(Colorado Newsline) Republican state Rep. Gabe Evans is running for Congress in Colorado’s 8th Congressional District, he announced Wednesday.

Evans is running to unseat Democratic Rep. Yadira Caraveo, who won the election in 2022 by under 2,000 votes.

“Joe Biden and congressional Democrats have chosen a path of decline for America, and Yadira Caraveo has spent her first year in office enabling their failed policies,” Evans said in a statement announcing his candidacy. “Just as bad decision-making created many of America’s current challenges, good decision-making can create a new era of hope, renewal and prosperity in our country.”

In a campaign video, Evans referenced media reports of swelling car thefts, increased fentanyl usage and rising violent crime in Colorado, and he accused Democrats like Caraveo of being “soft on crime” and responsible for the statistics.

The Army veteran and former Arvada police officer finished his first lawmaking term in the Colorado House of Representatives this year.

He had a handful of successful bills, including one that ensures leave for public employees who are in the National Guard and one that created a task force to study current training provided to judicial personnel around domestic violence and sexual assault. Both of those bills were bipartisan.

The Fort Lupton resident sits on the Energy and Environment, Judiciary and Legislative Audit Committees.

Evans joins Weld County commissioner and radio host Scott James in the bid for the Republican nomination.

The district is Colorado’s newest, created during the redistricting process after the most recent census determined that the state’s population increased enough to merit another congressional district. It is north of Denver and covers parts of Weld, Larimer and Adams counties.

At the end of June, Caraveo reported having about $625,000 in her campaign bank account. The Cook Political Report rates the district as a toss-up in 2024, signaling that it is likely to be a competitive and expensive race.

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