Former Colorado State University athletic director Jack Graham is making a big splash with his entrance into the crowded Republican U.S. Senate primary by depositing $1 million in his campaign bank account. If the name Jack Graham is not familiar, he has been a fixture in Northern Colorado for years. Hey, at least he’s not from Jeffco or Colorado Springs?
Graham was a quarterback for the CSU Rams. He also started an insurance business, ICAT Managers, in 1998 that he sold in 2010. Prior to selling ICAT, Graham worked for 21 years with E.W. Blanch Co. where he was an Executive Vice President covering the Western Region of the country. Graham is a member of the advisory board of the National Center for Atmospheric Research and was named Entrepreneur of the Year in the Rocky Mountain Region in the financial services division.
Notably, Graham has never run for public office, a point that campaign manager Dick Wadhams highlights in his statement about working with the candidate, according to the Denver Post:
“’He is a very formidable individual,’ said Wadhams, who argued Graham’s background outside politics was an asset.
“’He’s never run for political office before,’ Wadhams said. ‘And I think that’s an attribute in this (anti-establishment) environment.’”
Graham joins a crowded field in the U.S. Senate Republican primary. Republicans currently in the race include: Colorado Spring businessman Robert Blaha, Colorado Springs resident Charlie Ehler, former Aurora City Councilman Ryan Frazier, El Paso County Commissioner Darryl Glenn, former State Rep. Jon Keyser, El Paso County Commissioner Peggy Littleton, former SBA director Greg Lopez, State Sen. Tim Neville, and Jeffco County Commissioner Don Rosier.