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Chris Richardson (Colorado)

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Chris Richardson
Image of Chris Richardson

Republican Party

Candidate, Colorado House of Representatives District 56

Colorado House of Representatives District 56
Tenure

2025 - Present

Term ends

2027

Years in position

0

Predecessor

Compensation

Base salary

$43,977/year

Per diem

For legislators residing within 50 miles of the capitol: $45/day. For legislators living more than 50 miles from the capitol: $237/day.

Elections and appointments
Last elected

November 5, 2024

Next election

June 30, 2026

Education

High school

Classical High School

Bachelor's

University of Pennsylvania, 1988

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Army

Years of service

1989 - 2011

Personal
Birthplace
Springfield, Mass.
Religion
Christian: Nondenominational
Profession
Military officer
Contact

Official website

Personal LinkedIn

Chris Richardson (Republican Party) is a member of the Colorado House of Representatives, representing District 56. He assumed office on January 8, 2025. His current term ends on January 12, 2027.

Richardson (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the Colorado House of Representatives to represent District 56. He declared candidacy for the Republican primary scheduled on June 30, 2026.[source]

Biography

Chris Richardson was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. He served in the U.S. Army from 1989 to 2011. Richardson earned a high school diploma from Classical High School, a bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1988, and a military citation from US Army Command & General Staff College in 2001. Richardson's career experience includes working as a military officer, professional logistician, and resource manager. As of 2024, Richardson was affiliated with the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars.[1]

Elections

2026

See also: Colorado House of Representatives elections, 2026

General election

The primary will occur on June 30, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 56

Incumbent Chris Richardson is running in the Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 56 on June 30, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Chris Richardson
Chris Richardson

Incumbents are bolded and underlined.

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

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2024

See also: Colorado House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for Colorado House of Representatives District 56

Chris Richardson defeated Alessandra Navetta in the general election for Colorado House of Representatives District 56 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Chris Richardson
Chris Richardson (R) Candidate Connection
 
75.7
 
42,014
Image of Alessandra Navetta
Alessandra Navetta (D) Candidate Connection
 
24.3
 
13,475

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 55,489
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 56

Alessandra Navetta advanced from the Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 56 on June 25, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Alessandra Navetta
Alessandra Navetta Candidate Connection
 
100.0
 
3,407

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 3,407
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 56

Chris Richardson advanced from the Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 56 on June 25, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Chris Richardson
Chris Richardson Candidate Connection
 
100.0
 
14,731

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 14,731
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign finance

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Richardson in this election.

Pledges

Richardson signed the following pledges.

  • U.S. Term Limits

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection

Chris Richardson has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. If you are Chris Richardson, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

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2024

Candidate Connection

Chris Richardson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Richardson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Like many who live outside the Denver Metro area, I find the Colorado I once knew rapidly fading away. The divide between those who live in the largely agricultural eastern plains and those who control the legislature has never been wider – and it seems to be growing. If our voices are even heard, they are being ignored. This needs to change.

I will bring over twenty years of military service and a decade of practical elected experience in local government- as a former School Board Director and current County Commissioner- to the General Assembly.

In a legislature packed with activists and organizers, we need more people that have experience actually getting things done. We need more people that put their constituents ahead of ideology, and who serve the citizens, not the state. I will speak for the citizens of eastern Colorado. I will represent you.
  • I will provide a voice in the legislature to those on Colorado's eastern plains
  • I am a Proven, Conservative, Leader
  • Colorado must reverse its course
I swore to uphold the Constitution over 38 years ago and hold true to that oath. The primary role of government is to protect the individual rights of the citizens. I hold true to the belief that taxes should be collected only for those purposes that fund critical public functions that cannot be provided by the free market. As a father, I will work tirelessly to ensure parents have control of their children's education and moral upbringing. As a veteran, I will focus on ensuring our servicemen are honored and receive the benefits they were promised when they chose to fight for our nation. As an American, I will place preservation of the the values and ideals that made us great.
My father. He is honest, decent, and quietly goes about his days helping others and expecting no recognition.
The Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.
Honesty, transparency, willingness to listen and research, ability to articulate the concerns of the citizens, and a dedication to selfless service.
I have lived a lifetime of public and selfless service. I have considerable life experience, have held local elected office and view holding office as a public trust.
To fully understand all aspects of legislation being considered prior to voting. To maintain the pulse of the people of the district. To represent the citizens' views and place them ahead of personal opinions. To ensure any legislation considered is Constitutional, has specific measurable an achievable goals, is necessary, and cost effective.
In every position I have ever held, I want to leave the organization I lead better than I found it.
The Apollo 14 moon landing. I was 5.
Paperboy. 5 years.
Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah - Richard Bach
Han Solo - just seems like fun.
Rick Astley -"Never gonna give you up"
I have been blessed with a great upbringing in a loving family, a good education, and a fulfilling career. In my military career I have had to make decisions that placed people I truly cared for at great risk. I bear the responsibility for those decisions.
The Executive and Legislative Branches should remain separate. The system of checks and balances is broken if the legislature follows the lead of the Governor or vice versa. Both should respect each other's roles and both respect the people they serve.
Crime. Infrastructure to support a growing population. Water. Cost of living.
I do believe that the best state legislators have an understanding of the political process they will be participate in. If you are to serve others, you have to know what you are doing. Life experience - some level of expert knowledge regarding how statute impacts people in the real world - whether in business, elected office, or other, is critical in the analysis of proposed legislation. "Feel good", impractical, and downright unworkable statute is the result of legislating without a sound basis of experiance.
Yes, differing perspectives and experiences are always important to consider in every decision-making process.
While there are many that come to mind, each likely has failed to live up to their own ideals a time or two. I have been impressed with the principles held, and acted on, by former Colorado Congressman Bob Schaffer.
Not at this time. I feel I am ideally suited for the position of Representative for HD56.
I regularly hear of the hardships imposed on agricultural producers in Colorado. As a grandson of a dairy farmer, it is painful to hear people talk about getting out of agriculture - multigenerational farms and ranches being shuttered and sold because the work is being made too hard and the attacks on the dignity of agricultural producers is non-stop and escalating.
A Priest, a Minister, and Rabbit walk into a bar, the Rabbit says, "I think I'm a typo".
Yes. While designating an emergency and executing government response is an executive function, I do believe legislative review of continuing such declaration beyond immediate response is necessary.
A bill to rescind the myriad unconstitutional restrictions placed on the right to bear arms since 2013.
Kit Carson County Commissioners, Sen Rod Pelton, Sen Byron Pelton, Rep Richard Holtorf, Commissioners Grant Thayer (Elbert County), Steve Burgess (Lincoln County), Jeff Baker (Arapahoe County), and Ron smith (Cheyenne County)
- State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs

- Transportation, Housing & Local Government
- Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources
- Education

- Appropriations
These two aspects of governance are non-negotiable.
There is a tremendous disconnect between the standards required of a citizen's initiative and those placed on the ballot by the legislature. that must change.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

Chris Richardson campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2024* Colorado House of Representatives District 56Won general$16,614 $10,543
Grand total$16,614 $10,543
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Colorado

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Colorado scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.










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External links

Officeholder

Colorado House of Representatives District 56
  • Website
    		•

    Personal

  • LinkedIn
    		•

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 10, 2024

    Political offices
    Preceded by
    Rod Bockenfeld (R)     		Colorado House of Representatives District 56
    2025-Present    		 Succeeded by
    -


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