10/09/2026
Awesome editorial in Sentinel today recommends Mallory Martin for HD54! Go Mallory!
Martin for HD 54
EDITORIAL
Having extolled the virtues of Republican Rick Taggart’s role in the Legislature, we now ask voters to considerthe benefits of having a Democrat in the statehouse representing this region.
A Democrat pushing rural interests inside the framework of a Democratic supermajority in the Legislature would be a nice complement to Taggart’s budget-shaping duties — a formidable 1-2 punch.
For years, state leaders considered having divided representation in the U.S. Senate a political bonus for the state. It meant the state’s interests always had a connection to the party in power. If we’re strategic, we can apply the same principle here.
The candidates to succeed Republican Rep. Matt Soper in House District 54 are both political newcomers. The Republican candidate, Jason Bias, has the kind of agenda we’ve come to expect in our conservative corner of the state: limited government, individual liberty, protecting rural healthcare, investing in roads, restoring energy dominance, restoring parental rights and supporting agricultural producers.
Nothing wrong with that. But he’s 27 and his opponent, Democrat Mallory Martin, brings more life experience to the table and a better opportunity, we feel, to make the Front Range-centric Legislature understand rural challenges.
Martin grew up a 4-H kid on a Palisade peach orchard. Early in her adult life, she was a psychiatric technician for the state of Colorado living on the Front Range. Since 2018, she has operated PursueJoy, a small local business providing residential services for adults with developmental disabilities in small group settings. Her experience navigating federal and state regulations, specifically regarding Medicaid reimbursement rates, serves as the foundation for her interest in politics.
She understands the impact state-mandated programs can have on small businesses — what it’s like navigating rules often shaped by lobbyists and corporate interests.
She chose to run as a Democrat rather than an independent to maintain political authenticity. Having been a Democrat her entire life, she felt it would be disingenuous to run as an independent to improve her chances: “I want people to know who I am and feel confident that if they give me their vote, I’m going to be who they think I am.”
Still, she has to overcome some preconceived notions. “The issues that Democrats are concerned about here in 54 in Delta and Mesa counties are the same as what Republicans are concerned about. I mean, we’re talking water, right? We’re talking healthcare. We’re talking that people can’t afford to live here in Colorado,” she said.
Bias identified many of the same challenges. But he framed some ideas in staunchly conservative terms that might make it challenging for him to find common ground with Democrats — which he’ll need to do to be an effective legislator in the minority party. For example, he said, “I plan to streamline permitting and allow us to drill, baby, drill, right here in House District 54” at the Club 20 debates. He also suggested that creating more jobs in the energy sector was part of the solution for making healthcare coverage more affordable. Bias supports school choice and advocates for removing DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) and certain social topics from classrooms, citing personal experiences with his children in public schools.
Martin, meanwhile, said “protecting democratic freedoms” is one of the Democratic Party’s principles she values most. Each candidate carries the party’s torch, but Martin comes across as less partisan.
Her experiences in community organizing and advocacy have forced her to spend time researching water policy, utility regulation and rural economic development. That’s a plus. And having lived both here and on the Front Range gives her an opportunity to translate rural concerns into language that progressive legislators understand.
She intends to leverage the Democratic supermajority in Denver to secure resources for rural areas, noting that being “at the table” is essential for representation.
Both candidates would be good advocates for the Western Slope. But we like Martin’s chances of getting things done better.
