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Colorado Rep. Steven Woodrow announces he won’t run for re-election

By Marianne Goodland August 4, 2025 | updated 23 hours ago

Rep. Steven Woodrow, a stalwart of the House Democrats’ progressive wing, announced Monday he won’t seek a fourth and final term in the House in next year’s election.

Woodrow posted the announcement on Facebook on Monday.

Woodrow was chosen by a vacancy committee in 2020 to represent House District 2, which includes the Capitol Hill neighborhood, after Rep. Chris Hansen was selected to replace Sen. Lois Court in the state Senate.

He easily won the election in the district, where Democrats outnumber Republicans by a three-to-one margin, in both the 2022 and 2024 contests.

Woodrow was a candidate for Hansen’s seat in January after Hansen resigned to take a job with the La Plata Electric Association. Woodrow was believed to be the favorite, but the seat went to now-Sen. Matt Ball after five rounds of voting.

In his Facebook message, Woodrow said he’s spent “considerable time reflecting” on the state’s direction and what lies ahead.

“This is a critical time, and we need folks with the talent, energy, and vision necessary to step up and be that next generation of great leaders,” he said. 

Woodrow said he intends to continue representing his district through the end of 2026.

“It’s just that someone else will be on the ballot” in the November 2026 election, he added.

“I am and will remain forever grateful for all my constituents and voters and colleagues and staff and mentors and — most importantly — my family and friends. Public service like this truly takes a village, and I’m so ridiculously fortunate to have mine,” Woodrow said.

Woodrow has been among the leaders of the House Democrats’ progressive wing, working on policies dealing with affordable housing and rental housing issues, such as on residential building stairs and rent algorithms, which failed twice, including with a gubernatorial veto in 2025.

He was a co-sponsor of Gov. Jared Polis’ 2023 land use bill that failed on the last day of the session but got new life — and the governor’s signature — in 2024.

He also carried out legislation on “right to repair” for digital equipment and on criminal justice issues.

In his post on Monday, Woodrow noted his support for eliminating the death penalty, as well as abortion and LGBTQ rights.

Woodrow has had his share of controversy during his time in the legislature, much of it related to comments he’s made on social media.

Last year, he posted on X, after the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, that “the last thing America needed was sympathy for the devil, but here we are.” It earned him criticism from the state Democratic Party, and he later deleted that account. He now posts on Bluesky.

In a statement, Woodrow said his tweet was “inarticulate” and condemned the assassination attempt on the former president “in the most forceful of terms.” House Speaker Julie McCluskie called the post “in poor taste.”

A year ago, 9News reported Woodrow, an attorney, had used legislative privilege to get out of paying a $40 traffic ticket.

Woodrow had not filed to run for reelection in 2026. 

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