Ezeadi announces campaign for state Senate

BY LUKE ZARZECKI LZARZECKI@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Westminster City Councilor Obi Ezeadi announced his campaign to be the state senator for District 19 on June 13.

“I’m running because right now, there’s a sense of urgency from families that I speak to. ere are huge crises across housing, across healthcare, childcare, energy bills, and I think the pocketbook issue is the one unifying thing that everyone can agree is a problem,” Ezeadi said in an interview.

As to why he’s running now when he was elected to his city seat two years ago, he said he needs to represent his community at the state level now.

“Service is not bound by a timeline,” he said.

Ezeadi, who was elected to the city council in 2021, hopes to win the seat in the 2024 election. e district covers parts of Westminster and Arvada and is currently represented by Rachel Zenzinger.

As the Joint Budget Committee Chair, Zenzinger showed Ezeadi the ropes at the capital. He worked in her o ce during the 2023 legislative session.

“I feel like I’m going to be ready on day one, having the municipal experi- ence combined with that preview of the State experience,” Ezeadi said.

He said that local government is the best experience to have prior to running for election for the state because it’s where “the rubber meets the road.” He said policy coming from the federal and state level has to be implemented, and that’s where local governments come in.

It also prepared him to reach across the aisle, working with Westminster councilors who viewed things di erently than him. He said working with a diverse array of ideas leads to better bills.

“True leadership is when you’re able to bring people along with you, educate as much as you can and tell your side of the story, listen to their side of the story, and then you can actually create better bills because of that diversity,” he said.

His top two priorities are pocketbook issues and education. By pocketbook, he means a ordability across childcare, housing, energy bills and healthcare. He sees this as the biggest issue facing residents.

“With stagnant wages and jobs that are disappearing and we have families working multiple jobs, I think that there’s an opportunity to actually focus on and gure out how to help them because that’s what we’re supposed to be doing, we work for the people,” he said.

He said with the lived experiences he has with a ordability issues, he understands that many families are on their last “hope.” To address those concerns, he points to jobs and reimagining education.

“Not just fully funding our public schools, which is a critical element, but also adult education,” he said. “Making sure that we look at workforce education programs, we look at introducing and expanding access to alternative education, trade schools.” the most marketable candidate, to get a job in the restaurant industry with sustainable employment and long-term employment, or own a restaurant.

It can also address climate change by emphasizing the Just Transition. He wants to transition those workers in the fossil fuel industry into clean energy jobs.

Another of his priorities is to engage the public and lift up the curtain on how things work, such as policymaking and approving a bill. Hopefully, that will build trust and inspire others to run for government, he said.

As to any bills he’d like to introduce, he’s collecting priorities and ideas from the people to give them a voice.

“I don’t want to have my own platform and say, ‘here’s what I’m going to do.’ I think the community needs to have more of a voice in what they want to see,” he said.

“ e food service industry is a viable career path,” she said. “You get into management positions without a college degree. If you show up, work hard, have a good attitude and you do everything you’re supposed to do at work, you can get promoted fairly easily within the food service industry”, Houston said. “Unlike a lot of other industries, there isn’t that barrier so you can continue to grow your career in the industry.”

Houston said the food service industry has more women and people of color in management and ownership positions than any other industry.

“ ey can see examples of folks who look like them and have shared experiences with them in those management positions, and they can see themselves moving into those roles, Houston said. For more information about the “Work Options,” call 720-944-3393 or visit: https://workoptions.org