Eric Rinard

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

Eric Rinard

Republican Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 5, 2024

Education

High school

Denver South High School

Bachelor's

University of Colorado, Boulder, 1985

Personal

Birthplace

Columbia, Mo.

Religion

Agnostic

Profession

Engineer

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Eric Rinard (Republican Party) ran for election for an at-large seat of the University of Colorado Board of Regents. Rinard lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Rinard completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Eric Rinard earned a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Colorado Boulder. His career experience includes working as a senior engineer at KMLabs in Boulder, Colorado. Rinard served as a board member and is the current vice president at Aspen Ridge Preparatory School. He has been affiliated with Kapteyn Murnane Laboratories, Inc.

Elections

2024

See also: Colorado State Board of Regents election, 2024

General election

General election for University of Colorado Board of Regents At-large District

Elliott Hood defeated Eric Rinard, T.J. Cole, and Thomas Reasoner in the general election for University of Colorado Board of Regents At-large District on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Elliott Hood (D)	50.5	1,478,661
		Eric Rinard (R)	46.5	1,363,271
		T.J. Cole (Unity Party)	2.0	59,612
	Submit photo	Thomas Reasoner (Approval Voting Party)	1.0	29,232

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,930,776
= 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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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for University of Colorado Board of Regents At-large District

Elliott Hood defeated Charles Johnson in the Democratic primary for University of Colorado Board of Regents At-large District on June 25, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Elliott Hood	52.1	229,323
		Charles Johnson	47.9	210,556

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 439,879
= 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

• Luis Licon (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for University of Colorado Board of Regents At-large District

Eric Rinard advanced from the Republican primary for University of Colorado Board of Regents At-large District on June 25, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Rinard	100.0	376,965

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 376,965
= 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.

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Rinard in this election.

2022

See also: Colorado State Board of Regents election, 2022

General election

General election for University of Colorado Board of Regents District 8

Mark VanDriel defeated Yolanda Ortega in the general election for University of Colorado Board of Regents District 8 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mark VanDriel (R)	51.7	120,151
	Submit photo	Yolanda Ortega (D)	48.3	112,328

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 232,479
= 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 University of Colorado Board of Regents District 8

Yolanda Ortega defeated Rosanna Reyes in the Democratic primary for University of Colorado Board of Regents District 8 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Yolanda Ortega	56.0	23,230
	Submit photo	Rosanna Reyes	44.0	18,274

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 41,504
= 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.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for University of Colorado Board of Regents District 8

Mark VanDriel defeated Eric Rinard in the Republican primary for University of Colorado Board of Regents District 8 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mark VanDriel	52.6	25,929
		Eric Rinard	47.4	23,393

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 49,322
= 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 themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Eric Rinard completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Rinard'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 married father of four and own a small horse farm near Fort Lupton, Colorado. I earned my electrical engineering degree from CU Boulder and have worked professionally in Colorado for 38 years. I grew up in the Washington Park neighborhood of Denver, then lived about 20 years in Boulder and now 20 years and counting in Weld county.

I volunteer in my community as a charter school board vice-president and as the Secretary of my county Republican party. I also enjoy volunteering as a judge's scribe in my children's sport of equestrian vaulting.

I enjoy learning about science, history, philosophy and literature. I grow and harvest hay, and work with horses including hoof trimming, which I find very rewarding for its contribution to animal health. I enjoy building and repairing things on the farm and just generally "keeping everything working perfectly" which my wife has called both the best thing and the worst thing about living with an engineer!

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?

• Individual freedom is a natural human right. Freedom of speech, assembly, conscience, property ownership, movement, self-defense and bodily autonomy are essential for the complete enjoyment of human life, and are all guaranteed to be protected from government power under our Constitution.
• Education is essential to human success and prosperity. A proper education presents all viewpoints and uses logic and reason to reach conclusions. Information presented uncritically is indoctrination, not education.
• I believe in limited government and unlimited opportunity for everyone. We must always strive for equality of opportunity not equality of outcome, or "equity."

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Education can play an important role in mental health. Emotions such as pain, fear, and guilt can arise from cognitive dissonance, or contradictory beliefs. This is an area where greater emphasis can result in lasting benefits for individual students as well as their families and communities.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

The most important principle by far, for any elected official, is the sanctity of the oath of office. The words "uphold and defend the United States Constitution" are not included in the oath for mere appearance but underscore the fact that the power of government to infringe the rights of citizens cannot be limited by words on paper alone. Elected officials must have enough moral character to recognize the Constitution as a limit on their own official acts, no matter how great a perceived good might be achieved by exceeding those limits. America's Founders understood the necessity to protect the people from the potential corruption of government power.

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

One of my earliest memories is the launch of Saturn V rockets carrying Apollo capsule missions to the moon. One such mission coincided with a summer vacation trip to my grandparents' house in Missouri. This was the mission that would ultimately fulfill President John F. Kennedy's pledge to "land a man on the moon and safely return him back to earth." It was the Apollo 11 mission. I vividly recall watching grainy black-and-white images of Neil Armstrong descending the ladder of the lunar lander and setting foot on the moon - an act that had been beyond comprehension until that day. As he said, "One small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind" I sat on the carpeted floor of a Missouri farmhouse and somehow realized that the world had just changed in a dramatic way. I couldn't have really understood it at the time, but the technological breakthroughs achieved as part of the space program would lead to ever greater innovation and discovery, and that giant leap represented their starting point. It would be decades before the advent of magnetic videotape, mobile phones, and digital video but our modern world owes its very existence to these early achievements.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Always be yourself, unless you can be Batman. Then, be Batman.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for holders of this office to have previous experience in government or politics?

Previous experience on an educational governance board provides important perspective regarding the value of building consensus among fellow board members and other stakeholders in the organization. A "go-it-alone" strategy is always counterproductive, or worse. I am pleased to have benefited from such experience through many years as a charter school board member.

What kind of skills or expertise do you believe would be the most helpful for the holders of this office to possess?

The most valuable skill of a CU Regent is the ability to listen, and to hear the perspectives of all interested parties. The second most valuable skill is the ability to rationally evaluate every perspective and identify the best course of action to result in maximum benefit to the mission of the university at large.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Former CU Regent- Founder of the BolderBoulder, Steve Bosley

Board of Regents Vice Chair Ken Montera
CU Regent Glen Gallegos
CU Regent Frank McNulty
CU Regent Mark VanDriel
Former CU Regent At-Large-Heidi Ganahl
Former CU Regent- Henry Anton
Weld County Sheriff Steve Reams

​Colorado Young Republicans

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

Government is the people's business and must be conducted openly and transparently. Finances must be audited and contracts awarded by competitive bid. Exceptions exist for confidential personnel matters and as related to proprietary information.

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 website

Rinard’s campaign website stated the following:

“	Platform Why I'm Running for CU Regent I am running for CU Regent because a sound education is the foundation for civic life of all Coloradans and the University of Colorado is a cornerstone of higher education in our state. Our CU system offers a world-class education at one of the lowest costs of any state university and I will seek to increase accessibility and reduce cost even further. CU is also a leading research institution and as Regent I will constantly support the growth and diversity of research initiatives on all campuses. My love of learning did not end with my graduation from the CU College of Engineering over three decades ago. I have learned much since then and I wish to share my decades of practical knowledge to help guide our beloved CU toward a future of even greater practical innovation, growing human prosperity for Colorado and beyond.	”
—Eric Rinard’s campaign website (2024)

2022

Eric Rinard completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Rinard'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.

My name is Eric Rinard. I have lived in Colorado for all but three of my fifty-nine years. I graduated from Denver South High School and am the son of a DU engineering professor. I then attended CU Boulder and graduated with a bachelors degree in electrical engineering in 1985.

After living in Boulder for seventeen years, I married and moved to Weld County in 2003 where we have raised 4 amazing kids on a small horse farm we built west of Fort Lupton. I have worked as an engineer at four companies along the northern front range, currently at a Boulder company producing lasers and other specialized light sources.

My community service currently includes being vice-president of the board of directors of a St. Vrain Valley School District charter school in Erie, and secretary of the Weld County Republican Party. Recreationally, our family enjoys participating in the sport of equestrian vaulting. Youth athletes from the club my wife founded, including my children, compete nationally and internationally.

I enjoy studying philosophy and political economics and steadfastly advocate for free market capitalism, republicanism and individual liberty - in short, 'Americanism.' I don't have all the answers but I never run out of questions.

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?

• Uphold and defend all four of CU’s Strategic Pillars1 designed to preserve sustainable and accessible excellence at our nationally ranked public university. 1- https://www.cu.edu/strategic-metrics
• Maintain successful and innovative four-year undergraduate tuition guarantee at CU Boulder since 2016, and expand it to other campuses.
• Promote diversity, especially in free inquiry that sometimes challenges academic orthodoxy.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Promotion of minority rights while recognizing that the smallest minority is the individual. The United States Constitution was designed for this purpose, and all public policy must respect it.

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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Eric Rinard campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	University of Colorado Board of Regents At-large District	Lost general	$12,481	$12,110
2022	University of Colorado Board of Regents District 8	Lost primary	$1,791	$2,516
Grand total			$14,272	$14,625
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

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Candidate

University of Colorado Board of Regents At-large District

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