Aaron Gutierrez

District 3 - Democratic Party

How does your experience make you qualified to represent the people?

I am a fourth-generation Puebloan, and my entire career has been dedicated to serving this community and defending the law. I know our criminal justice system inside and out, having worked as a Colorado State Public Defender right here in Pueblo, serving client who can't afford an attorney, I was a Judicial Law Clerk in the Water Law Division, and worked in the Pueblo Veteran’s Treatment Court. Today, I continue that fight as a local attorney and co-owner of the Gutierrez Law Group.

But my experience spans from local neighborhoods all the way to the highest levels of national policy. I served as a Public Policy Fellow at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute in Washington, D.C., working in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs during the Obama Administration and for Congressman John Salazar. But I've come home to do the work serving on the Rosemount Museum Board, Central High School Foundation, PAACO, Human Relations Comimssion, Sister Cities Commission, and I'm the vice president of Homes for Senior Citizens Inc. I know how to navigate the halls of power to cut through bureaucracy and deliver tangible results for working families back home. 

What are your top policy priorities?

• Affordable Economic Stability & Growth: Pueblo’s economy is the backbone of Southern Colorado. I am committed to cutting red tape for our small businesses, securing sustainable investments, and ensuring District 3 becomes a premier hub for high-paying jobs.
• Public Safety & Judicial Reform: No one in this race understands the mechanics of our justice system better than I do. My priority is to build a system that fiercely protects victims, provides unwavering support to our law enforcement, and implements proven, data-driven methods to reduce recidivism.
• Public Health & Equity: As a young adult, I was diagnosed with brain cancer. Fighting that battle turned me into a warrior of resilience and gave me firsthand experience with the deep complexities of our healthcare system. I will advocate for expanding Medicaid access, establishing a robust state public option, and ensuring health equity for every family.

What is one issue you think is being overlooked in this race, and how would you address it?

The critical shortage of localized mental health and substance use treatment resources is deeply overlooked, and it has reached a state of emergency right here in Pueblo. For too long, Southern Colorado has taken a backseat to the Front Range for healthcare funding. Now, we are feeling the devastating impact of that neglect firsthand with the recent closures of vital local facilities, including the shutdown of Parkview’s inpatient psychiatric unit and severe service reductions and closures within Health Solutions' local network.

My perspective on this isn't theoretical; it's shaped by years of practice in our courts. Through my work in the Pueblo Veteran’s Treatment Court and as a former public defender, I see every day what happens when our healthcare infrastructure collapses. We cannot arrest our way out of mental health crises or addiction. When our local clinics and inpatient units close their doors, our local jails and emergency rooms unfairly become the default safety net. Our law enforcement officers are forced to act as social workers, and individuals in crisis are left with nowhere to go.

In Denver, I will aggressively fight to bring our fair share of state behavioral health dollars back to Southern Colorado. We must reverse this trend by creating state-backed incentives to recruit and retain mental health professionals in Pueblo, and funding the reopening of robust, community-based inpatient and outpatient facilities. Treating mental health as the public health priority it is will keep our community safer, relieve the immense pressure on our local first responders, and actually fix the root causes of recidivism.

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