Colorado House of Representatives District 49

Colorado House of Representatives District 49 is represented by Lesley Smith (D).

As of the 2020 Census, Colorado state representatives represented an average of 88,956 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 77,614 residents.

About the office

Members of the Colorado House of Representatives serve two-year terms with term limits.^[1] Colorado legislators assume office on the first day of the legislative session after their election. The legislative session must begin no later than 10:00 AM on the second Wednesday of January.^[2] The state constitution requires the newly elected governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer, and secretary of state to take office on the second Tuesday of January.^[3] In the year after those offices are elected, the legislative session must begin before the second Tuesday of January to declare the winners of those races.^[4]^[5]

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

Article 5, Section 4 of the Colorado Constitution states:^[6]

“

No person shall be a representative or senator who shall not have attained the age of twenty-five years, who shall not be a citizen of the United States, and who shall not for at least twelve months next preceding his election, have resided within the territory included in the limits of the district in which he shall be chosen.^[7]

”

Salaries

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

State legislative salaries, 2024^[8]
Salary	Per diem
$43,977/year for legislators whose terms began in 2023. $41,449/year for legislators whose terms began in 2021.	For legislators residing within 50 miles of the capitol: $45/day. For legislators living more than 50 miles from the capitol: $237/day.

Term limits

See also: State legislatures with term limits

The Colorado General Assembly is one of 16 state legislatures with term limits. Voters enacted the Colorado Term Limits Act in 1990. That initiative said that Colorado representatives are subject to term limits of no more than four two-year terms.^[9]

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures

If there is a vacancy in the Colorado General Assembly , a vacancy committee selects a replacement. The committee consists of members of the same political party that previously held the seat, including any county commissioners from that party who live in the district.

Depending on when the vacancy occurs, the replacement must stand for election either in the next general election or in a special election. These vacancy elections are limited to voters registered with the same political party as the previous officeholder and to unaffiliated voters.

If the vacancy occurs in an even-numbered year, before July 31: The appointee is selected by the committee and runs in the regularly scheduled general election that year.

If the vacancy occurs in an even-numbered year, after July 31: The appointee is selected by the committee and must run in a special vacancy election held in November of the following odd-numbered year.

If the vacancy occurs in an odd-numbered year, before July 31: The appointee is selected by the committee and runs in a special vacancy election that same November.

If the vacancy occurs in an odd-numbered year, after July 31: The appointee is selected by the committee and runs in the next general election, which occurs in the following even-numbered year.

If the previous member was unaffiliated with a political party, then the vacancy is filled by the vacancy committee designated on their original nomination petition. If the member has no vacancy committee, the governor appoints a replacement.

See sources: HB25-1315 Vacancies in the General Assembly

District map

Redistricting

2020 redistricting cycle

See also: Redistricting in Colorado after the 2020 census

On November 15, 2021, the Colorado Supreme Court approved the state legislative redistricting plans approved by the state's Independent Legislative Redistricting Commission on October 11 and 12, 2021.^[10] These maps took effect for Colorado’s 2022 state legislative elections.

The Colorado Sun's Thy Vo wrote that the House and Senate maps "appear to favor Democrats' maintaining their majority in the General Assembly."^[10] Colorado Politics' Evan Wyloge wrote that the new maps created nine House districts where previous election results fell within a five percentage point margin and eight such Senate districts. At the time of approval, Democrats held a 42-23 majority in the House and a 20-15 majority in the Senate.^[11]

How does redistricting in Colorado work? On November 6, 2018, Colorado voters approved two constitutional amendments, Amendment Y and Amendment Z, establishing separate non-politician commissions for congressional and state legislative redistricting. Each commission consists of four members belonging to the state's largest political party, four members belonging to the state's second-largest party, and four members belonging to no party. Commission members are appointed by a panel of three judges selected by the Chief Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court. The amendment requires at least eight of the commission's 12 members, including at least two members not belonging to any political party, to approve a map.^[12]

The Colorado Constitution requires that state legislative district boundaries "be contiguous, and that they be as compact as possible based on their total perimeter." In addition, "to the extent possible, districts must also preserve the integrity of counties, cities, towns and–where doing so does not conflict with other goals–communities of interest." There are no similar requirements for congressional districts.^[13]^[14]

Colorado House of Representatives District 49
until January 8, 2023

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Colorado House of Representatives District 49
starting January 9, 2023

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Colorado House of Representatives District 49

Lesley Smith defeated Steve Ferrante in the general election for Colorado House of Representatives District 49 on November 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Lesley Smith (D)	63.8	36,669
	Steve Ferrante (R)	36.2	20,797

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 57,466
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 49

Lesley Smith defeated Max Woodfin in the Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 49 on June 25, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Lesley Smith	71.8	10,210
	Max Woodfin	28.2	4,015

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 14,225
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 49

Steve Ferrante advanced from the Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 49 on June 25, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Steve Ferrante	100.0	5,890

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 5,890
= 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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