Gaylon Kent - Ballotpedia

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Gaylon Kent (Libertarian Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Colorado's 2nd Congressional District. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.

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

Biography

Gaylon Kent was born in Los Angeles, California. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1983 to 1987. His career experience includes working as an author. He has been affiliated with the American Legion.^[1]

Elections

2024

See also: Colorado's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024

Colorado's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024 (June 25 Democratic primary)

Colorado's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024 (June 25 Republican primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Colorado District 2

The following candidates ran in the general election for U.S. House Colorado District 2 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Joe Neguse (D)	68.4	284,994
		Marshall Dawson (R)	28.9	120,633
		Gaylon Kent (L)	1.2	5,180
		Cynthia Munhos de Aquino Sirianni (Unity Party)	0.9	3,744
		Jan Kok (Approval Voting Party)	0.6	2,349
	Submit photo	Mike Watson (Unaffiliated) (Write-in)	0.0	8

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 416,908
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Colorado District 2

Incumbent Joe Neguse advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Colorado District 2 on June 25, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Joe Neguse	100.0	91,218

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 91,218
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Bernard Coleman (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Colorado District 2

Marshall Dawson advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Colorado District 2 on June 25, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Marshall Dawson	100.0	30,825

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 30,825
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Kent in this election.

2020

See also: United States Senate election in Colorado, 2020

United States Senate election in Colorado, 2020 (June 30 Republican primary)

United States Senate election in Colorado, 2020 (June 30 Democratic primary)

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Colorado

The following candidates ran in the general election for U.S. Senate Colorado on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		John Hickenlooper (D)	53.5	1,731,114
		Cory Gardner (R)	44.2	1,429,492
		Raymon Doane (L)	1.7	56,262
	Submit photo	Daniel Doyle (Approval Voting Party)	0.3	9,820
		Stephan Evans (Unity Party)	0.3	8,971
	Submit photo	Bruce Lohmiller (G) (Write-in)	0.0	0
		Danny Skelly (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	0
	Submit photo	Michael Sanchez (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	0

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,235,659
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Gary Swing (Other)
Joseph Camp (Independent)
Veronique Bellamy (Socialist Party)
Martha Wolf (Independent)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Colorado

John Hickenlooper defeated Andrew Romanoff in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Colorado on June 30, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		John Hickenlooper	58.7	585,826
		Andrew Romanoff	41.3	412,955

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 998,781
= 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

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Colorado

Incumbent Cory Gardner advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Colorado on June 30, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Cory Gardner	100.0	554,806

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 554,806
= 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

Margot Dupre (R)

Libertarian primary election

Libertarian primary for U.S. Senate Colorado

Raymon Doane defeated Gaylon Kent in the Libertarian primary for U.S. Senate Colorado on June 30, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Raymon Doane	62.8	4,365
		Gaylon Kent	37.2	2,583

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 6,948
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Unity Party convention

Unity Party convention for U.S. Senate Colorado

Stephan Evans defeated Joshua Rodriguez in the Unity Party convention for U.S. Senate Colorado on April 4, 2020.

		Candidate
✔		Stephan Evans (Unity Party)
		Joshua Rodriguez (Unity Party)

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

2018

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Colorado, 2018

General election

General election for U.S. House Colorado District 3

Incumbent Scott Tipton defeated Diane Mitsch Bush, Mary Malarsie, and Gaylon Kent in the general election for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Scott Tipton (R)	51.5	173,205
		Diane Mitsch Bush (D)	43.6	146,426
	Submit photo	Mary Malarsie (Independent)	3.2	10,831
		Gaylon Kent (L)	1.7	5,727
		Other/Write-in votes	0.0	12

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 336,201 (100.00% precincts reporting)
= 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

Allen Tompkins (Unaffiliated)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3

Diane Mitsch Bush defeated Karl Hanlon and Arn Menconi in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on June 26, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Diane Mitsch Bush	64.1	44,809
		Karl Hanlon	27.7	19,368
		Arn Menconi	8.2	5,754

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 69,931
= 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 U.S. House Colorado District 3

Incumbent Scott Tipton advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Colorado District 3 on June 26, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Scott Tipton

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.
= 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.

2016

See also: Colorado's 3rd Congressional District election, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Scott Tipton (R) defeated Gail Schwartz (D) and Gaylon Kent (L) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Tipton defeated Alex Beinstein in the Republican primary on June 28, 2016.^[2]^[3]^[4]

**U.S. House, Colorado District 3 General Election, 2016**
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Scott Tipton Incumbent	54.6%	204,220
	Democratic	Gail Schwartz	40.3%	150,914
	Libertarian	Gaylon Kent	5.1%	18,903
Total Votes				374,037
Source: Colorado Secretary of State

**U.S. House, Colorado, District 3 Republican Primary, 2016**
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Scott Tipton Incumbent	78.9%	43,992
Alex Beinstein	21.1%	11,790
Total Votes		55,782
Source: Colorado Secretary of State

2014

See also: United States Senate elections in Colorado, 2014

Kent ran in the 2014 election for the U.S. Senate, to represent Colorado. Kent was defeated by Cory Gardner (R) in the general election on November 4, 2014.^[5]

**U.S. Senate, Colorado General Election, 2014**
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Cory Gardner	48.2%	983,891
	Democratic	Mark Udall Incumbent	46.3%	944,203
	Libertarian	Gaylon Kent	2.6%	52,876
	Independent	Steve Shogan	1.4%	29,472
	Independent	Raul Acosta	1.2%	24,151
	Unity Party of Colorado	Bill Hammons	0.3%	6,427
Total Votes				2,041,020
Source: Colorado Secretary of State

2012

See also: Colorado's 3rd Congressional District elections, 2012

Kent ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House to represent Colorado's 3rd District. He was defeated by Gregory Gilman in the June 26, 2012, Libertarian primary.^[6]^[7]

**U.S. House, Colorado District 3 Libertarian Primary, 2012**
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Gregory Gilman	60.6%	166
Gaylon Kent	39.4%	108
Total Votes		274

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

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

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am the Libertarian nominee for Congress for Colorado's 2nd District. In 2014 I was the Libertarian nominee for the US Senate and ran for the US House from District 3 in 2016 and 2018. I am the peace candidate. I believe the US should not fight any wars that have not been declared by Congress. If we continue to do so, our country will collapse, perhaps before this half-century is our.

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?

End the fighting of all wars that have not been declared by Congress.
A flat tax of no more than 5% on incomes over $50,000
And end to the drug war.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Only fighting wars that have been declared by Congress.

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

The long-term best interests of our country.

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

There are a handful of people on this planet who can make decisions based solely on reason and with complete objectivity. I am one of them.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

To act in a non-partisan manner.

What legacy would you like to leave?

An America at peace.

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

Apollo 11. I was 4.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

Baskin Robbins Ice Cream is Alhambra, California. I lasted a week.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Creation by Gore Vidal

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

Nero Wolfe

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

That I am the biggest obstacle between me and what I want out of this life.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

Perpetual war. It is causing both violent citizens and a violent planet.

What are your thoughts on term limits?

Term limits do not work. The very best form of term limits are concerned and conscientious voters on Election Day.

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

Of course it is.

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

Kent’s campaign website stated the following:

“

On The Issues

The Drug War
The Drug War has failed in every respect.
Decriminalizing drugs would end the violence associated with them.

Abortion
The moral aspects of this issue are your lookout and no one else's.
The government must butt out of the abortion debate.

The Minimum Wage
The government must not mandate wages.
Besides, if you are out of high school and the minimum wage is still relevant be honest, you should revaluate your job skills.

The Death Penalty
America has executed innocent people. This is reason enough to abolish the death penalty.

Term Limits
Term limits merely keep the same parties in power and don't change a thing.
The best for of term limits are you and me - we the people - voting every Election Day.

The Trump Phenomenon
Donald Trump is a con man, a lying sexual predator who is stupid enough to believe the moon is part of Mars. There was a time when the American media and electorate would've have dismissed someone like this, but that time has passed.

The Flat Tax
We really shouldn't have to pay any income tax at all, but until we can reasonably support that, we should pay no more than 5% on incomes over $50,000.

Our Violent Entertainment
To think that our violent movies, TV shows, and video games do play a role in our violent country is folly.

Health Care
Doctors and health insurers must be returned to the free market. They must be financially answerable to their patients and customers.

Immigration
We're entitled to secure borders and those here illegally are not entitled to citizenship.

But they're entitled to be more than criminals, so let's legalize them and let them do the work they came here to do.

Our Mass Shootings
We have violent citizens, in part, because we have a violent government. A peaceful American government would lead to peaceful citizens and a peaceful world.^[8]

”

—Gaylon Kent’s campaign website (2024)^[9]

2020

Gaylon Kent did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

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.

Gaylon Kent campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	U.S. House Colorado District 2	Lost general	$0	N/A**
2020	U.S. Senate Colorado	Lost primary	$0	N/A**
2018	U.S. House Colorado District 3	Lost general	$0	N/A**
Grand total			$0	N/A**
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
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

See also

External links

Search Google News for this topic

Candidate

U.S. House Colorado District 2

Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on April 3, 2024
↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Election Candidate List," accessed May 2, 2016
↑ Politico, "Colorado House Primaries Results," June 28, 2016
↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2016 General Election Candidate List," accessed September 5, 2016
↑ The Huffington Post, "Election 2014," November 4, 2014
↑ Associated Press, "Unofficial election results," June 26, 2012
↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2012 Primary Results," accessed July 10, 2012
↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
↑ Gaylon Kent’s campaign website, “Home,” accessed October 22, 2024

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)

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