| Sal Pace | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Colorado House of Representatives from the 46th district |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 7, 2009[1] |
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| Preceded by | Dorothy Butcher |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12/14/1975 New London, CT |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Marlene Valdez Pace |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Sal Pace is a legislator in the U.S. state of Colorado. Elected to the Colorado House of Representatives as a Democrat in 2008, Pace represents House District 46, which encompasses western Pueblo, Colorado.[2] Pace is also the Colorado House Minority Leader.
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Pace, the youngest of nine children, moved to Colorado as a teenager. He attended Fort Lewis College, majoring in political science and later appointed by the State Board of Agriculture to serve on a search committee for a Fort Lewis College president. He then attended Louisiana State University, earning a master's degree in American Political Theory.[3]
Pace has taught American government at Pueblo Community College and CSU-Pueblo and served as a legislative aide to Rep. John Salazar in the Colorado House of Representatives, where he worked on water and health care legislation. When Salazar was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, Pace continued to work for him, as a District Director, a Congressional staffer, and as the manager of Salazar's 2006 re-election campaign.[3][4]
Pace has also served on the Pueblo City Schools (D60) Strategic Plan Core Team, as an organizer for Enable America, as a Colorado Democratic Party Regional Director in 2002, and is a member of Sons of Italy of Southern Colorado.
Pace won the nomination at the Pueblo County Assembly, keeping his lone opponent off the ballot, while receitving greater than 70% of the delegate vote. Pace faced no opposition in the August Democratic primary,[5] or the November 2008 general election.[6] After winning a term in the legislature in November 2008, Pace was elected Assistant Majority Caucus Chair by state house Democrats.[7]
Following his election, Pace requested that the state auditor investigate the bidding process for a new Colorado Department of Corrections headquarters, in which Pueblo's bid was rated last of five bids, despite being the least expensive.[8]
Pace encountered no competition in the Primary election. His opponent, failed City Council Candidate, Steven Rodriguez, failed to mount any type of campaign. Representative Pace outraised his opponent nearly 4-to-1. With 100% of precincts reporting, Pace easily won re-election 69 to 31 percent. Pace was elected by his peers as House Minority Leader for the next general assembly beginning in January 2011.
For the 2009 legislative session, Pace served on the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, the House Appropriations Committee, and the House Judiciary Committee.[9] Pace sponsored legislation to remove Social Security benefits and severance pay as reasons for lowering state unemployment benefits.[10] Just prior to the start of the 2010 legislative session, Pace was named vice-chair of the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.[11]
Pace is married; he and his wife, Marlene Valdez Pace, live in Pueblo, Colorado with their sons Wyatt and Carlo.[3][12]
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