During the height of the economic crisis sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic, while she was working in the state legislature to launch programs to support struggling businesses, Leslie Herod said she realized the city of Denver was not ready to step up and accept some of the state support available to it.
Now she is running for mayor to provide the leadership she says the city has been lacking.
“I love this city. This is the best city, I still believe, in the world. But we’ve got to pick up the pace in making sure that we’re taking care of each other,” Herod said.
When telling her personal story, Herod often touts that she comes from a background steeped in public service. She was raised by her mom, an Army nurse, on military bases around the world. Her father was a corrections officer for three decades and her stepmom (whom she also calls mom) was an executive for a utility company in Colorado Springs.
After graduating from the University of Colorado Boulder, Herod jumped from being part of student government to making waves in Colorado politics. She co-founded New Era Colorado, a progressive organization dedicated to reaching young voters in the state and making voting more accessible. Her cofounders, Steve Fenberg and Joe Neguse, are now president of the Colorado Senate and serving in Congress, respectively.
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After working as a policy analyst for then-Gov. Bill Ritter, Herod was elected to the statehouse in 2016. She was the first ever Black, out-LGBTQ woman ever elected to the state’s general assembly. She has held that northeast Denver seat ever since, most recently winning re-election in November.
Her tenure in the legislature has seen her hold some powerful positions and be at the forefront of some high-profile debates and legislative wins.
She served on the Joint Budget Committee and chaired the House appropriations committee in 2022.
She was the public face of the 2020 police reform bill that passed with widespread, bipartisan support in the wake of the George Floyd protests. She was also the primary sponsor of a 2019 bill that banned felony criminal charges for possession of small amounts of most drugs.
As the board chair of the Caring For Denver Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting alternatives to incarceration and community programs to address mental health and substance use challenges in Denver, Herod is engaged in fighting some of the root causes of Denver’s recent rise in crime. But the 2019 bill in particular has made her a target for some groups that have taken a harder line on penalties for drugs.
“My experience in tackling tough issues is a key factor in me wanting to lead the city and being ready to lead this city,” Herod said.
In a demonstration of her motivation to win the 2023 mayor’s race, Herod’s campaign was the first to turn in enough valid voter signatures to qualify for the ballot, 17 hours after the window for circulating candidate petitions opened. Her campaign printed off packets at home and started gathering signatures just after midnight.
“I think the number one thing for me that I bring to the table for the people of Denver is that passion to commit 24/7 to the city; the bold ideas and the ability to collaborate and have conversations to get them done,” Herod said. “My heart, my investment is all right here.”
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