Meet the minor party and write-in candidates running for Colorado's Second Congressional District, which covers Boulder and Fort Collins, as well as a number of mountain counties, including Summit, Eagle and Routt.
Cynthia Munhos de Aquino Sirianni — Unity Party
Cynthia Munhos de Aquino Sirianni is the first woman nominated by the Unity Party for a statewide office. In 2022, she was the running mate of the party’s gubernatorial candidate, Noel Fiorino. According to her website, she supports a healthy society, the arts and the climate. The Unity Party’s main principles are, “people before party, freedom for the individual, everyone's voice matters and security for the society” and its main goal is to take the focus off party differences and instead “to move the state and country forward,” according to the party’s website.
Jan Kok — Approval Voting Party
This is Kok’s third run for office; he appeared on the ballot for House District 1 in 2020 and Secretary of State in 2022. In that race he received 4,591 votes. On his website, Kok explains that his goal for running is “To raise awareness of Approval Voting and the benefits it can bring to elections.” Approval voting is an electoral approach in which voters signal their approval for as many candidates as they wish in a race, without ranking them, and the candidate with the most overall approval wins. Kok is a graduate of CSU and works in software and electrical engineering.
Gaylon Kent — Libertarian Party
Gaylon Kent switched the second district for this election, after running as a Libertarian in the third district in 2012, 2016 and 2018. Kent has also run for state senate twice. On his website, Kent’s campaign slogan is, “The Peace Candidate, Common Sense in Uncommon Times.” The Libertarian Party is against government interference in people’s “personal, family and business decisions,” according to their website.
Mike Watson — Unaffiliated, write-in
On his campaign website, Watson states, “Between a staggering level of chronic illnesses and an economy that never seems to leave enough for everyone, it’s no surprise that so many of us don’t feel represented or even heard. I think we’re tired of simply rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic when we know that the ship is sinking beneath our feet.” He does not list any policy positions but promises to listen and work together to find meaningful compromises on the issues holding the U.S. back.
