by Esgar in both of those races but feels he has made strides in connecting with constituents in 2022.

"There has been quite a bit of change in the view of a lot of people in regard to education, crime, inflation, the tendency for government to take a much bigger role in our lives," Ambler said. "As I have talked to many people, a lot of people feel that it's kind of gone overboard."

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Education, public safety among primary issues in House District 46

Ambler, who has experience in K-12 education as a business teacher and superintendent for the Kim School District, said public schools are moving away from consideration of parental input when it comes to education.

"Parents all across the state, they want to have more control of their kids," he said. "They want to make sure their values are being transferred to their kids rather than the government's values. That's a pretty big issue for a lot of people."

Ambler opposes President Joe Biden's changes to Title IX that would allow transgender students to participate in school activities consistent with their gender identity. Ambler said the proposed changes would have a negative impact on girls and women's sports.

"I believe that most women believe that their sports are just that, their sports," Ambler said. "There should be a biological segmentation, and that was the entire point of Title IX ... If women's sports go away, that harms all women."

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For Mauro, the most important issues facing the education system in Pueblo County stem from a lack of funding. Pueblo County School District 70, a school district with several schools within House District 46 boundaries, received $7,578.13 in per-pupil funding for fiscal year 2020-21, making it the lowest-funded school district in Colorado, according to the Colorado Department of Education.

The lack of funding has led to several burdens for school districts in Pueblo County, like low wages and teacher shortages, Mauro said. She believes meeting the needs of teachers is a "good place to start" before moving on to find funding for other projects to enhance the education system.

"Most teachers have gotten a little bit of a raise this year, but it's not quite enough to get fully staffed at this point," she said. "Having teachers in the classroom is a number one priority, I think, for anyone in education and taking care of the teachers that we currently have there."

When it comes to keeping Pueblo neighborhoods safe, Mauro said she would take a collaborative approach by working with local agencies like the Pueblo Police Department, Pueblo County Sheriff's Department and the 10th Judicial District Attorney's Office to alleviate problems like overflow and homelessness within the Pueblo County jail.

"The jail shouldn't partially be used as a homeless shelter," she said. "We can alleviate some stresses in that area, and that can help us keep offenders off the streets."

Ambler said recent state legislation, like the Misdemeanor Reform Act, has made it difficult for law enforcement to "do their jobs." A state Senate bill passed in 2021, the act made provisions to the sentencing of misdemeanor and petty offenses.

"Property under a certain dollar amount, if it is stolen, is treated differently ... Somebody poor doesn't care that it's below a certain dollar figure, they care about their stuff being stolen," Ambler said.

Redistricting, unaffiliated voters could make House District 46 race competitive

In recent years, Colorado House District 46 has been a stronghold for Democratic candidates.

Before Esgar defeated Ambler in 2018 and 2020, she defeated Brian Mater in 2014 and ran unopposed in 2016. In 2012, Democrat Leroy Garcia defeated Republican Jerry Denney with 38.7% of the vote. While Democrats performed well in past House District 46 elections, this election cycle will be the first under newly redistricted state legislative maps approved by the Colorado Supreme Court in November 2021.

Prior to this year's election, House District 46 occupied southwest Pueblo County, including the western half of Pueblo West, Beulah, Rye, Colorado City and a southwestern portion of the city of Pueblo. New maps removed western Pueblo West, Bessemer and parts of Pueblo's south side while adding Pueblo's north side, Belmont and the St. Charles Mesa.

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Over 11,000 voters participated in the Democratic primaries to vote for either Mauro or Munoz. Ambler, who ran unopposed in the Republican primary, received 7,675 votes.

Both candidates are aware of the growing number of unaffiliated voters and the impact it could have on the election.

"It's definitely a competitive race," Mauro said. "We are working hard every single day to talk to every voter, listen to what they feel is going on in their community, ways that we can help improve that day-to-day life. It's important to get everybody out to vote this year."

"There's a lot of Democrats and a lot of Republicans that are not feeling like they are represented," Ambler said. "I believe that someone that's just willing to stand up for the voters to represent the voters is something that voters want."

In his time spent knocking on doors and asking "everyday ordinary voters" about their concerns, Ambler said he receives consistent responses about crime, education and inflation.

"Parents want to make sure that they have control of their kids' education," he said. "They want to make sure that their homes are safe. They want to know that their neighborhoods are safe. They want to know that government is not going to raise taxes or cause inflation, that they are going to keep up with everyday, ordinary things like buying food ... those buying gasoline to get their kids to school."

In her interactions with voters, Mauro said they've expressed concerns about crime in Pueblo, along with the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade, which left the legalization of abortion up to the states.

"We're fortunate enough to be safe right now for women's rights, but that will have to be upheld ... It's going to be a continuous issue and we do not know what else the Supreme Court holds for us and what they are going to send back to the states," she said. "They are going backwards, in my opinion, attacking rights we thought we already had, thought were in place and thought were secure."

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Pueblo Chieftain reporter James Bartolo can be reached by email at JBartolo@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Ambler, Mauro vie for Pueblo County's Colorado House District 46 seat