Gerrymandering in Colorado
Colorado has seven congressional districts with a possible eighth district expected after the 2020 census. The General Assembly is comprised of 35 single-member Senate districts and 65 house districts. Only one of the state’s congressional districts is considered competitive, and the General Assembly is considered somewhat slanted toward Democrats. While we do not see Colorado’s districts gerrymandered to the extent seen in some states, the redistricting process can certainly be improved and made more competitive.
Toni E. Larson, Ph.D. President League of Women Voters Colorado
Dr. Toni Larson served from 1985 to 2015 as executive director of Independent Higher Education of Colorado, a nonprofit organization that conducts the government relations work for Colorado College, Regis University, and the University of Denver. In this position she had responsibility for public policy research, lobbying, and administration. She also served as an affiliated faculty member at Regis University and an adjunct faculty member at the University of Denver. Currently, her main volunteer activities include her Home Owners’ Association (President), Colorado Academy of Lifelong Learning (President), League of Women Voters of Colorado (President), Colorado Social Legislation Committee, and Colorado Association of Nonprofit Organizations (Public Policy Committee).
Dr. Larson received a B.A. from Colorado College where she majored in English and minored in Zoology. Her Master’s in Nonprofit Management is from Regis University, and she has a Ph.D. in Higher Education with an emphasis on policy studies from the University of Denver.
She received the Distinguished Service Award from the Denver Regional Council of Governments for her work on nonpoint sources of pollution, an Excellence in Teaching Award from Regis University, and an Academic Excellence Award from the College of Education, University of Denver. She received the Dissertation of the Year Award from the Association for the Study of Higher Education.
She lived in France and Germany for five years and continues to travel extensively