Durango School District 9-R board member Katie Stewart is running for Colorado House of Representatives District 59, focusing on safeguarding women’s reproductive rights and promoting affordable housing.
Stewart, a Democrat, is running against Ignacio Mayor and Republican Clark Craig for the seat, which is currently held by Barbara McLachlan, who is term-limited.
House District 59 represents a total population of about 89,000 residents in Southwest Colorado and the southern Western Slope. Stewart, a fourth-generation Durangoan, has worked as an emergency medical technician in both Silverton and Durango.
In 2021, she was appointed to the School District 9-R Board of Education District D after another board member, Andrea Parmenter, had to vacate her position because she had moved out of the district zoning.
In 2023, Stewart was elected to the position again after running unopposed.
Stewart has hounded voters about the importance of protecting women’s reproductive rights on the campaign trail while calling into question Craig’s position on the matter. Also, like many other candidates this election season, she has vowed to work toward affordable living solutions if elected.
Get to know Katie
What kind of car do you drive?
Toyota Highlander
What was the last vacation you took?
Disney World about year and a half ago.
What book are you reading right now?
“Wool,” by Hugh Howey.
Other than the Herald, where is the first place you go for news in the morning?
The Colorado Sun.
What are your hobbies?
I don't feel like I have time for hobbies anymore, but when I do it's baking, cooking or also just hosting friends.
DH: In your Club 20 debate about a month ago, you challenged Clark Craig on whether he would support a personhood bill. Can you explain what a personhood bill is, and why that bill would be concerning?
Stewart: The way the term has been used in the past, when groups have tried to get it on the ballot, is defining life beginning at conception – when the sperm meets the egg. A personhood bill would be very detrimental to women’s health across the board. They’ve made a run at the ballot multiple times, and I always like to point out that we thought Roe (Roe v. Wade) was settled and codified.
DH: Clark said in the debate that we should let the people of Colorado decide on what defines life, making it a states’ rights issue. What is the danger of allowing it to be a states’ rights issue? And do you believe it's a right that people in the state should be allowed to vote on?
Stewart: I firmly and unabashedly believe that those decisions are between a woman and her doctor and that politicians and government have no place in that. (When it becomes a states’ rights issue) we’ve seen those ramifications in Idaho and Texas. Women, their health and their fertility have been put in danger, and it would be … I wouldn’t even call it concerning, it would just be truly awful if Colorado were to face those same issues.
DH: Planned Parenthood just suspended operations in La Plata County in September because of limited staff. As a potential representative of the state who supports Planned Parenthood, what can the Legislature do to ensure these clinics are up and running and adequately staffed?
Stewart: You know, affordability, that’s an issue across the board, and it’s complicated and interwoven with everything. It’s not just about home costs. It’s about access to child care or general cost of living through groceries. I do think there are ways, and granted, I have not been in the Legislature yet, so, I’m not 100% sure how to tackle things, but I think incentivizing providers to come to rural areas would be a really great start.
About this Q&A
The Durango Herald met with opposing candidates running in contested races across Southwest Colorado. Candidates were asked similar questions on the same issues. Their answers have been edited for clarity and brevity.
DH: You and Clark have both talked about the importance of affordable housing and its impact on our economy. People can’t work here. People can’t do anything, really, if they don’t have place to live. What are your thoughts on fixing the area’s affordable housing issue?
Stewart: Again, everything is so interwoven, and you’re looking at a multipronged approach of addressing the child care shortage, but also, making sure we have an availability of units. So increasing the number of units so there’s more supply, whether that’s condos or townhomes, that’s a really great place to start. There’s been a lot of townhomes going up right now, folks will talk about regulation and how deregulating will help builders come in.
I think that’s a very delicate balance in making sure we have good folks and developers that are community partners and working in the interest of Southwest Colorado and rural Colorado and not bad actors. There needs to be regulations, but being mindful of how there might be unintended consequences through over regulation.Are the current laws hindering good, solid development? But we should always be making sure we keep bad actors out and hold them accountable. I think the West Side Mobile Home Park and Animas View Mobile Home Park are really great examples of innovative ways that we’ve increased access to affordable housing. And also the project on Highway 160. Those types of things are really innovative in Colorado and leading the way. Public and private partnerships.
DH: Do you support the Colorado Mobile Home Park Act?
Stewart: Yes. Very much so.
DH: There seems to be this push back against mobile home parks being built. There’s some people who don’t want them next to their homes. What would you say to people who don’t want these mobile home parks in their neighborhood?
Stewart: I would say that I always come from a place of understanding, but I think it's really important to know that there are so many folks that work in this community that are integral to keeping it going. I mean, baristas in coffee shops, pharmacy techs that help us with our prescriptions, the folks that work in grocery stores and they deserve to live in the community that they work in. It keeps Durango healthy and thriving. So being mindful of how important it is that all these folks have a place in our community, I would just have that conversation with them.
DH: What are your feelings toward Proposition KK (an excise taxes on firearms in a bid to reduce gun violence and fund mental health services)?
Stewart: It’s an unfortunate funding mechanism that really hamstrings how we’re able to deal with the budget and dole out money. I know Prop. KK is really trying to to build a bucket of money to help folks and families that are survivors of violence, gun violence, which I very much support. I just want to be mindful of the funding mechanism of how we do that to make sure that they will have that continued support.
We have seen things like Prop. FF, which supported school meals for all on the ballot in 2022. That funding mechanism wasn’t set up properly. It’s important that all of our kids, pre-K through 12, have access to healthy meals, day in and day out, whether they can pay or not. Feeding our children, it shouldn’t be a partisan issue, we should just be feeding our kids. But thinking about that funding structure, and making sure that Prop. KK can be a sufficiently funded for its goals is really important.
DH: You said in the Club 20 debate you were a “rural Democrat,” not a “Denver Democrat.” What does that mean from your perspective?
Stewart: So first and foremost, I’ll say that, as a rural Democrat, my goal is to represent all of the folks that are here in this corner of the state and District 59, not just those that have a certain party. It’s about communities over party. But also, what’s needed in Denver is a lot different than what’s needed down here in Southwest Colorado and rural Colorado. So keeping in mind that having a Democratic voice at the Legislature that can point out the differences between the Front Range Denver metro needs and our needs down here. Also, that being a rural Democrat means something a lot different than being a Denver Democrat. I thought I was progressive, until I went to Denver. But it really just comes down to being a good rural representative and knowing that my goal is to always put district before party.
tbrown@durangoherald.com
