Going into the primary season, Montrose-based Democratic organizer Kevin Kuns had an idea in his head of someone who could win Colorado House District 58. He was looking for the kind of person who grew up on a ranch in Wyoming and understood the needs of rural communities. Someone with experience and success in the private business sector, who had participated in political outreach on the Western Slope.

Maybe even someone whose family had spent years working in public education, an issue near the...