Debby Burnett

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Debby Burnett

Democratic Party

Education

Bachelor's

University of Northern Colorado, 1992

Graduate

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, 1995

Other

Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine, 2003

Personal

Birthplace

Colorado

Profession

Veterinarian

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

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Campaign Instagram

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Personal LinkedIn

Debby Burnett (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Colorado's 3rd Congressional District. She did not appear on the ballot for the Democratic primary on June 25, 2024.

Burnett completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Debby Burnett was born in Colorado. She earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Northern Colorado in 1992, a graduate degree from the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in 1995, and a degree from the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine in 2003. Her career experience includes working as a veterinarian. She is also a licensed physical therapist, certified veterinary acupuncturist, and sometimes tractor driver for her small hay baling business.

Burnett has been affiliated with the following organizations:

• Girl Scouts of America
• American Veterinary Medical Association
• International Sled Dog Veterinary Association

Elections

2024

See also: Colorado's 3rd Congressional District election, 2024

Colorado's 3rd Congressional District election, 2024 (June 25 Republican primary)

Colorado's 3rd Congressional District election, 2024 (June 25 Democratic primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Colorado District 3

Jeff Hurd defeated Adam Frisch, James Wiley, and Adam Withrow in the general election for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jeff Hurd (R)	50.8	201,951
		Adam Frisch (D)	45.8	182,147
		James Wiley (L)	2.7	10,734
		Adam Withrow (Unity Party)	0.7	2,721

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 397,553
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Frank Hernandez (Unaffiliated)
• Gary Swing (Unity Party)
• Mark Elworth Jr. (L)
• David Whitley (L)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3

Adam Frisch advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on June 25, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Adam Frisch	100.0	51,719

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 51,719
= 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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Anna Stout (D)
• Debby Burnett (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on June 25, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jeff Hurd	41.2	36,505
		Ron Hanks	28.5	25,211
		Stephen Varela	9.8	8,638
		Lew Webb	8.0	7,094
		Curtis McCrackin	6.5	5,772
		Russ Andrews	6.0	5,304

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 88,524
= 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

• Austin O'Connell (R)
• Jason Bias (R)
• Joe Granado (R)
• Robin Heid (R)
• David Karpas (R)
• Kimberly Swearingen (R)

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Burnett in this election.

2022

See also: Colorado's 3rd Congressional District election, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. House Colorado District 3

Incumbent Lauren Boebert defeated Adam Frisch, Marina Zimmerman, Kristin Skowronski, and Richard Tetu in the general election for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lauren Boebert (R)	50.1	163,839
		Adam Frisch (D)	49.9	163,293
		Marina Zimmerman (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	74
		Kristin Skowronski (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	71
		Richard Tetu (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	8

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 327,285
= 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.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3

Adam Frisch defeated Sol Sandoval and Alex Walker in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Adam Frisch	42.4	25,751
		Sol Sandoval	41.9	25,462
		Alex Walker	15.7	9,504

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 60,717
= 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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Donald Valdez (D)
• Cole Buerger (D)
• Colin Wilhelm (D)
• Scott Yates (D)
• Susan Martinez (D)
• Kerry Donovan (D)
• Gregg Smith (D)
• Naziha In'am Hadil (D)
• Debby Burnett (D)
• Kellie Rhodes (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3

Incumbent Lauren Boebert defeated Don Coram in the Republican primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lauren Boebert	66.0	86,322
		Don Coram	34.0	44,486

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 130,808
= 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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Marina Zimmerman (R)

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Debby Burnett completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Burnett's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a lot of things--a veterinarian, a physical therapist, and a tractor driver for our small hay baling business. I have a lot of letters after my name, but the most important are MOM. Everything I do is because I want to ensure a world for my daughter in which she feels secure and happy, and fulfilled. I want my daughter to enjoy a Colorado like the one I grew up in. My family history is entwined with Colorado's 3rd District. My great-grandfather, Erwin Francis Burnett, had his optometry business on Main Avenue in Durango. My Grandpa Burnett was born in Salida, went to school in Alamosa, and had his optometry business in Pueblo. We learned how to ski at Geneva Basin and spent summers on Independence Pass, back when it was a road less traveled. Colorado is my home, and helping the people of the 3rd District thrive, not just survive, would be an honor.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• We must address our water crisis. We can do this by working to upgrade water storage/collection sites, removing lead pipes, improving irrigation efficiency and addressing forest health to improve watersheds.
• Rural healthcare needs to be accessible and affordable. There is no reason why the same care is cheaper in urban areas than in rural parts of the state. Prescription drugs and health care costs should not threaten bankruptcy.
• Veteran programs including healthcare, job training and general life assistance should be priorities.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am most passionate about leaving our children a functioning planet. We need to invest in alternative energy sources, such as putting solar panels on every roof in America.

We must address our water crisis. This includes updating storage sites, improving irrigation efficiency, and protecting watersheds by improving forest health.
We must discuss food independence, ensuring our farmers and ranchers can continue to feed this nation.
We must protect and care for our veterans, including health care, job training, and post-deployment programs.
We need to focus on affordable, accessible rural healthcare.

We need to preserve public education and ensure that children in rural districts, such as Colorado's 3rd, have the same access to quality education as those in urban centers.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama

President Obama had the audacity to hope for a better way of "doing politics." He never gave up on that and, at least in the public eye, didn't let detractors get him down. I don't believe that we cannot get to the vision he had for this country. This book touched my soul and made my heart happy for its purity, for its belief in the indomitable American spirit that says we can do anything if we do it together.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I value teamwork and collaboration, welcoming input from others. I am compassionate and empathetic, understanding the need to meet people where they're at instead of bullying them into accepting my opinions or thoughts. I embrace science, data, and research, yet understand the necessity for the arts and humanities.
I am a good listener--born out of years spent working in the hospital as a human physical therapist and working with the elderly population.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

As crazy as this is, I remember the landing on the moon. I was almost 2 years old. It is a memory that exists at the periphery of my conscious mind as if seen from the side. I hear the excitement of my parents and maybe one or two other adults. It is in the house on West 6th Street in Greeley. The television set was brown with those wooden legs on the bottom. It was a gray fuzzy screen, but again, just out of sight, in my peripheral vision. I remember a big commotion.

Because this left an indelible impression on my mind, I knew that it was possible for memories to be etched deeply. When my daughter was almost 2 years old, Barack Obama was elected president of the United States. That evening, as he spoke in Grant Park in Chicago, my daughter had woken up. I held her close and whispered to her, as he was speaking, that this was going to change her life. That she would grow up in a beautiful new world.

We sat together on the couch when he was inaugurated in January 2009, again with me telling her this would change the world. We'll see, someday, if the images are as indelibly printed on her mind as the moon landing was on mine.

What is your favorite book? Why?

All Creatures Great and Small, by James Herriot

I read this book in 5th grade. The first page of the first book in the series--the first paragraph of the first chapter had me hooked. I desperately wanted to be that veterinarian, laying on the cold, stone floor of the barn on a frigid winter's night, straining to deliver a calf. I couldn't imagine anything better than the little veterinary practice in rural England. I dreamed of being James Herriot.

That dream was dashed by a science teacher in high school who told me I had no mind for science and I should do something else. I gave up my childhood dream--for a time. A journalism major gave way to a study in all things "ski bum," which eventually took me to an undergraduate degree in athletic training and biochemistry! Then a master's in physical therapy before one day walking alongside a horse and remembering that long-buried childhood dream. I went to veterinary school, and for graduation, my father gave me a 1st edition set of the All Creatures Great and Small books. I had come full circle.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

I Can See Clearly Now the Rain is Gone by Jimmy Cliff

It is a perfect allegory for how to live life.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

I believe our representatives should come from all walks of life. I think, in order to have fair representation in our government, people who are in public service should have some idea of what life is like for their constituents. Better decision-making and thought processes occur if one has experienced the same issues as those one is legislating for.

What are your thoughts on term limits?

I think term limits are important tools to ensure that ideas and thoughts are fresh, that they do not stagnate. Our population, our country is ever-changing and we need representation that reflects that. Having people in office that have been there for decades does not allow new thought processes or ideas to emerge.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Of course, compromise is essential for policymaking. Without compromise, this country would edge closer to authoritarianism. There is never one right way of doing something. When we begin to impose our will on others, we become bullies. That is no way to govern.

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.

2022

Debby Burnett completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Burnett's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Dr. Debby Burnett is a veterinarian, physical therapist, small business owner, and mom on the Western Slope of Colorado, who is running to defeat the seditionist Lauren Boebert in 2022.

As a fourth generation Coloradan and a veterinarian of 18+ years, she's worked with farmers and ranchers across our district to improve their lives and their livelihoods. She understands the importance of the livestock industry to Colorado’s economy and the necessity of farmers and ranchers having a voice in Congress.

As the mother of a 14-year old, she knows how to get twenty things done at once.

As the owner of a small agriculture business, she knows that two of the most pressing issues facing Colorado today are sufficient water and a stable climate.

And as a lifelong Coloradan, she understands what Colorado's 3rd District needs — and is stepping up to give them a real voice in Congress.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• I want our kids to grow up in the same beautiful, colorful Colorado we did 30-40-50 years ago. That means sustaining our rural economy and protecting our environment.
• Colorado’s 3rd district deserves responsible, honest, effective leadership; a representative who doesn't peddle conspiracy theories about stolen elections.
• It is time to modernize our infrastructure - not just roads and bridges, but rural broadband, accessible healthcare, and renewable energy too.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

WATER, FARMERS, RANCHERS, AND THE ENVIRONMENT. "Water is a sacred resource," the Secretary of the Interior said recently. Colorado is in a mega-drought, and the impact on our forests, farmers, ranchers, and communities is devastating. We need to work together to find ways to survive and even thrive during these trying times when water is under such stress. I will help find that path as your representative in Congress, to ensure a healthy, colorful, thriving Colorado.

INFRASTRUCTURE: REBUILDING OUR STATE. Infrastructure encompasses so much more than roads and bridges.

• It means public health infrastructure to ensure fair and equitable, affordable health care for all Coloradans.
  
• It means reliable rural broadband so business can relocate here, people can work remotely, and students can access the education they need.
  
• It means funding, education and support to drilling and mining communities as we inevitably transition to renewable energy.
  

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

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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.

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Debby Burnett campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	U.S. House Colorado District 3	Withdrew primary	$43,485	$43,485
2022	U.S. House Colorado District 3	Disqualified primary	$250,674	$250,674
Grand total			$294,158	$294,158
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

See also

2024 Elections

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Candidate

U.S. House Colorado District 3

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Footnotes

[show]

Colorado's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Michael Bennet (D)

John Hickenlooper (D)

Representatives

District 1

Diana DeGette (D)

District 2

Joe Neguse (D)

District 3

Jeff Hurd (R)

District 4

Lauren Boebert (R)

District 5

Jeff Crank (R)

District 6

Jason Crow (D)

District 7

Brittany Pettersen (D)

District 8

Gabe Evans (R)

Democratic Party (6)

Republican Party (4)