Colorado Senate Republicans unanimously chose Sen. Cleave Simpson as their new minority leader last week.

Simpson, an Alamosa Republican who was first elected in 2020, will replace former Sen. Paul Lundeen, who resigned on Monday to lead the American Excellence Foundation. He will lead the 12-member Republican caucus in the chamber. Simpson serves Colorado Senate District 6, which includes Ouray County.

“I look forward to continue what we’ve been working on. The challenges are pretty immense and steep, and Colorado deserves a strong voice from our perspective,” he said. “I think we are poised as a group to make a significant going forward.”

Democrats, with 23 members, hold a majority in the Senate.

Simpson was the assistant minority leader. The caucus unanimously chose Sen. Lisa Frizell, a Castle Rock Republican, to replace him in that position. A vacancy committee meeting has not yet been scheduled to fill Lundeen’s Senate seat. The Legislature is not in session and will reconvene in January, unless there is a special session called before then.

This story was republished with permission from Colorado Newsline. For more articles, visit coloradonewsline.com.