PUBLISHER NOTE: This week, we decided to republish our endorsements for Denver candidates — Lisa Calderón for Denver Mayor, Candi CdeBaca for Denver City Council District 9, Debbie Ortega for Denver City Council at Large, and Amanda Sandoval for City Council District 1 – to remind voters that these valued candidates stand for integrity and will work for all of Denver’s residents.
Remember to vote by May 7th!
on:
Chris M. Frésquez
The political momentum in Denver’s municipal elections has attracted some very noted candidates hoping to renew the city’s political course in creating a venue of open and equal opportunities for all of Denver’s residents.
A native daughter of northeast Denver, Candi CdeBaca has taken the spotlight as a viable candidate in Denver’s District 9 City Council race.
“I’ve been fighting for the people of District 9 my whole life,” states Candi.
Candi’s notable presence in our community runs deep. She has first-hand knowledge and experience in the area she looks to serve; growing up in a household raised by her great-grandmother, grandparents and her mother in the Swansea neighborhood. Along with her own self determination and incredible drive, her generational family are shining examples of humility.
She also set the course for her future as the first in her family to graduate from high school as Manual High School’s Valedictorian and student body president. She was awarded a Daniels Fund Scholarship and became the first and youngest dual-degree graduate from the University of Denver; while working multiple jobs at the Women’s College, the Center for Multicultural Excellence, the Denver Center for Trauma and Resilience, and the National Conference of State Legislatures.
In 2006, she co-founded a nonprofit called Project VOYCE in her community, which was created due to the temporary closure of Manual High School. The auspice of the Project was to create inclusiveness among students and become advocates for their community.
Realizing her potential to gain experience outside of Colorado, Candi relocated to Washington, DC in 2009 and began her position as a New Leaders Intern and New Leaders Fellow with the Center for Progressive Leadership. A four-month fellowship led to a six-year opportunity to be a part of history under President Barack Obama’s leadership. She also worked at Excelencia in Education, a national education policy organization, the District of Columbia Public Schools and the César Chávez Foundation.
Through her vast experience, Candi has honed her skills as a leader of eloquence and diplomacy. “These roles afforded me the opportunity to deepen my policy skills and balance it with action. I became an expert in policy development, policy analysis, investigation, federal policy compliance, and community organizing. In DC, I learned how to use policy to protect the most vulnerable while still encouraging innovation and growth,” she explains.
Responsibility led her back home in 2014, to care for her grandmother in hospice. Candi began organizing efforts in Swansea, and notably speaking out and defending those who have been displaced and have had their lives forever disrupted by the I-70 project.
“I realized Denver was in great need of leaders with deep policy knowledge and experience combined with a love of community,” she states. “I began collaborating with our current representatives on the issues that affect all of us including housing, environment, and transportation.”
I am also a Denver native growing up in Swansea, Globeville and Five Points neighborhoods. To me, this area will always be my foundation.
It’s time for a powerful movement to make sweeping changes in one of Denver’s most neglected District’s.
Denver residents deserve a well-run and responsibly managed city, and we feel that Candi CdeBaca will be a valuable asset to Denver as a City Council representative in District 9, who will be that voice for her community that has been ignored for decades.
The Weekly Issue/El Semanario announces our political endorsement for Candi CdeBaca for Denver City Council in District 9.
In this week’s edition, we continue our “Ask the Candidate” project, offering candidates an opportunity to answer questions on current issues. Candi CdeBaca’s responses shares her extensive efforts and her vision for District 9.
This is our second installment of endorsements for Denver’s 2019 Municipal General Election. The Denver Municipal Election is May 7.
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