Congressman Doug Lamborn is no stranger to a tough primary. He’s faced one almost every cycle since he was elected to Congress in 2006. First it was Jeff Crank. Then it was Jeff Crank again, along with Bently Rayburn. And a few cycles later, in 2012, Robert Blaha took a stab at it. Possibly there were a few more in between? It’s so hard to keep track…. The latest to step up to the plate is state Sen. Owen Hill, who formally announced his primary challenge today.
Challenger state Sen. Owen Hill
But despite opponent’s best attempts to unseat him, Lamborn continues to prevail in the face of well-funded, well-organized and well-liked challengers. We have no reason to believe the outcome will be any different this time, but that doesn’t mean Hill isn’t a worthy adversary. He’s very smart, very talented and very qualified. It just seems to us like the always rumored discontent with Lamborn’s leadership is pretty isolated to establishment GOP and activists, rather than widespread among his actual constituents.
Still, Hill has come out strong in his attacks, telling the Colorado Statesman:
“On key issues, whether it be the crucial healthcare debate or others facing our nation, we are in desperate need of boldness and responsiveness that allow us to step up and get things done — not a wait and see approach.”
Hill was critical of Lamborn’s indecisiveness and touted his own conservative credentials, all of which are very legit. For his part, Lamborn is known as one of the most conservative members of Congress and has a voting record that backs up the title.
Either way, the people of Colorado’s 5th CD will continue to be represented by a bonafide conservative. In politics, however, sometimes the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t, so as always, we’ll be interested to see how this one shakes out.