Who is running for Pueblo mayor in 2023? Here's what we know.
Pueblo’s second mayoral election in recent memory is scheduled for Nov. 7, and four candidates, including incumbent Nick Gradisar, have filed paperwork with the city clerk’s office to run.
Some potential contenders, such as former sheriff Dan Corsentino and city councilor Dennis Flores, are considering a bid for mayor but have not made a final decision.
Several local figures who had been rumored to run, such as 10th Judicial District Attorney Jeff Chostner, have told the Chieftain that they are not planning on making a bid for mayor.
A circulating petition to abolish the mayor’s office and revert to the city manager form of government is weighing on the minds of many of the candidates, who are wondering if they should put effort into campaigning for a position that may not exist if voters chose to abolish it.
Anti-mayor petition: Organizers have until March 1 to gather 3,768 valid signatures for special election in early summer
Four candidates so far have filed paperwork to be Pueblo's next mayor
Gradisar, who was elected to his first term in January 2019, is seeking re-election. He was involved with promoting the amendment to the city charter to adopt a mayor-council form of governance in 2017.
Pueblo mayors are only eligible to serve two consecutive terms.
Pueblo City Council President Heather Graham, a local restauranteur who started on council in 2021, is also running for mayor. She promoted passage of the extension of the public safety sales tax in the fall.
Two other candidates have also filed to run for mayor with the city clerk: Samuel Hernandez and Thomas Martinez.
Hernandez runs a food truck business with his family and Martinez is retired from the EVRAZ steel mill. Both are new to politics.
Pueblo City Clerk Marisa Stoller confirmed that all of these candidates have completed the required paperwork for a mayoral run. In August, mayoral candidates will have a three-week window to collect at least 100 valid signatures from local voters to qualify for the ballot.
To run or not to run? Some candidates are still deciding
Corsentino, the former Pueblo County sheriff, is leaning toward running — he’s already been having conversations with Puebloans about their main concerns — but is taking a measured approach and has not yet made a final decision.
City councilor Dennis Flores also previously ran for mayor and said that he soon will make a final decision about whether to run again. He said he will need to have serious conversations with his family, as running for mayor is a serious endeavor, he said.
Local businessman Randy Thurston, who also formerly served as a city councilor and ran a mayoral campaign in 2018, said he’s also considering running for mayor.
These local figures said they won't run for mayor
Chostner, the local DA, has been rumored to be running for mayor, but told the Chieftain he’s going to continue focusing on his office. Chostner has been serving as the DA for Colorado’s 10th District since 2013.
Pueblo County Commissioner Garrison Ortiz, who is halfway though his second term, also confirmed to the Chieftain that he is not running for mayor.
City councilor Lori Winner, who came in third during the city's first mayoral election, is not going to run again and has been working with the group of Puebloans gathering signatures to abolish the mayor's office.
Winner’s first term as an at-large city councilmember is ending this year, but she told the Chieftain she won’t seek re-election if the mayoral system of city government remains the status quo.
Former city councilor Mark Aliff also confirmed he is not running for mayor and he has not been directly affiliated with anti-mayor petitioners. He said he could run for city council, but has not yet decided.
Steve Nawrocki, another former councilor who is the executive director of the Senior Resources Development Agency, came in second to Gradisar during the runoff election in early 2019. He told the Chieftain that he will not run for mayor again.
Most campaigns on 'standby' as anti-mayor petition circulates
Mayoral candidates still have more than nine months until Election Day, but the petition to abolish the mayor’s office is making some candidates delay their plans.
Petitioners had collected about one-third of their signature requirement as of Monday, which was the deadline to submit signatures for a question to run in the May 2 election. The organizers still have until March 1 to collect at least 3,768 valid signatures from Pueblo voters.
Graham told the Chieftain that it would be “reckless” for her to start campaigning and fundraising now with the petition circulating.
“That's kind of why I've been quiet and haven't really been campaigning much because am I going to have to return all this money that I've raised,” Graham said.
She said that she would campaign against the ballot question if it goes to a vote — Puebloans should choose the executive in charge of the city, not just city council, she argued — but she would use her own money for that, not campaign funds.
Although he is dissatisfied with current leadership, Thurston said he still supports the strong mayoral system: the city manager was only accountable to elected city councilors, but the mayor is also accountable to voters.
Martinez, the candidate who retired from EVRAZ, said that he will respect what people want for city government, but he’s on “standby” as petitions continue to circulate.
“I think we're all just going to stand by before we start getting in the pool and swimming,” Martinez said. “Maybe we’ll wait till March 1 and see what we got.”
Chieftain reporter Josue Perez contributed reporting.
Anna Lynn Winfrey covers politics for the Chieftain. She can be reached at awinfrey@gannett.com or on Twitter, @annalynnfrey.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Who is — and isn't — running for Pueblo mayor? Here's what we know
