COLORADO SPRINGS — Colorado's 5th Congressional District race is set for November after Republican Jeff Crank and Democrat River Gassen beat their opponents in June's Primary Election.
The winner of this race will replace Republican U.S. Congressman Doug Lamborn following his retirement. Both candidates participated in the June primary debate hosted by KOAA 5 and our news partner The Gazette.
Both candidates debated at the Penrose House Garden Pavillion on Tuesday evening.
News5's Lindsey Jensen spoke one-on-one with each candidate. She asked how they would best represent District 5.
"I've been just very ingrained in this community for a lot of years and I think that's the advantage I have in this race, is that I number one I know our community and I know it well, but I also know Congress well enough that I'll be able to go back from day one, kind of step in," said Crank.
"I'd represent the people and make sure we put partisan aside and prioritize the facts and data, I think that's what people need here, I want to make sure I can bring the resources here," said Gassen.
They covered issues like inflation, veteran suicide rates, immigration, reproductive rights, and student loan forgiveness.
the most heated part of the debate surrounded the issue of funding student loan forgiveness plans.
"I'll say it again, I want to tax billionaires I want to tax people who are funding Jeff's campaign," said Gassen.
"They're not my," remarked Crank. "But they are paying for your campaign," interrupted Gassen. "No they're not, they haven't given any money, paid for by American for Prosperity, they have not given any money.
"Mr. Crank, can we get to your response?" asked moderator, Alasyn Zimmerman. "Sure, but I can also answer her when she needlessly attacks me," said Crank.
"What happens if we go wave the magic wand and we get rid of a bunch of student loan debt, we just add to the 35 trillion dollars in debt," answered Crank.
More than 100 people came out to the debate, of all backgrounds and ages. Jensen caught up with a few folks after the debate for their thoughts.
"My biggest takeaway is that we have two really great candidates. I think with what each candidate spoke about, I thought they were very cordial, very professional and that was very refreshing to see," said debate attendee, Joel Tanaka.
"What it was civil, they both had good views, presented themselves well," said another attendee, Barbara Downs.
"I would have liked them to expand more on specific policies in terms of budgeting, notably they both talked on education but they didn't talk on where the funding needs to come from or where the waste is," said another attendee, Tyler Boelens.
I asked if the discussions during the debate changed their minds on any issues. Those i spoke with said no, but told me they were glad to hear both sides.
Colorado's 5th Congressional District seat has never been held by a Democrat.
News5 will have those results following the election on November 5th.
You can watch the debate below:
KOAA News5 and The Gazette to host Congressional District 5 Debate
Candidates for Colorado Congressional District 5:
- Republican Jeff Crank- former radio host and executive for the political advocacy group Americans For Prosperity, has received an endorsement from the U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson
- Democrat River Gassen- research scientist with degrees from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs
If you missed the Congressional District 5 Primary Debate on June 3, you can watch the full stream below:
WATCH: Congressional District 5 Primary Debate
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