Staff report
Republican political newcomer Kathleen Conti has defeated
Democratic veteran state Rep. Joe Rice in House District 38.
“I think people started to recognize that Mr. Rice was not the
conservative he claimed to be,” Conti said from the Republican
election night headquarters at the Double Tree Hotel in Greenwood
Village. “I think (voters) were looking for something
different.”
With most ballots counted, figures released the morning of Nov.
3 showed Conti unofficially had won 52 percent of the 25,283 votes
in the district.
Conti, who owns a small business, attributed her victory to hard
work, sacrifice and a dedicated team of volunteers. She said she
had no idea how close the race would be.
“I just knew that we had done everything we could do,” she said
Nov. 2. “I really wasn’t nervous.”
Rice attributed his loss to many factors, including the national
anti-Democrat, anti-incumbent sentiment and negative campaign
advertisements that inundated voters’ mailboxes, TVs and radios in
recent weeks.
“The fact that I didn’t get
completely blown out, the fact that I ever won, is more amazing,”
he said, referring to how he gained a seat four years ago in this
traditionally Republican district. “I would not blame losing on any
one thing, it’s always a combination of things.”
Although Rice was hesitant to say
he would attempt another run for public office again just one day
after his defeat, this is not the last citizens will hear from
him.
“There’s a couple things that
should be pretty clear from my personality,” he said. “I believe in
public service, whether that’s military service political service,
community service, so I am not going to just fade away. Is that a
run for office some day? It’s too early to tell.”
In 2008, Rice won by 3,071 votes and by 1,707 in 2006. He was
seeking his third term.
House District 38 encompasses most of Littleton and Greenwood
Village and portions of Englewood and Centennial.
