Republican candidates for local offices revealed, although they still have to get through assembly
Madison Osberger-Low/The Aspen Times
Several Republicans have emerged as candidates for local elected offices following last week’s Eagle County Republican Party caucus, and they’re headed into the March 23 assembly process hoping to garner at least 30% of the votes in order to make the June 30 primary ballot.
Wendy Sacks of Eagle has registered with the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office seeking her party’s nomination to run in the Eagle County Commissioner District 3 contest.
“We have two candidates running for District 3,” Eagle County Republican Party Chair Dan King wrote in an email. “Wendy Sacks, who is a local developer and sits on the (Eagle County) Conservation Board, and James Kellogg, who lives in Gypsum and is 3rd Chair on the Eagle GOP Board and an engineer by trade.”
Of the two, Sacks was the only one who had registered as a candidate with the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office as of Monday afternoon.
“Wendy has lived in the valley for over 30 years,” her bio on the Eagle County Conservation Board reads. “She has been involved with many local charities and events and is a real estate developer and general contractor. Wendy currently lives on 35 acres north of Eagle where, when she is not traveling seeing the world, she raises hay and cares for her horse!” Sacks is listed as treasurer for the board.
Support Local Journalism
Should Kellogg and Sacks both make it out of the Eagle County Republican Party assembly on March 23, they would face off in the June 30 primary, with the winner most likely taking on Democrat Kathleen Brendza, who advanced out of the caucus process with an overwhelming majority of votes when her opponent pulled out of the race at the last minute.
“We have one running for assessor,” the GOP’s King added. “Christopher Buono is running for assessor. He is a school teacher in Eagle. And, of course (incumbent Eagle County) Sheriff (James van Beek) is running for reelection. That is it for now, but it’s possible I might have someone for treasurer.”
Thus far, Democrat Andie Noakes, who currently works in the Eagle County Assessor’s Office, is the only candidate registered to run with the state. Democratic incumbent Teak Simonton is currently the only candidate registered for the Eagle County Treasurer’s Office seat open in November.
Van Beek is registered with the state, and he will face a Democratic opponent in November.
At Saturday’s Eagle County Democratic Party caucus and assembly, District Attorney’s Office investigator Jason Boston got 67 votes and Vail Police sergeant Rebecca Anderson got 65 votes, meaning both will be on the June 30 primary ballot, with the winner most likely facing van Beek.
Republican candidates still must get at least 30% of the votes at the party’s March 23 assembly. Major party candidates who do not meet that threshold can still petition their way onto the ballot by the March 18 deadline.
The local Republicans held their caucus Thursday of last week but did not announce candidates or vote tallies at the time. The Eagle County GOP, according to local party bylaws, holds its assembly process separately. The Democrats held both their assembly and caucus Saturday night.
Doing the process remotely, some Democratic Party members were online upwards of five hours, as computer issues with a new software program caused lengthy delays.
“The delays were caused by the Colorado Democratic Party’s new software that could not withstand the capacity challenges,” Eagle County Democratic Party Chair Lisa Lewis wrote in an email. “Still, we were able to complete caucus and assembly.”
Andrew Nicla, spokesperson for the Colorado Democratic Party, wrote in an email on Saturday: “There were some minor technical issues with our reporting system this evening that caused a delay in voting and verifying results, but the caucus itself proceeded as scheduled.”
In a press release Monday, Nicla indicated turnout for Democrats was high all across the state:
“Approximately 13,000 Coloradans participated in Democratic precinct caucuses across the state last week, nearly doubling participation compared to recent election cycles and demonstrating strong grassroots engagement as the party builds momentum toward its State Assembly in Pueblo on March 28.
“The turnout represents a significant increase from recent caucus cycles, when approximately 6,390 Democrats participated in 2022 and 6,799 participated in 2024. These results are preliminary, with some counties still finalizing their totals.”
