Chicano activist and teacher Tim Hernández will represent northwest Denver in the state House of Representatives. 

Hernández was selected on Saturday by a 68-member vacancy committee to represent House District 4 through 2024. Hernández will complete the term of former Rep. Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez, who represented House District 4 since 2019 and resigned earlier this month to join the Denver City Council. 

“This is personal for me,” Hernández said. “I’m a Northsider. I’m from right here. I grew up in this neighborhood. I know what our struggles are. … A poor brown kid like me is not supposed to be here. I never envisioned myself being here.”

“It’s time for the next generation to lead on our Democratic values from a place of lived experiences,” he added.  

NEW: @_timhernandez selected to represent Denver’s House District 4 in the Colorado House of Representatives. He will finish the term of @SerenaForCO, who resigned to join the Denver City Council. pic.twitter.com/CMLOLp4sFT

— Hannah Metzger (@hnmetzger) August 26, 2023

Hernández beat out two fellow Denver Democrats to fill the House vacancy: former state Rep. Rochelle Galindo and retired appellate judge Cecelia Espenoza. 

In a single round of voting, Hernández won 39 of 68 votes, over 57%. He was followed by Espenoza with 27 votes and Galindo with two. 

For the first time in a Denver vacancy election, the three candidates participated in a public forum before the vote where they answered questions from members of the Democratic of Party of Denver. 

During the forum, Hernández frequently spoke of the importance of youth representation in politics. At 26 years old, Hernández will be Colorado’s youngest sitting state legislator, surpassing Rep. Ruby Dickson who turned 28 this month. 

“More than anything I’m inspired by our young people. The change we must work for, the change we must build has to be intergenerational,” Hernández said. “The people who are most impacted are the best equipped to lead the fight for change.” 

Hernández is captain of the Denver Democrats’ House District 4 political subdivision and a teacher at Aurora West College Preparatory Academy. He made headlines last year when he was let go from his teaching job at Denver’s North High School, sparking student protests about his job and the lack of diversity among educators. 

A progressive Democrat, Hernández’s main policy goals include fully funding public education, preventing gun violence, reducing community contact with law enforcement, and making housing affordable via methods such as renter protections, housing density and inclusionary zoning. 

Hernández was an early frontrunner in the vacancy race, being endorsed by nine sitting state legislators, including state Sen. Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, who nominated him on Saturday. 

“I believe in intergenerational leadership,” Gonzales said during the nomination. “I believe that we should be working to ensure that we have folks who are working alongside a breadth and depth of community.” 

Gonzales-Gutierrez did not endorse any of the candidates to succeed her in the House, though she celebrated that all three share Latino backgrounds. This is particularly important as they vie to represent a Denver district with a large Latino population, she said. 

“We couldn’t ask for better choices here today,” Gonzales-Gutierrez said. “I hope you will pass policies that prioritize the Coloradans who don’t have the loudest voices, but those who are the ones closest to the pain.” 

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