Rep. Iman Jodeh, D-Aurora, told Colorado Politics she would run for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Janet Buckner.

Jodeh won re-election to her third term in the House in November. She is the first Muslim and Palestinian-American elected to the Colorado General Assembly.

An Arapahoe County Democratic vacancy committee will choose Buckner’s successor on Jan. 6

Buckner announced last month that she would step down on Jan. 9. She won re-election for the seat on Nov. 5, running unopposed.

Jodeh has a long history with the Buckner family, whom she’s known since she was 4. One of Buckner’s daughters has been friends with Jodeh since elementary school.

In a 2021 interview, Jodeh told Colorado Politics that her parents came to Colorado from Palestine as immigrants and refugees in 1974. She grew up an all-American girl, watching Bronco’s football games and visiting the mountains.

COVER STORY | Meet Iman Jodeh, Colorado’s first Muslim and Palestinian-American lawmaker

But her family’s history was never far behind, and their summers were spent in Palestine.

While those summers spent with her grandmother were happy, she also saw what was happening to the people there. That exposed her to war, violence and oppression.

She said Monday that running for the Senate vacancy allows her to expand representation in a larger district. “My experience as a state representative allows me to bring solid representation, one in which every voice is heard and valued at the Capitol. I will be unapologetic in advocating for SD 29,” she said.

The district is among the most diverse in the state, with 14.5% identifying as multi-racial, 18.2% identifying as Black, and 26.3% identifying as Hispanic or Latino, according to the state’s redistricting commission.

Jodeh’s legislative history includes bills on affordable housing, including Gov. Jared Polis’s omnibus housing bill in 2023, which died on the session’s last day, and this year’s HB 24-1313, the housing in transit-oriented communities’ legislation that was signed into law on May 13.

She also co-sponsored the 2021 Colorado Option law, which mandates health insurance companies reduce premium costs by 5% for 2023, compared to 2021 premiums, within the individual and small group market. In 2024, that number increased to 10%, and for 2025, by 15%.

Should Jodeh win the vacancy, another vacancy committee will choose a successor for her House seat. At that point, the number of lawmakers who have gained seats in the General Assembly through the vacancy process would reach at least 20.

Two other vacancy elections are also expected in early 2025 to replace Sen. Chris Hansen, D-Denver, who won re-election to his Senate District 31 seat in November, and Sen. Kevin Van Winkle, R-Highlands Ranch, who was elected to the Douglas County Board of County Commissioners last month.

The high number of vacancies is prompting calls to reform the vacancy selection process, including from Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib.