Colorado lawmaker abruptly announces her resignation, citing “sensationalistic and vitriolic” political environment

State Rep. Ruby Dickson abruptly announced on Friday that she will resign from the legislature Dec. 11, citing the “sensationalistic and vitriolic nature of the current political environment.”

The Centennial Democrat, who represents House District 37, wrote in a brief letter to legislative leadership that the environment “is not healthy for me or my family.” 

“I am stepping aside now to allow someone more suited for the rigors of the current moment to step in,” she said.

Dickson was elected in November 2022 and was sworn into office in early January 2023. She had served during just one regular legislative session and during the special lawmaking term on property tax and other financial relief that wrapped up just before Thanksgiving.

A state-level super PAC named Building a Better Colorado spent more than $24,000 to support her 2022 primary campaign. Dickson received 56% of the vote in her contest against Republican Paul Archer, who received 44% of the vote. 

State Rep. Ruby Dickson, D-Centennial. (Handout)

House District 37 had a 7-percentage-point Democratic lean in 2022 according to analysis by Colorado’s Independent Legislative Redistricting Commission. Dickson had filed in July to run for reelection in 2024.

Dickson is an economist by training. She received a graduate degree from the University of Oxford in England. She previously served as a policy research analyst for then-U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, who is now Colorado’s governor. 

Dickson’s resignation means at least 29 of the 100 lawmakers serving at the Colorado Capitol next year will have landed a seat in the legislature thanks to a vacancy committee. The committees are made up of a few dozen partisan activists. 

A Democratic vacancy committee in House District 37 will convene in the coming weeks to select Dickson’s replacement. 

A 2024 ballot measure being pursued by Kent Thiry, the wealthy former CEO of the Denver-based dialysis giant DaVita, would eliminate legislative vacancy committees starting in 2026 and require that special elections be called to replace state lawmakers who resign, are expelled or die in the middle of their terms.

In a written statement, House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, called Dickson “a brilliant champion for working families.”

“I know Rep. Dickson will continue to drive positive change in her community and throughout Colorado,” McCluskie added.

Colorado Politics first reported Dickson’s resignation.

Colorado Sun staff writer Sandra Fish contributed to this report.