Photo by Will Cornelius
Colorado State Representative Ryan Armagost in his office at the Capitol in Denver.

By Will Cornelius
The Surveyor

After a late morning committee meeting ends, Ryan Armagost walks and talks on the phone with a colleague who called him immediately after it ended. They want to know how his bill is progressing. It is a routine day for Republican State Representative Armagost at the Colorado State Capital Building in Denver.
A freshman legislator and Berthoud-based resident, he stands out at the capitol. Not because of his sharp three-piece suits or civil-war era beard. But because unlike many of his fellow legislators, he never went to law school.

“I just came into this thinking, I’m a retired military and retired cop and I’m in here with a bunch of attorneys that are debating day and night … how do I deal with that? I think bringing that different perspective in — there’s a lot of people that don’t see that. So, I was very pleased to see that there are so many people that are willing to take the — or accept the — different perspective,” Armagost said about his initial impressions of the statehouse and colleagues.

He said he can see why lawyers are drawn to this line of work. Armagost’s background is different though. The Colorado native grew up in La Salle and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps as an infantry rifleman after finishing high school in 1995. Since then, he has also had decade-long stints at the Colorado National Guard and Larimer County Sheriff’s Office. Armagost embraces his military and law enforcement roots and is proud to promote them. “It’s because I’m a patriot. Not because I’m a right-wing extremist,” he explained.

In his office, legislative aide Beau Shenkenberg is busy coordinating Armagost’s schedule and managing upcoming meetings while Armagost wraps up his phone call about the proposed bill. The bill in question is HB23-1286 — a bill that would increase the criminal penalties for harming working animals like police dogs and horses. As a former K9 sheriff’s deputy and proud dog owner, Armagost is passionate about the bill. The bill later passed the House on a 61-3 vote and is in the Senate now.

In addition, Armagost has four other bills he is the prime sponsor on. A bill to reduce justice involvement for young children was passed and is now awaiting a vote in the Senate. Another bill to appropriate $300,000 for a feasibility study on support systems for people with serious mental health illnesses was also sent to the upper chamber after a 59-5 vote.

Along with State Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer, Armagost helped pass HB23-1143 and sign it into law. The bill makes it easier for people with Deferred Action as a Childhood Arrival — commonly known as DACA — status to serve as police officers. Due to ambiguous legal status, it is difficult and often impossible for DACA recipients to serve as law enforcement officers in most jurisdictions due to firearm restrictions.

The last bill Armagost is a prime sponsor on is a bill to create a tax credit for pre-adoption leave. It had been stuck in the House finance committee since early March awaiting a vote.

The House of Representatives in Colorado is split with 46 Democrat and 19 Republican legislators. As a Republican, legislating in the minority is a challenge for Armagost. The super majority held by the Democratic party allows them wide latitude for passing legislation — they can stop any Republican bill while easily passing any Democratic bills.

But Armagost said there is still room for bipartisanship in Denver. “The best way moving forward is trying to find the balance of what our voters would want and what the state needs the most,” he said.

For the past two decades, the majority of Colorado voters typically support Democratic candidates. In 2022, Gov. Jared Polis won re-election over Republican challenger Heidi Ganahl with 59% of the vote compared to Ganahl’s 39%. The senate race was similar with incumbent Democrat Michael Bennett beating Republican candidate Joe O’Dea 56% to 41%. In 2020 President Joe Biden captured 55% of the vote in Colorado, while Donald Trump finished with 42%.

But the current state house breakdown of 46 Democratic and 19 Republican legislators gives Democrats 71% of the seats. Armagost said this is destructive and ultimately hurts constituents across Colorado. A growing divide between urban and rural communities is the major culprit according to Armagost. Too much of the state house’s attention is focused on Denver and Boulder he said.

With the focus solely on Colorado’s major metropolises, other areas suffer, like agriculture. Armagost expressed concern in January when Polis’ State of the State speech only briefly mentioned agriculture. “I think a lot of it is lip service in what he does, and says, as far as taking care of, or concern for the agricultural community,” Armagost said about Polis’ views of the industry.

National political issues, like guns, have also been a prominent topic in Armagost’s first legislative session. While four bills that place restrictions on firearms were recently signed by Polis, a proposed fifth bill died in committee thanks to Armagost’s aggressive lobbying. On April 20, a bill that would ban assault weapons died in committee when Democratic legislators voted it down. It was the culmination of 15 hours of debate with hundreds of people testifying in opposition to the bill.

“You’re attacking the tree from the top limbs rather than, you know, taking it at the stump. And the stump of the problem is mental health and mental illness,” Armagost said about what he sees as misguided approaches to preventing gun violence. He believes fixing and reforming the state’s mental health systems is the solution, something he has made a major part of his platform.
After his election in November 2022, Armagost said he had learned more about politics in the prior twelve months than in his previous lifetime. After his first

few weeks as a legislator in Denver, Armagost laughed that he had learned even more in that short time than ever before.
One thing he has learned though is the need for collaboration and bipartisanship. “I think I’ve surprised a lot of people that maybe thought I was some right-wing extremist coming into this … I’m actually fairly moderate when it comes to legislating,” Armagost explains.

While he admits it has been exhausting and tiring as a legislator, he is optimistic about the future and building solutions for the state. “I’m here for the better of our state and our communities and coming from Berthoud, it helps bring that perspective of small town and rural life to the legislation, which is much, much needed here,” Armagost said.