When he ran for Congress, Republican Rep. Greg Lopez knew he’d only be there for a short time — about six months and no more.
His Capitol Hill office is symbolic of his temporary service – not much time to make it his own. He’s brought in a few personal items — a Bible, the gavel from when he was Parker mayor in the 1990s — but the place still feels very transitory.
Sworn in on July 8, Lopez will wrap up his time representing Colorado’s 4th District in early January, when the new Congress begins. And so far, he’s spent more time on recess than in session. He was only in DC for two weeks in July before Republican leaders dismissed the chamber a week early. Last month, the House also left early, this time for an even longer break.
Lopez said that’s been disappointing. “I came to work. So, when they say, ‘Hey, go home.’ It's like, wait a minute, we were scheduled to be here.”
Many of his colleagues need the time to hit the campaign trail. Not Lopez. When he ran to fill the rest of former Congressman Ken Buck’s term, he assured voters he would not seek the seat in November.
It means Lopez came into Congress as a short-term, lame duck, but he doesn’t see it that way.
“A lot of people did expect me to kind of show up and just kind of fill a seat, not do much,” he explained. “The fact that I'm introducing bills, people are saying, ‘well, do you think you're going to pass it?’ It doesn't matter. It's making sure that people know that I'm trying to push the agenda, I'm trying to move the needle.”
So far, he's introduced three bills. One increases a tax deduction for farm equipment, another requires the national debt be printed on ballots and the third would deport and detain immigrants with gang affiliations. He also introduced a non-binding resolution warning states to think twice before adopting ranked choice voting, something Colorado voters could do this fall.
Taken all together, Lopez said it shows his political priorities. And he hopes the ideas will outlive his own tenure.
“If I'm not able to see 'em all the way to the finish line, I would hope that someone would say, ‘you know what? We really believe these are good bills. Why don't we pick 'em up and see if we can't pass 'em?’” he said.
It is unlikely that any of his bills will advance in committee in this Congress, let alone pass the chamber, given the limited legislative calendar after the election and the growing list of must-pass bills, such as disaster aid, government funding, the Farm Bill, the National Defense Authorization Act and more.
As he navigates his brief term, Lopez is getting a lot of advice from his staffers, many of whom also worked for Buck and know both D.C. and the district.
“They knew that, hey, I'm only here for six months. And they've been very good at saying, ‘Hey, here's what we can do. Here's what you think you should be able to accomplish.’ So I’m going to focus on what we’ve already started,” Lopez said.
Despite having 19 House session days at the Capitol, Lopez has managed to enjoy some perks of the job. “Every member says, ‘Greg, you're here for a short period. Enjoy it. Do everything you can because once a congressman, always a congressman.’”
Lopez has gotten to oversee the chamber, a different gavel in hand, a few times. He took part in the congressional charity football game and has made use of the opportunity to speak on the House floor.
Those brief speeches have ranged from honoring local papers and first responders to attacking the Biden-Harris administration over the Afghanistan withdrawal and talking about gang takeovers of apartments in Aurora – a concern that leaders on the ground say has been overblown.
Some of his House colleagues have urged him to come back, Lopez said.
“I'm not running for office. And they're like, ‘I know, but you know what? There could be an opportunity in the future. We need you to come back.’ And I said, ‘well, we'll see what happens in the future, but for now, I'm not coming back,’” he said with a laugh.
In the next Congress, the district is likely to be represented by Republican Lauren Boebert, who is trying to move over from her current district, the third, or Democrat Trisha Calvarese.
Lopez, who has twice run unsuccessfully for governor, added that despite his limited time in D.C., he does see this job as a possible stepping stone for some other office.
“I think any elected position that you get elected to from the people is a good launching position for anything,” he explained, “because what it does, it shows that you've been able to connect. You've been able to convince, whether it's a hundred people (or) 10,000 people to say, ‘you know what? I like what you stand for. I like how you present yourself. I like how you look at things.’”
The things he gets to look at will literally change when Congress returns in November. He’ll have to vacate his office a couple of days later and move into a temporary space as the House gets the space ready for a member of the next Congress.
