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{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2022}}
{{Infobox officeholder
{{Infobox officeholder
|name = Kevin Priola
| name = Kevin Priola
|image = KevinPriola.png
| image = Kevin Priola.JPG
|state_senate = Colorado
| state_senate = Colorado
|district = [[Colorado's 25th Senate district|25th]]
| district = [[Colorado's 13th Senate district|13th]]
|term_start = January 11, 2017
| term_start = January 9, 2023
|term_end =
| term_end =
| predecessor = Redistricted
|preceded = [[Mary Hodge]]
|succeeded =
| successor =
|office2 = Member of the [[Colorado House of Representatives]]
| state_senate1 = Colorado
|constituency2 = 56th district
| district1 = [[Colorado's 25th Senate district|25th]]
|term_start2 = January 9, 2013
| term_start1 = January 11, 2017
|term_end2 = January 11, 2017
| term_end1 = January 9, 2023
|predecessor2 = [[Christine Scanlan]]
| preceded1 = [[Mary Hodge]]
| succeeded1 = Redistricted
|successor2 = [[Philip Covarrubias]]
| office2 = Member of the [[Colorado House of Representatives]]
|constituency3 = 30th District
| constituency2 = 56th district
|term_start3 = January 14, 2009
|term_end3 = January 9, 2013
| term_start2 = January 9, 2013
| term_end2 = January 11, 2017
|predecessor3 = [[Mary Hodge]]
|successor3 = [[Jenise May]]
| predecessor2 = [[Christine Scanlan]]
| successor2 = [[Philip Covarrubias]]
|birth_name =
| constituency3 = 30th District
|birth_date =
| term_start3 = January 14, 2009
|birth_place = [[Brighton, Colorado]], U.S.
| term_end3 = January 9, 2013
|death_date =
| predecessor3 = [[Mary Hodge]]
|death_place =
|party = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| successor3 = [[Jenise May]]
|spouse = Michelle
| birth_name =
|children = 4
| birth_date =
| birth_place = [[Brighton, Colorado]], U.S.
|education =
|signature =
| death_date =
| death_place =
| party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] (2022–present)<br>[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] (1990–2022)
| spouse = Michelle
| children = 4
| education =
| signature =
}}
}}


'''Kevin Priola''' is an American politician who serves in the [[Colorado Senate]] from the [[Colorado's 25th Senate district|25th district]] as a member of the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]]. Prior to his tenure in the state senate he served in the [[Colorado House of Representatives]] from the 30th and 56th districts from 2009 to 2017.
'''Kevin Priola''' is an American politician who serves in the [[Colorado Senate]] from the [[Colorado's 13th Senate district|13th district]] as a member of the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]]. Prior to decennial redistricting he also represented the [[Colorado's 25th Senate district|25th district]]. Prior to his tenure in the state senate he served in the [[Colorado House of Representatives]] from the 30th and 56th districts from 2009 to 2017. Until 2022, he served as a member of the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]].


Priola was born in [[Denver|Denver, Colorado]], and educated at the [[University of Colorado Boulder]] where he joined the [[College Republicans]]. He joined the Republican Party at age seventeen and was elected to the state house from the 30th district in the 2008 election.
Priola was born in [[Brighton, Colorado]], and educated at the [[University of Colorado Boulder]] where he joined the [[College Republicans]]. He joined the Republican Party at age seventeen and was elected to the state house from the 30th district in the 2008 election. During his tenure in the state house he served as a [[Whip (politics)|whip]], but resigned in 2014 following an unsuccessful attempt to remove him. He was elected to the state senate in the 2016 election. He [[Party switching in the United States|switched parties]] to the Democratic Party on August 22, 2022, citing [[Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election|Republican attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Associated Press |first= |author-link=Associated Press |date=September 11, 2022 |title=GOP-led recall effort approved for state senator who joined Democrats last month |url=https://www.cpr.org/2022/09/11/recall-effort-republican-democrat-state-senator-kevin-priola/ |access-date=September 14, 2022 |website=[[Colorado Public Radio]] |language=en}}</ref>

Priola was redistricted into the [[Colorado's 13th Senate district|13th district]].<ref>{{Cite web |author=Evan Wyloge and Marianne Goodland |date=November 24, 2021 |title=With new state House and Senate maps, let the games begin |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/new-colorado-state-house-senate-legislative-redistricting-district-map-2022-means-incumbents-candidates-planning/article_fbe7390c-4954-11ec-a463-231747d983a7.html |access-date=July 30, 2022 |publisher=Colorado Politics}}</ref>


==Early life==
==Early life==


Kevin Priola was born in [[Denver|Denver, Colorado]]. He attended the [[University of Colorado Boulder]] from 1992 to 1996, and graduated with a [[Bachelor of Science]] degree in finance and accounting and a minor in economics. He became a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] at age seventeen and was a member of the [[College Republicans]]. Following his education, he began working with his family's businesses, Priola Greenhouses, Inc. and CAP Land Company. His service to the community also includes being a member of the Commerce City Name Change Committee, as well as the president, treasurer, golf tournament chairman, and publicity chairman of the Commerce City Rotary Club.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Senator Kevin Priola |url=https://www.coloradosenaterepublicans.com/priola/ |access-date=2022-03-24 |website=Colorado Senate Republicans |language=en-US}}</ref> He is married to Michelle, with whom he has four children.<ref name="death">{{Cite news |date=March 11, 2019 |title=Lone Republican Supporter of Death Penalty Repeal on Faith, Colleagues |work=[[Westword]] |url=https://www.westword.com/news/lone-republican-supporter-of-colorado-death-penalty-repeal-kevin-priola-on-faith-colleagues-11260861 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220206234911/https://www.westword.com/news/lone-republican-supporter-of-colorado-death-penalty-repeal-kevin-priola-on-faith-colleagues-11260861 |archive-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref><ref name="career">{{Cite news |title=Kevin Priola |work=[[Colorado Republican Party]] |url=https://www.coloradosenaterepublicans.com/priola/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220123213823/https://www.coloradosenaterepublicans.com/priola/ |archive-date=January 23, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Kevin Priola biography |work=[[Vote Smart]] |url=https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/106512/kevin-priola |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207075756/https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/106512/kevin-priola |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>
Kevin Priola was born in [[Brighton, Colorado]]. He attended the [[University of Colorado Boulder]] from 1992 to 1996, and graduated with a [[Bachelor of Science]] degree in finance and accounting and a minor in economics. He became a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] at age seventeen and was a member of the [[College Republicans]]. He married Michelle, with whom he had four children.<ref name="death">{{Cite news |date=March 11, 2019 |title=Lone Republican Supporter of Death Penalty Repeal on Faith, Colleagues |work=[[Westword]] |url=https://www.westword.com/news/lone-republican-supporter-of-colorado-death-penalty-repeal-kevin-priola-on-faith-colleagues-11260861 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220206234911/https://www.westword.com/news/lone-republican-supporter-of-colorado-death-penalty-repeal-kevin-priola-on-faith-colleagues-11260861 |archive-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref><ref name="career">{{Cite news |title=Kevin Priola |work=[[Colorado Republican Party]] |url=https://www.coloradosenaterepublicans.com/priola/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220123213823/https://www.coloradosenaterepublicans.com/priola/ |archive-date=January 23, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Kevin Priola biography |work=[[Vote Smart]] |url=https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/106512/kevin-priola |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207075756/https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/106512/kevin-priola |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>


==Career==
==Career==
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Priola ran for the Republican nomination for a seat in the [[Colorado House of Representatives]] in the 30th district in the 2008 election and won in the general election against [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee Dave Rose.<ref name="election 2008">{{Cite news |title=Official Publication of the Abstract of Votes Cast for the 2008 Primary and 2008 General |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/pdf/2000-2099/2008AbstractBook.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201018203144/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/pdf/2000-2099/2008AbstractBook.pdf |archive-date=October 18, 2020 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Laura Huerta in the 2010 election.<ref name="election 2010">{{Cite news |title=Official Publication of the Abstract of Votes Cast for the 2010 Primary and 2010 General |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/pdf/2000-2099/2010AbstractBook.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210408095248/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/pdf/2000-2099/2010AbstractBook.pdf |archive-date=April 8, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Rose and [[Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian]] nominee Will Hiltscher in the 2012 election.<ref name="primary 2012">{{Cite news |title=2012 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2012/primary/republican/stateReps.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210080445/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2012/primary/republican/stateReps.html |archive-date=February 10, 2022 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name="election 2012">{{Cite news |title=2012 General Election Results |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2012/general/representatives.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20211201074009/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2012/general/representatives.html |archive-date=December 1, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Vicki A. Snider and Libertarian nominee Chris Baerns in the 2014 election.<ref name="primary 2014">{{Cite news |title=2014 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/primary/republican/stateReps.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629071852/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/primary/republican/stateReps.html |archive-date=June 29, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name="election 2014">{{Cite news |title=2014 General Election Results |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/general/representatives.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205112516/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/general/representatives.html |archive-date=February 5, 2022 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref>
Priola ran for the Republican nomination for a seat in the [[Colorado House of Representatives]] in the 30th district in the 2008 election and won in the general election against [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee Dave Rose.<ref name="election 2008">{{Cite news |title=Official Publication of the Abstract of Votes Cast for the 2008 Primary and 2008 General |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/pdf/2000-2099/2008AbstractBook.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201018203144/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/pdf/2000-2099/2008AbstractBook.pdf |archive-date=October 18, 2020 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Laura Huerta in the 2010 election.<ref name="election 2010">{{Cite news |title=Official Publication of the Abstract of Votes Cast for the 2010 Primary and 2010 General |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/pdf/2000-2099/2010AbstractBook.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210408095248/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/pdf/2000-2099/2010AbstractBook.pdf |archive-date=April 8, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Rose and [[Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian]] nominee Will Hiltscher in the 2012 election.<ref name="primary 2012">{{Cite news |title=2012 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2012/primary/republican/stateReps.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210080445/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2012/primary/republican/stateReps.html |archive-date=February 10, 2022 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name="election 2012">{{Cite news |title=2012 General Election Results |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2012/general/representatives.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20211201074009/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2012/general/representatives.html |archive-date=December 1, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Vicki A. Snider and Libertarian nominee Chris Baerns in the 2014 election.<ref name="primary 2014">{{Cite news |title=2014 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/primary/republican/stateReps.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629071852/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/primary/republican/stateReps.html |archive-date=June 29, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name="election 2014">{{Cite news |title=2014 General Election Results |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/general/representatives.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205112516/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2014/general/representatives.html |archive-date=February 5, 2022 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref>


Priola ran for a seat in the [[Colorado Senate]] from the [[Colorado's 25th Senate district|25th district]] and defeated Democratic nominee Jenise May in the 2016 election.<ref name="primary 2016">{{Cite news |title=2016 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2016/primary/republican/stateSenate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210523233746/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2016/primary/republican/stateSenate.html |archive-date=May 23, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name="election 2016">{{Cite news |title=2016 General Election Results |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2016/general/stateSenate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171021111747/http://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2016/general/stateSenate.html |archive-date=October 21, 2017 |access-date=October 24, 2017}}</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Paula Dickerson in the [[2020 Colorado Senate election|2020 election]] by a small margin.<ref name="primary 2020">{{Cite news |title=2020 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2020/primary/republican/stateSenate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220112154021/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2020/primary/republican/stateSenate.html |archive-date=January 12, 2022 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name="election 2020">{{Cite news |title=2020 General Election Results |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2020/general/stateSenate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126223252/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2020/general/stateSenate.html |archive-date=November 26, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name=":02">{{Cite web |last=Birkeland |first=Bente |date=November 17, 2020 |title=In Adams County, Voters Went Big For Biden, But Also Hung On To Their Republican State Senator. Why? |url=https://www.cpr.org/2020/11/17/in-adams-county-voters-went-big-for-biden-but-also-hung-on-to-their-republican-state-senator-why/ |url-status=live |access-date=2022-04-08 |website=[[Colorado Public Radio]] |language=en}}</ref> He overperformed [[Donald Trump]] by over ten percent in the 2020 election.<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 20, 2020 |title=What happened to the Colorado Republican Party? |work=[[The Denver Post]] |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2020/12/20/colorado-republican-party-what-happened/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202235236/https://www.denverpost.com/2020/12/20/colorado-republican-party-what-happened/ |archive-date=February 2, 2022}}</ref>
Priola ran for a seat in the [[Colorado Senate]] from the [[Colorado's 25th Senate district|25th district]] and defeated Democratic nominee Jenise May in the 2016 election.<ref name="primary 2016">{{Cite news |title=2016 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2016/primary/republican/stateSenate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210523233746/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2016/primary/republican/stateSenate.html |archive-date=May 23, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name="election 2016">{{Cite news |title=2016 General Election Results |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2016/general/stateSenate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171021111747/http://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2016/general/stateSenate.html |archive-date=October 21, 2017 |access-date=October 24, 2017}}</ref> He defeated Democratic nominee Paula Dickerson in the [[2020 Colorado Senate election|2020 election]].<ref name="primary 2020">{{Cite news |title=2020 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2020/primary/republican/stateSenate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220112154021/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2020/primary/republican/stateSenate.html |archive-date=January 12, 2022 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref><ref name="election 2020">{{Cite news |title=2020 General Election Results |work=[[Secretary of State of Colorado]] |url=https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2020/general/stateSenate.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126223252/https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/Results/Abstract/2020/general/stateSenate.html |archive-date=November 26, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref> He over-performed [[Donald Trump]] by over 10% in the 2020 election in his district.<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 20, 2020 |title=What happened to the Colorado Republican Party? |work=[[The Denver Post]] |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2020/12/20/colorado-republican-party-what-happened/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202235236/https://www.denverpost.com/2020/12/20/colorado-republican-party-what-happened/ |archive-date=February 2, 2022}}</ref>


He served as a [[Whip (politics)|whip]] during his tenure in the state house, but resigned from his position in 2014, the day after Representative [[Chris Holbert]] unsuccessfully attempted to have him removed from the position due to Priola not supporting a Republican amendment to legislation.<ref>{{Cite news |date=November 15, 2012 |title=Changing of the guard House Republicans now the minority party at state legislature |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/changing-of-the-guard-house-republicans-now-the-minority-party-at-state-legislature/article_6fdcb1ea-56e4-5d63-b5c8-088665b924c1.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207082216/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/changing-of-the-guard-house-republicans-now-the-minority-party-at-state-legislature/article_6fdcb1ea-56e4-5d63-b5c8-088665b924c1.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022 |access-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=April 13, 2014 |title=House GOP coup against Rep. Priola fails |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/house-gop-coup-against-rep-priola-fails/article_2d84426c-66a8-5d04-b590-6859538bcf6f.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207081847/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/house-gop-coup-against-rep-priola-fails/article_2d84426c-66a8-5d04-b590-6859538bcf6f.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=April 14, 2014 |title=Priola bows to pressure, resigns House GOP leadership post |work=[[KDVR]] |url=https://kdvr.com/news/politics/priola-bows-to-pressure-resigns-house-gop-leadership-post/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207174949/https://kdvr.com/news/politics/priola-bows-to-pressure-resigns-house-gop-leadership-post/ |archive-date=February 7, 2022 |access-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> During his tenure in the state senate he served on the Business, Labor and Technology, and Education committees.<ref name="career" /> He was considered as a possible running mate for [[Walker Stapleton]] in the [[2018 Colorado gubernatorial election|2018 gubernatorial election]], but [[Lang Sias]] was selected instead.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 11, 2018 |title=Stapleton picks Rep. Lang Sias as GOP running mate |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/stapleton-picks-rep-lang-sias-as-gop-running-mate/article_6ba1068b-b659-5041-886c-1c8c7c56fe79.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207081330/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/stapleton-picks-rep-lang-sias-as-gop-running-mate/article_6ba1068b-b659-5041-886c-1c8c7c56fe79.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>
During his time in the Colorado Senate, he was assigned to the Business, Labor and Technology Committee, and the Transportation and Energy Committee from 2019-2020. From 2021-2022, he was assigned to the Technology Committee, the Treatment of Persons with Mental Health Disorders in the Criminal Justice System Committee, the Business, Labor and Technology Committee, and the Senate Education Committee.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kevin Priola |url=https://ballotpedia.org/Kevin_Priola |access-date=2022-04-14 |website=Ballotpedia |language=en}}</ref>


==Political positions==
==Political positions==


Priola is considered a [[Political moderate|moderate]] in his district, and has worked with Democrats in sponsoring or supporting bipartisan bills.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Birkeland |first=Bente |title=In Adams County, Voters Went Big For Biden, But Also Hung On To Their Republican State Senator. Why? |url=https://www.cpr.org/2020/11/17/in-adams-county-voters-went-big-for-biden-but-also-hung-on-to-their-republican-state-senator-why/ |access-date=2022-05-03 |website=Colorado Public Radio |language=en}}</ref> He voted in favor of legislation to allow municipalities to require affordable housing which had been prohibited since a ruling by the [[Colorado Supreme Court]] in 2000.<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 4, 2021 |title=Colorado Legislature Removes Ban on Affordable-Housing Requirements |work=[[Westword]] |url=https://www.westword.com/news/colorado-legislature-removes-inclusionary-zoning-prohibition-11959174 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220206233908/https://www.westword.com/news/colorado-legislature-removes-inclusionary-zoning-prohibition-11959174 |archive-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref> He was the only Republican in the state senate to vote in favor of legislation to prevent landlords from using or disclosing the citizenship or immigration status of their tenants.<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 11, 2020 |title=Bill moving fast to curb Colorado landlords' questions about immigration status |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/legislature/bill-moving-fast-to-curb-colorado-landlords-questions-about-immigration-status/article_ff7fbb3e-ac25-11ea-ad3a-df7c68f8bfaf.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207081053/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/legislature/bill-moving-fast-to-curb-colorado-landlords-questions-about-immigration-status/article_ff7fbb3e-ac25-11ea-ad3a-df7c68f8bfaf.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>
Priola is considered a political moderate that has often worked with Democrats in sponsoring or supporting bipartisan bills.<ref name=":02" /> He chooses to specify his particular interest in the areas of transportation, energy, economy, education, health care, and family structure.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=kevin priola - Home |url=https://www.kevinpriola.com/ |access-date=2022-04-14 |website=www.kevinpriola.com |language=en}}</ref>


He sponsored legislation to exempt teachers from the Colorado Open Records Act in order to prevent [[doxing]] being conducted against teachers.<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 15, 2022 |title=Colorado’s growing anti-doxxing law could soon include teachers |work=[[The Denver Post]] |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2022/04/15/colorado-anti-doxxing-law-teachers/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505210012/https://www.denverpost.com/2022/04/15/colorado-anti-doxxing-law-teachers/ |archive-date=May 5, 2022}}</ref> Priola was the only Republican to vote in favor of legislation to prohibit employers from retaliating against their workers for reporting health and safety concerns or violations.<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 3, 2022 |title=Colorado legislature approves extending public health whistleblower protections after pandemic |work=[[The Gazette (Colorado Springs)|The Gazette]] |url=https://gazette.com/premium/colorado-legislature-approves-extending-public-health-whistleblower-protections-after-pandemic/article_73a76ad4-e007-5f3b-a7e6-fc480146eca7.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505211554/https://gazette.com/premium/colorado-legislature-approves-extending-public-health-whistleblower-protections-after-pandemic/article_73a76ad4-e007-5f3b-a7e6-fc480146eca7.html |archive-date=May 5, 2022}}</ref>
Priola served as a member of the Transportation and Energy Committee of Reference during the 2019-2020 legislative session.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kevin Priola |url=https://ballotpedia.org/Kevin_Priola |access-date=2022-04-14 |website=Ballotpedia |language=en}}</ref>


He co-sponsored legislation to repeal the [[Capital punishment in the United States|death penalty]], and at one point was the only Republican supporter of the bill, stating that he opposes capital punishment due to his [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] beliefs and how it disproportionately targets black people.<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 28, 2020 |title=Death Penalty Repeal Bill Passes First Legislative Step |work=[[Westword]] |url=https://www.westword.com/news/colorado-lawmakers-consider-death-penalty-repeal-11621943 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220206234250/https://www.westword.com/news/colorado-lawmakers-consider-death-penalty-repeal-11621943 |archive-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref><ref name="death" /> He voted in favor of reducing the sentence of felony murder from life in prison without parole to a maximum of forty-eight years.<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 31, 2021 |title=Lee's felony murder bill wins state Senate approval |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/legislature/lees-felony-murder-bill-wins-state-senate-approval/article_4590552c-9238-11eb-bb05-374afe59b341.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207080351/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/legislature/lees-felony-murder-bill-wins-state-senate-approval/article_4590552c-9238-11eb-bb05-374afe59b341.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>
As it relates to energy, the Senator is a proponent of domestic oil and natural gas exploration in addition to the development of the gas and solar industries.<ref name=":0" /> In 2021, he sponsored HB21-1052, which increased the deployment of renewable energy generation facilities to meet Colorado's energy needs and raised the allowable capacity of customer-sited renewable energy generation facilities.<ref>{{Citation |last=Amabile |first=Judy |title=Public Utilities Commission Encourage Renewable Energy Generation |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-261 |issue=SB21-261 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Valdez |first2=Alex |last3=Priola |first3=Kevin |last4=Fenberg |first4=Stephen}}</ref>


He and Senator [[Brittany Pettersen]] created legislation to allow for [[supervised injection site]]s to combat the [[opioid epidemic]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 4, 2019 |title=Statewide Supervised Use Site Bill Might Not Happen This Session |work=[[Westword]] |url=https://www.westword.com/news/brittany-pettersen-may-delay-introduction-of-safe-injection-site-bill-to-counter-opposition-at-statehouse-11215004 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210130151321/https://www.westword.com/news/brittany-pettersen-may-delay-introduction-of-safe-injection-site-bill-to-counter-opposition-at-statehouse-11215004 |archive-date=January 30, 2021}}</ref> [[Patrick Neville]], the Republican Minority Leader in the state house, threatened to have recall attempts made against Democratic members of the [[Colorado General Assembly]] who supported the legislation, but not against Priola.<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 19, 2019 |title=WATCH: GOP House leader Neville calls drug injection sites 'a horrendous idea,' threatens recalls |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/hot-sheet/watch-gop-house-leader-neville-calls-drug-injection-sites-a-horrendous-idea-threatens-recalls/article_861ed838-1c0c-11e9-b2b6-e77109353326.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207051033/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/hot-sheet/watch-gop-house-leader-neville-calls-drug-injection-sites-a-horrendous-idea-threatens-recalls/article_861ed838-1c0c-11e9-b2b6-e77109353326.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> Priola sponsored legislation to prohibit the selling or marketing of flavored products by cigarette, tobacco, or nicotine retailers.<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 23, 2022 |title=How Colorado’s flavored nicotine ban debate raises questions about racial justice and where the state gets money |work=[[Colorado Public Radio]] |url=https://www.cpr.org/2022/04/23/colorado-flavored-nicotine-ban/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505210815/https://www.cpr.org/2022/04/23/colorado-flavored-nicotine-ban/ |archive-date=May 5, 2022}}</ref>
Amidst the COVID-19-induced economic challenges, the Senator sponsored HB19-1107, which focused upon the creation of employment support and job retention services within the division of employment and training in the department of labor and employment.<ref>{{Citation |last=Priola |first=Kevin |title=Employment Support Job Retention Services Program |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb19-1107 |issue=HB19-1107 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Fields |first2=Rhonda |last3=Coleman |first3=James}}</ref>


Priola sponsored legislation in 2014 that would prohibit abortions, except to prevent the death of the mother, and make it a class three felony.<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 17, 2014 |title=Personhood bill has chilling effect even with no chance of passing, advocate says |work=[[Westword]] |url=https://www.westword.com/news/personhood-bill-has-chilling-effect-even-with-no-chance-of-passing-advocate-says-5870762 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207001218/https://www.westword.com/news/personhood-bill-has-chilling-effect-even-with-no-chance-of-passing-advocate-says-5870762 |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> He received an F rating from [[NARAL Pro-Choice America]].<ref>{{Cite news |title=Kevin Priola |work=[[NARAL Pro-Choice America]] |url=https://naralcolorado.org/legislator/kevin-priola/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117151752/https://naralcolorado.org/legislator/kevin-priola/ |archive-date=January 17, 2021}}</ref>
Kevin Priola's wife, Michelle Priola has worked in Colorado public schools for 24 years, inspiring a family-based passion for educational support that is reflected in the Senator's legislation.<ref name=":0" /> A prime sponsor of this year's SB22-008, 'Higher Education Support for Foster Children', Senator Priola is currently working towards ensuring financial and administrative support for Colorado foster children seeking higher education.<ref>{{Citation |last=McKean |first=Hugh |title=Higher Education Support For Foster Youth |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb22-008 |issue=SB22-008 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=McLachlan |first2=Barbara |last3=Priola |first3=Kevin |last4=Zenzinger |first4=Rachel}}</ref> This bill remains under consideration by the legislature.


He voted in favor of legislation to allow transgender and nonbinary people to change their names and gender on identifications without surgery or judicial requirements,<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 1, 2020 |title=Jude's Law takes effect, helping transgender, non-binary Coloradans amend birth certificates |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/quick-hits/judes-law-takes-effect-helping-transgender-non-binary-coloradans-amend-birth-certificates/article_6f6067a2-2c1d-11ea-821d-d704a688c15e.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207080551/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/quick-hits/judes-law-takes-effect-helping-transgender-non-binary-coloradans-amend-birth-certificates/article_6f6067a2-2c1d-11ea-821d-d704a688c15e.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> and voted in favor of legislation to [[List of U.S. jurisdictions banning conversion therapy|prohibit]] gay [[conversion therapy]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=November 27, 2019 |title=Conservative Utah looks to ban conversion therapy, following Colorado |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/conservative-utah-looks-to-ban-conversion-therapy-following-colorado/article_7d9dcbc6-1132-11ea-a818-9bc9e6247d51.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207080714/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/conservative-utah-looks-to-ban-conversion-therapy-following-colorado/article_7d9dcbc6-1132-11ea-a818-9bc9e6247d51.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> He cosponsored legislation to make [[HIV]] prevention drugs available without the need of a prescription.<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 7, 2020 |title=Senate approves bills making HIV prevention prescription-free |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/legislature/senate-approves-bills-making-hiv-prevention-prescription-free/article_783a55c8-a921-11ea-874d-afa07f20e6d5.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207051347/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/legislature/senate-approves-bills-making-hiv-prevention-prescription-free/article_783a55c8-a921-11ea-874d-afa07f20e6d5.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> He has also supported anti-[[LGBT]] [[Religious freedom bill|religious-exemption]] legislation.<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 25, 2018 |title=Republicans Are Still at It With Anti-LGBTQ Bills That Have No Chance of Passing |work=[[Westword]] |url=https://www.westword.com/news/colorado-republicans-continue-to-push-anti-lgbtq-bills-10241128 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225001121/https://www.westword.com/news/colorado-republicans-continue-to-push-anti-lgbtq-bills-10241128 |archive-date=February 25, 2021}}</ref>
Priola enacted legislation that placed a cap on insulin prices and combatted the opioid crisis that plagues Americans across the nation.<ref name=":0" /> A prime sponsor on this year's HB22-1032, 'Health-care Practice Transformation', which creates the primary care and behavioral health statewide integration grant program in the department of health care policy and financing,<ref>{{Citation |last=Priola |first=Kevin |title=Health-care Practice Transformation |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb22-1302 |issue=HB22-1302 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Lewis |first2=Sonya Jaquez |last3=Will |first3=Perry |last4=Kennedy |first4=Chris}}</ref> the Senator continues to demonstrate support for the physical and mental health of Coloradans state-wide.


After the [[January 6 United States Capitol attack]], he called for President Trump to be removed from office through either the [[Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Twenty-fifth Amendment]] or [[List of efforts to impeach presidents of the United States|impeachment]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 8, 2021 |title=Republican state Sen. Kevin Priola calls for Trump's removal from office |work=Colorado Politics |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/2020-election/republican-state-sen-kevin-priola-calls-for-trumps-removal-from-office/article_e793e9d0-51db-11eb-8916-3780ccb8027b.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207002155/https://www.coloradopolitics.com/2020-election/republican-state-sen-kevin-priola-calls-for-trumps-removal-from-office/article_e793e9d0-51db-11eb-8916-3780ccb8027b.html |archive-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> Priola was the only Republican to vote in favor of a resolution calling for the passage of voting rights legislation at the federal level while fifteen Republican members of the state senate voted in favor of unsuccessful amendments to the resolution thanking the Capitol attackers and [[Post-election lawsuits related to the 2020 U.S. presidential election|decertifying]] the [[2020 United States presidential election|2020 presidential election]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 19, 2022 |title=Why Democrats think the 2020 election debate is a political win |work=[[Axios (website)|Axios]] |url=https://www.axios.com/local/denver/2022/01/19/colorado-democrats-2020-election-debate |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220127132135/https://www.axios.com/local/denver/2022/01/19/colorado-democrats-2020-election-debate |archive-date=January 27, 2022 |access-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=January 18, 2022 |title=Majority of Colorado House Republicans vote for supporting Jan. 6 crowd, election conspiracy theories |work=[[KMGH-TV]] |url=https://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/politics/majority-of-colorado-house-republicans-vote-for-supporting-jan-6-crowd-election-conspiracy-theories |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220131125425/https://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/politics/majority-of-colorado-house-republicans-vote-for-supporting-jan-6-crowd-election-conspiracy-theories |archive-date=January 31, 2022 |access-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>
SB19-182, which would have repealed the death penalty in Colorado, gained support from the Senator who states in his opposition that, "pro-life is important in all you do, and [repealing the death penalty] is part of being pro-life."<ref>{{Cite web |last=McCormick-Cavanagh |first=Conor |title=Lone Republican Supporter of Death Penalty Repeal on Faith, Colleagues |url=https://www.westword.com/news/lone-republican-supporter-of-colorado-death-penalty-repeal-kevin-priola-on-faith-colleagues-11260861 |access-date=2022-04-14 |website=Westword |language=en}}</ref> In relation to his beliefs concerning climate change, he states that, "it’s more pro-life ensuring that our great-grandkids grow up with the same quality of life on the planet that we have.”<ref name=":1" />


On August 22, 2022, Priola announced he was leaving the Republican Party and joining the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]], citing Republicans' attempts to overturn the 2020 election and [[climate change denial|denial of climate change]].<ref name=":0">{{cite tweet|number=1561728147376295939|user=KevinPriola|date=August 22, 2022|title=#coleg #copolitics #Elections2022 #democracy #Republican #DemocratsDeliver #colorado}}</ref><ref name="Post-Dem">{{cite news |first=Saja |last=Hindi |title=Colorado GOP Sen. Kevin Priola switches party affiliation to Democrat, citing election conspiracies and climate denialism |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2022/08/22/colorado-kevin-priola-state-senate-republican-democrat/ |work=[[The Denver Post]] |date=August 22, 2022 |access-date=August 22, 2022}}</ref> Priola's wife, Michelle, is a plaintiff on [[Anderson v. Griswold]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Paul |first1=Jesse |last2=Fish |first2=Sandra |title=Lawsuit seeks to block Trump from appearing on Colorado’s 2024 ballot |url=https://coloradosun.com/2023/09/06/donald-trump-2024-ballot-lawsuit-colorado/ |access-date=21 December 2023 |work=Colorado Sun |date=6 September 2023}}</ref>
== Awards and Recognitions ==
2008 Buff Club, Most Valuable Buff


==Electoral history==
2009-2022 Colorado Civil Justice League, Common Sense in the Courtroom Award


{{Election box begin|title = 2008 Colorado House of Representatives 30th district Republican primary<ref name="election 2008" />}}
2009 Sportsman Capitol Shoot-out Challenge, Champion
{{Election box winning candidate with party link

|party = Republican Party (United States)
2010 GreenCO, Legislator of the Year
|candidate = Kevin Priola
|votes = 1,579
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box total|
|votes = 1,579
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}


2010 Independent Bankers of Colorado, Spirit of Independence Award

2012 Independent Bankers of Colorado, Champion of Main Street Colorado

2013 University of Colorado Boulder, CU Legislative Champion

2013 Colorado Knights of Columbus, Family of the Month

2014 Colorado Coalition of Independent Riders, Honorary Member Award

2015 Colorado Coalition of Cyberschool Families, The Golden Apple of School Choice Award

2016 Colorado Association of Conservation Districts, CACD Legislator of the Year Award

2017 Colorado Medical Society, Honor of Grateful Recognition

2018 Fraternal Order of Police, FOP Legislator of the Year

2018 Healthier Colorado, Healthy Communities Award

2019 Junior League of Denver, Legislator of the Year

2019 Recycle Colorado, Outstanding Elected Official

2019 Sierra Club, Clean Vehicle Transition Award

2019 SHAPE Colorado, Champion Award

2019 Healthier Colorado, Healthy Communities Award

2019 Colorado Restaurant Association, Iron Skillet Award

== Notable Legislation ==
SB21-001 'Modify COVID-19 Relief Programs for Small Business': proposed legislation that concerns modifications to programs enacted to provide relief to certain businesses impacted by severe capacity restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This bill became law on January 21, 2021<ref>{{Citation |last=Sandridge |first=Shane |title=Modify COVID-19 Relief Programs For Small Business |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-001 |issue=SB21-001 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Herod |first2=Leslie |last3=Priola |first3=Kevin |last4=Winter |first4=Faith}}</ref>

SB21-069 'License Plate Expiration on Change of Ownership': proposed legislation that concerns license plates and specifies that the license plates of a motor vehicle that is classified as Class C personal property expire upon the sale or transfer of the motor vehicle. This bill became law on August 2, 2021<ref>{{Citation |last=Ortiz |first=David |title=License Plate Expiration On Change Of Ownership |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-069 |issue=SB21-069 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Valdez |first2=Alex |last3=Priola |first3=Kevin}}</ref>

SB21-082 'Alcohol Beverage Festival for Tasting and Sales': proposed legislation that would offer authorization for certain alcohol beverage license holders to hold festivals for alcohol beverage retail activity. This bill became law on May 28, 2021<ref>{{Citation |last=Williams |first=Dave |title=Alcohol Beverage Festival For Tastings And Sales |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-082 |issue=SB21-082 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Mullica |first2=Kyle |last3=Pettersen |first3=Brittany |last4=Priola |first4=Kevin}}</ref>

SB21-261 'Public Utilities Commission Encourage Renewable Energy Generation': legislation that would raise the allowable capacity of customer-sited renewable energy generation facilities, give customers additional options for increasing the scale and flexibility of new installations, and make an appropriation. This bill became law on June 21, 2021<ref>{{Citation |last=Amabile |first=Judy |title=Public Utilities Commission Encourage Renewable Energy Generation |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb21-261 |issue=SB21-261 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Valdez |first2=Alex |last3=Priola |first3=Kevin |last4=Fenberg |first4=Stephen}}</ref>

SB20-066 'Highly Effective Teachers in Low-Performing Areas' is proposed legislation that will provide incentives for high performing teachers to move to low performing school districts. It would greatly benefit education throughout the state<ref>{{Citation |last=Saine |first=Lori |title=Highly Effective Teachers And Low-performing Schools |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb20-066 |issue=SB20-066 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Buentello |first2=Bri |last3=Priola |first3=Kevin}}</ref>

SB20-167 'Electric Motor Vehicle Manufacturer and Dealer' is legislation that will increase consumer access to electric motor vehicles by allowing manufacturers to sell their own products directly to consumers. This bill became a law on March 23, 2020. This will grow the clean energy market in Colorado<ref>{{Citation |last=Becker |first=K. C. |title=Electric Motor Vehicle Manufacturer And Dealer |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb20-167 |issue=SB20-167 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Priola |first2=Kevin |last3=Hansen |first3=Chris}}</ref>

SB20-055 'Incentivize Development Recycling End Markets' is proposed legislation that would expand market mechanisms and incentivize recycling, helping reduce trash quantity and will increase manufacturing jobs in Adams County. This bill became a law on July 13, 2020<ref>{{Citation |last=Arndt |first=Jeni James |title=Incentivize Development Recycling End Markets |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb20-055 |issue=SB20-055 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Cutter |first2=Lisa |last3=Story |first3=Tammy |last4=Priola |first4=Kevin}}</ref>

SB20-112 'College Trust Scholarship for Early Graduation' is proposed legislation that would create a college trust scholarship for students who graduate early from Colorado public high schools, increasing resources for K-12 education while also helping Colorado students pay for college<ref>{{Citation |last=Buentello |first=Bri |title=College Trust Scholarship For Early Graduation |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb20-112 |issue=SB20-112 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Priola |first2=Kevin}}</ref>

SB20-028 'Substance Use Disorder Recovery' is proposed legislation that creates measures to assist an individual's recovery from a substance use disorder and will help Coloradans battle its' substance use issue. With some amendments, this bill was signed on June 30, 2020<ref>{{Citation |last=Herod |first=Leslie |title=Substance Use Disorder Recovery |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb20-028 |issue=SB20-028 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Buentello |first2=Bri |last3=Priola |first3=Kevin |last4=Pettersen |first4=Brittany}}</ref>

HB20-1189 'Tax Credit Donation Human Trafficking Victims' is proposed legislation that creates an income tax credit to a nonprofit organization that assists victims of human trafficking<ref>{{Citation |last=Priola |first=Kevin |title=Tax Credit Donation Human Trafficking Victims |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb20-1189 |issue=HB20-1189 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Bockenfeld |first2=Rod}}</ref>

HB20-1103 'Colorectal Cancer Screening Coverage' is proposed legislation that requires health insurance carriers to provide preventive health insurance coverage for colorectal screenings<ref>{{Citation |last=Priola |first=Kevin |title=Colorectal Cancer Screening Coverage |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb20-1103 |issue=HB20-1103 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Fields |first2=Rhonda |last3=Will |first3=Perry |last4=Buckner |first4=Janet}}</ref>

HB19-1076 'Clean Indoor Air Act' is legislation Kevin passed in 2019 that modernized the Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act by adding provisions regarding the use of electronic smoking devices<ref>{{Citation |last=Donovan |first=Kerry |title=Clean Indoor Air Act Add E-cigarettes Remove Exceptions |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb19-1076 |issue=HB19-1076 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Priola |first2=Kevin |last3=Larson |first3=Colin |last4=Jenet |first4=Dafna Michaelson}}</ref>

SRC19-003 'Replace Motor Fuel Taxes with Additional Sales Tax' is legislation Kevin worked on in 2019 that would replace state taxes on gasoline, effectively lowering gas prices<ref>{{Citation |last=Gray |first=Matt |title=Replace Motor Fuel Taxes With Additional Sales Tax |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/scr19-003 |issue=SCR19-003 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Priola |first2=Kevin}}</ref>

SB18-200 'Modifications to PERA to Eliminate Unfunded Liability' is legislation Kevin passed in 2018 that eliminated unfunded liability within the public employees' retirement association<ref>{{Citation |last=Pabon |first=Dan |title=Modifications To PERA Public Employees' Retirement Association To Eliminate Unfunded Liability |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb18-200 |issue=SB18-200 |access-date=2022-04-14 |last2=Becker |first2=K. C. |last3=Priola |first3=Kevin |last4=Tate |first4=Jack}}</ref>

HB15-1215 'In State Tuition for Dependents of Military Members' is legislation Kevin passed in 2015 that provided in state tuition fees for higher education to men or women who were dependent on their parent or guardian that has served or is serving in the military<ref>{{Cite web |title=HB 15-1215 - Colorado 2015 Regular Session |url=https://openstates.org/co/bills/2015A/HB15-1215/ |access-date=2022-04-14 |website=Open States |language=en}}</ref>

== Electoral history ==
{{Election box begin|title = 2008 Colorado House of Representatives 30th district election<ref name="election 2008" />}}
{{Election box begin|title = 2008 Colorado House of Representatives 30th district election<ref name="election 2008" />}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link
{{Election box winning candidate with party link
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{{Election box total|
{{Election box total|
|votes = 23,441
|votes = 23,441
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}

{{Election box begin|title = 2010 Colorado House of Representatives 30th district Republican primary<ref name="election 2010" />}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link
|party = Republican Party (United States)
|candidate = Kevin Priola (incumbent)
|votes = 2,912
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box total|
|votes = 2,912
|percentage = 100.00%
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
|change =
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{{Election box total|
{{Election box total|
|votes = 17,543
|votes = 17,543
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}

{{Election box begin|title = 2012 Colorado House of Representatives 56th district Republican primary<ref name="primary 2012" />}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link
|party = Republican Party (United States)
|candidate = Kevin Priola (incumbent)
|votes = 4,064
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box total|
|votes = 4,064
|percentage = 100.00%
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
|change =
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{{Election box total|
{{Election box total|
|votes = 37,884
|votes = 37,884
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}

{{Election box begin|title = 2014 Colorado House of Representatives 56th district Republican primary<ref name="primary 2014" />}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link
|party = Republican Party (United States)
|candidate = Kevin Priola (incumbent)
|votes = 5,894
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box total|
|votes = 5,894
|percentage = 100.00%
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
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{{Election box total|
|votes = 32,695
|votes = 32,695
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}

{{Election box begin|title = 2016 Colorado Senate 25th district Republican primary<ref name="primary 2016" />}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link
|party = Republican Party (United States)
|candidate = Kevin Priola
|votes = 4,743
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box total|
|votes = 4,743
|percentage = 100.00%
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
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{{Election box total|
|votes = 57,752
|votes = 57,752
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}

{{Election box begin|title = 2020 Colorado Senate 25th district Republican primary<ref name="primary 2020" />}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link
|party = Republican Party (United States)
|candidate = Kevin Priola (incumbent)
|votes = 11,135
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
}}
{{Election box total|
|votes = 11,135
|percentage = 100.00%
|percentage = 100.00%
|change =
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[[Category:University of Colorado Boulder alumni]]
[[Category:University of Colorado Boulder alumni]]
[[Category:Members of the Colorado House of Representatives]]
[[Category:Members of the Colorado House of Representatives]]
[[Category:Colorado Democrats]]
[[Category:Colorado Republicans]]
[[Category:Colorado Republicans]]
[[Category:College Republicans]]
[[Category:College Republicans]]
[[Category:21st-century American politicians]]
[[Category:Colorado state senators]]
[[Category:Colorado state senators]]
[[Category:1973 births]]
[[Category:1973 births]]
[[Category:Democratic Party Colorado state senators]]
[[Category:21st-century members of the Colorado General Assembly]]

Latest revision as of 20:35, 1 December 2024

Kevin Priola
Member of the Colorado Senate
from the 13th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 9, 2023
Preceded byRedistricted
Member of the Colorado Senate
from the 25th district
In office
January 11, 2017 – January 9, 2023
Preceded byMary Hodge
Succeeded byRedistricted
Member of the Colorado House of Representatives
In office
January 9, 2013 – January 11, 2017
Preceded byChristine Scanlan
Succeeded byPhilip Covarrubias
Constituency56th district
In office
January 14, 2009 – January 9, 2013
Preceded byMary Hodge
Succeeded byJenise May
Constituency30th District
Personal details
BornBrighton, Colorado, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic (2022–present)
Republican (1990–2022)
SpouseMichelle
Children4

Kevin Priola is an American politician who serves in the Colorado Senate from the 13th district as a member of the Democratic Party. Prior to decennial redistricting he also represented the 25th district. Prior to his tenure in the state senate he served in the Colorado House of Representatives from the 30th and 56th districts from 2009 to 2017. Until 2022, he served as a member of the Republican Party.

Priola was born in Brighton, Colorado, and educated at the University of Colorado Boulder where he joined the College Republicans. He joined the Republican Party at age seventeen and was elected to the state house from the 30th district in the 2008 election. During his tenure in the state house he served as a whip, but resigned in 2014 following an unsuccessful attempt to remove him. He was elected to the state senate in the 2016 election. He switched parties to the Democratic Party on August 22, 2022, citing Republican attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election.[1]

Priola was redistricted into the 13th district.[2]

Early life

[edit]

Kevin Priola was born in Brighton, Colorado. He attended the University of Colorado Boulder from 1992 to 1996, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in finance and accounting and a minor in economics. He became a Republican at age seventeen and was a member of the College Republicans. He married Michelle, with whom he had four children.[3][4][5]

Career

[edit]

Priola ran for the Republican nomination for a seat in the Colorado House of Representatives in the 30th district in the 2008 election and won in the general election against Democratic nominee Dave Rose.[6] He defeated Democratic nominee Laura Huerta in the 2010 election.[7] He defeated Democratic nominee Rose and Libertarian nominee Will Hiltscher in the 2012 election.[8][9] He defeated Democratic nominee Vicki A. Snider and Libertarian nominee Chris Baerns in the 2014 election.[10][11]

Priola ran for a seat in the Colorado Senate from the 25th district and defeated Democratic nominee Jenise May in the 2016 election.[12][13] He defeated Democratic nominee Paula Dickerson in the 2020 election.[14][15] He over-performed Donald Trump by over 10% in the 2020 election in his district.[16]

He served as a whip during his tenure in the state house, but resigned from his position in 2014, the day after Representative Chris Holbert unsuccessfully attempted to have him removed from the position due to Priola not supporting a Republican amendment to legislation.[17][18][19] During his tenure in the state senate he served on the Business, Labor and Technology, and Education committees.[4] He was considered as a possible running mate for Walker Stapleton in the 2018 gubernatorial election, but Lang Sias was selected instead.[20]

Political positions

[edit]

Priola is considered a moderate in his district, and has worked with Democrats in sponsoring or supporting bipartisan bills.[21] He voted in favor of legislation to allow municipalities to require affordable housing which had been prohibited since a ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court in 2000.[22] He was the only Republican in the state senate to vote in favor of legislation to prevent landlords from using or disclosing the citizenship or immigration status of their tenants.[23]

He sponsored legislation to exempt teachers from the Colorado Open Records Act in order to prevent doxing being conducted against teachers.[24] Priola was the only Republican to vote in favor of legislation to prohibit employers from retaliating against their workers for reporting health and safety concerns or violations.[25]

He co-sponsored legislation to repeal the death penalty, and at one point was the only Republican supporter of the bill, stating that he opposes capital punishment due to his Catholic beliefs and how it disproportionately targets black people.[26][3] He voted in favor of reducing the sentence of felony murder from life in prison without parole to a maximum of forty-eight years.[27]

He and Senator Brittany Pettersen created legislation to allow for supervised injection sites to combat the opioid epidemic.[28] Patrick Neville, the Republican Minority Leader in the state house, threatened to have recall attempts made against Democratic members of the Colorado General Assembly who supported the legislation, but not against Priola.[29] Priola sponsored legislation to prohibit the selling or marketing of flavored products by cigarette, tobacco, or nicotine retailers.[30]

Priola sponsored legislation in 2014 that would prohibit abortions, except to prevent the death of the mother, and make it a class three felony.[31] He received an F rating from NARAL Pro-Choice America.[32]

He voted in favor of legislation to allow transgender and nonbinary people to change their names and gender on identifications without surgery or judicial requirements,[33] and voted in favor of legislation to prohibit gay conversion therapy.[34] He cosponsored legislation to make HIV prevention drugs available without the need of a prescription.[35] He has also supported anti-LGBT religious-exemption legislation.[36]

After the January 6 United States Capitol attack, he called for President Trump to be removed from office through either the Twenty-fifth Amendment or impeachment.[37] Priola was the only Republican to vote in favor of a resolution calling for the passage of voting rights legislation at the federal level while fifteen Republican members of the state senate voted in favor of unsuccessful amendments to the resolution thanking the Capitol attackers and decertifying the 2020 presidential election.[38][39]

On August 22, 2022, Priola announced he was leaving the Republican Party and joining the Democratic Party, citing Republicans' attempts to overturn the 2020 election and denial of climate change.[40][41] Priola's wife, Michelle, is a plaintiff on Anderson v. Griswold.[42]

Electoral history

[edit]
2008 Colorado House of Representatives 30th district Republican primary[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola 1,579 100.00%
Total votes 1,579 100.00%
2008 Colorado House of Representatives 30th district election[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola 11,936 50.92%
Democratic Dave Rose 11,505 49.08%
Total votes 23,441 100.00%
2010 Colorado House of Representatives 30th district Republican primary[7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola (incumbent) 2,912 100.00%
Total votes 2,912 100.00%
2010 Colorado House of Representatives 30th district election[7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola (incumbent) 10,612 60.49%
Democratic Laura Huerta 6,931 39.51%
Total votes 17,543 100.00%
2012 Colorado House of Representatives 56th district Republican primary[8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola (incumbent) 4,064 100.00%
Total votes 4,064 100.00%
2012 Colorado House of Representatives 56th district election[9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola (incumbent) 22,270 58.78%
Democratic Dave Rose 14,070 37.14%
Libertarian Will Hiltscher 1,544 4.08%
Total votes 37,884 100.00%
2014 Colorado House of Representatives 56th district Republican primary[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola (incumbent) 5,894 100.00%
Total votes 5,894 100.00%
2014 Colorado House of Representatives 56th district election[11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola (incumbent) 20,627 63.09%
Democratic Vicki A. Snider 10,629 32.51%
Libertarian Chris Baerns 1,439 4.40%
Total votes 32,695 100.00%
2016 Colorado Senate 25th district Republican primary[12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola 4,743 100.00%
Total votes 4,743 100.00%
2016 Colorado Senate 25th district election[13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola 30,074 52.07%
Democratic Jenise May 27,678 47.93%
Total votes 57,752 100.00%
2020 Colorado Senate 25th district Republican primary[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola (incumbent) 11,135 100.00%
Total votes 11,135 100.00%
2020 Colorado Senate 25th district election[15]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Kevin Priola (incumbent) 37,195 50.84%
Democratic Paula Dickerson 35,968 49.16%
Total votes 73,163 100.00%

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Associated Press (September 11, 2022). "GOP-led recall effort approved for state senator who joined Democrats last month". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
  2. ^ Evan Wyloge and Marianne Goodland (November 24, 2021). "With new state House and Senate maps, let the games begin". Colorado Politics. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Lone Republican Supporter of Death Penalty Repeal on Faith, Colleagues". Westword. March 11, 2019. Archived from the original on February 6, 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Kevin Priola". Colorado Republican Party. Archived from the original on January 23, 2022.
  5. ^ "Kevin Priola biography". Vote Smart. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  6. ^ a b c "Official Publication of the Abstract of Votes Cast for the 2008 Primary and 2008 General" (PDF). Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 18, 2020. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  7. ^ a b c "Official Publication of the Abstract of Votes Cast for the 2010 Primary and 2010 General" (PDF). Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 8, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  8. ^ a b "2012 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot". Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived from the original on February 10, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  9. ^ a b "2012 General Election Results". Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived from the original on December 1, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  10. ^ a b "2014 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot". Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived from the original on June 29, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  11. ^ a b "2014 General Election Results". Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived from the original on February 5, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  12. ^ a b "2016 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot". Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived from the original on May 23, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  13. ^ a b "2016 General Election Results". Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived from the original on October 21, 2017. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
  14. ^ a b "2020 Primary Election Results - Republican Party Ballot". Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  15. ^ a b "2020 General Election Results". Secretary of State of Colorado. Archived from the original on November 26, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  16. ^ "What happened to the Colorado Republican Party?". The Denver Post. December 20, 2020. Archived from the original on February 2, 2022.
  17. ^ "Changing of the guard House Republicans now the minority party at state legislature". Colorado Politics. November 15, 2012. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  18. ^ "House GOP coup against Rep. Priola fails". Colorado Politics. April 13, 2014. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  19. ^ "Priola bows to pressure, resigns House GOP leadership post". KDVR. April 14, 2014. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  20. ^ "Stapleton picks Rep. Lang Sias as GOP running mate". Colorado Politics. July 11, 2018. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  21. ^ Birkeland, Bente. "In Adams County, Voters Went Big For Biden, But Also Hung On To Their Republican State Senator. Why?". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
  22. ^ "Colorado Legislature Removes Ban on Affordable-Housing Requirements". Westword. May 4, 2021. Archived from the original on February 6, 2022.
  23. ^ "Bill moving fast to curb Colorado landlords' questions about immigration status". Colorado Politics. June 11, 2020. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  24. ^ "Colorado's growing anti-doxxing law could soon include teachers". The Denver Post. April 15, 2022. Archived from the original on May 5, 2022.
  25. ^ "Colorado legislature approves extending public health whistleblower protections after pandemic". The Gazette. May 3, 2022. Archived from the original on May 5, 2022.
  26. ^ "Death Penalty Repeal Bill Passes First Legislative Step". Westword. January 28, 2020. Archived from the original on February 6, 2022.
  27. ^ "Lee's felony murder bill wins state Senate approval". Colorado Politics. March 31, 2021. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  28. ^ "Statewide Supervised Use Site Bill Might Not Happen This Session". Westword. February 4, 2019. Archived from the original on January 30, 2021.
  29. ^ "WATCH: GOP House leader Neville calls drug injection sites 'a horrendous idea,' threatens recalls". Colorado Politics. January 19, 2019. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  30. ^ "How Colorado's flavored nicotine ban debate raises questions about racial justice and where the state gets money". Colorado Public Radio. April 23, 2022. Archived from the original on May 5, 2022.
  31. ^ "Personhood bill has chilling effect even with no chance of passing, advocate says". Westword. January 17, 2014. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  32. ^ "Kevin Priola". NARAL Pro-Choice America. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021.
  33. ^ "Jude's Law takes effect, helping transgender, non-binary Coloradans amend birth certificates". Colorado Politics. January 1, 2020. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  34. ^ "Conservative Utah looks to ban conversion therapy, following Colorado". Colorado Politics. November 27, 2019. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  35. ^ "Senate approves bills making HIV prevention prescription-free". Colorado Politics. June 7, 2020. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  36. ^ "Republicans Are Still at It With Anti-LGBTQ Bills That Have No Chance of Passing". Westword. April 25, 2018. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021.
  37. ^ "Republican state Sen. Kevin Priola calls for Trump's removal from office". Colorado Politics. January 8, 2021. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022.
  38. ^ "Why Democrats think the 2020 election debate is a political win". Axios. January 19, 2022. Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  39. ^ "Majority of Colorado House Republicans vote for supporting Jan. 6 crowd, election conspiracy theories". KMGH-TV. January 18, 2022. Archived from the original on January 31, 2022. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  40. ^ @KevinPriola (August 22, 2022). "#coleg #copolitics #Elections2022 #democracy #Republican #DemocratsDeliver #colorado" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  41. ^ Hindi, Saja (August 22, 2022). "Colorado GOP Sen. Kevin Priola switches party affiliation to Democrat, citing election conspiracies and climate denialism". The Denver Post. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  42. ^ Paul, Jesse; Fish, Sandra (September 6, 2023). "Lawsuit seeks to block Trump from appearing on Colorado's 2024 ballot". Colorado Sun. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
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