Rep. Bob Beauprez (R) Elected 2002, 1st term
Born:	Sept. 22, 1948, Lafayette
Home:	Arvada
Education:	U. of CO, B.S. 1970
Religion:	Catholic
Marital Status:	married (Claudia)
Professional Career:	Dairy farmer, 1970-90; Banker, 1990-02; Chair, CO Rep. Party, 1999-02.
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The inner circle of suburbs around Denver were developed in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s--a bright new time then, but now a good long time ago. West of Denver, on broad avenues running toward the mountains, is Lakewood, where growth was sparked by the Denver Federal Center; affluent in the south, more marginal near the Denver city limits, a place not of uniformity but of suburban diversity. Out to the west is the town of Golden, with the old Colorado School of Mines and the newer Coors brewery. To the north are Arvada (which is shared with the 2d District) and Wheat Ridge, middle-income suburbs with an increasing number of Latinos. On the other side of Denver, to the east of the now-closed Stapleton Airport, is Aurora, as vast as Lakewood, and somewhat newer, with its huge regional mall and an increasing number of middle class blacks. North of Aurora is the sparkling new Denver International Airport, on rolling, empty plains that stretch east to the Kansas line. While the new airport is carefully excluded from the 7th, adjoining Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is encompassed within its borders.

The 7th Congressional District, newly created for the 2002 elections, covers parts of three counties and most of the inner Denver suburbs. The bulk of its land area, but only 15% of its voters, are in Adams County, which includes the industrial zone along the South Platte River. Adams County has long been the most Democratic of the suburban Denver counties, but its political future cannot be predicted safely: This empty area is likely to fill up with new subdivisions some time in the next decade. Aurora, partly in Adams County with a larger part in Arapahoe County, has long been Republican; it is the home base of former Senator Bill Armstrong (1979-91), a Christian conservative who remains an important force in Colorado Republican politics. But with more black and Latino residents, Aurora is becoming more Democratic. Lakewood and the other towns in Jefferson County (or Jeffco, as people call it) is perhaps Colorado's premier political battleground. Long solidly Republican, it is now more marginal; it was the target of 2002 Democratic Senate candidate Tom Strickland, though he failed to carry it. And it is crucial here: Jeffco has 65% of the 7th District's voters.

How did this inner suburb district come to be assembled? The judge who handed down the redistricting decision in January 2002 weighed competing plans and picked the Democratic one, which divided the new 7th between the parties, in terms of voter registration: It is one-third Democratic, one-third Republican and one-third unaffiliated. The vote in the 2000 presidential election was roughly even. And the vote in the 2002 House race was even closer--the closest in the nation.

The congressman from the 7th District is Bob Beauprez, who won the last congressional election in 2002 to be officially decided by exactly 121 votes out of 173,000 cast. Beauprez is a third-generation Coloradoan, whose Belgian-born grandfather immigrated and earned the money to bring the rest of his family to America by shoveling coal into the giant furnaces at a local power plant. When that work destroyed his eyesight, he bought 80 acres of land and became a Colorado farmer. Beauprez's father became a nationally recognized breeder of registered Hereford beef cattle, and later diversified into dairy cattle. Beauprez graduated from the University of Colorado and, after the family sold the dairy farm, Beauprez in 1990 purchased a small community bank wavering on the verge of collapse. By 2001, he was chairman and CEO of Heritage Bank, with a dozen locations in Denver's northern suburbs and more than $300 million in assets. Beauprez also turned the state Republican Party around. When he became state chairman in 1999, the party had a $130,000 debt; when he resigned to run for the House in 2002, it was $700,000 in the black.

Despite his record for the party and his close ties to Governor Bill Owens, Beauprez faced a crowded Republican primary. He had not run for office before and began with low name recognition. One opponent was Lieutenant Governor Joe Rogers, who had publicly feuded with Owens. Another was Owens's former policy chief, Rick O'Donnell, who won the most straw polls. A fourth was former state senator and former ambassador to Bahrain, Sam Zakhem. Zakhem eventually faded and Rogers was hurt when state auditors probed his finances. O'Donnell accused Beauprez of "trying to buy" the contest with $350,000 of his own money; Beauprez claimed the most individual contributions and had the strongest support from state and national party leaders. In light voting, Beauprez defeated O'Donnell 38%-31%, with 18% for Zakhem and 13% for Rogers. In the less negative Democratic primary, former state senate Minority Leader Mike Feeley defeated Jeffco District Attorney Dave Thomas 56%-44%.

The fall campaign dialogue revolved around economic issues--Social Security reform, health care, corporate responsibility. On most issues, each candidate reflected the mainstream of his national party. Feeley argued that his background as a lawmaker would make him far more effective in Congress than Beauprez; Beauprez responded by touting his experience in the private sector. With both national parties actively engaged, the contest remained exceedingly close to the very end. A visit from George W. Bush in the final days surely helped Beauprez--and anything that helped him was enough to make the difference. Feeley won by narrow margins in Adams and Arapahoe Counties. But Jeffco cast 65% of the vote, and Beauprez won there 49%-46%. After Election Day, the official vote tally gave Beauprez a 386-vote lead, though 2,000 provisional ballots (those set aside because of some question about the eligibility of the voter) had not yet been counted. Feeley objected to the three counties' different standards for determining the validity of those ballots; he sued and a court agreed, ordering the counting of all disputed ballots. In the end, Beauprez won by 121 votes. In the meantime, both Beauprez and Feeley attended their party organizing conferences in November. (Feeley had some impact as a member of Congress, even though he turned out not to be one: His vote for Bob Menendez was crucial in Menendez's one-vote victory for Democratic Caucus chairman.) During orientation sessions, they sat on opposite sides of the room to learn about the job that only one of them could hold.

Arguably the most politically competitive district in the nation in 2002, this seat was altered significantly by the controversial May 2003 redistricting plan. The changes moved Lakewood and much of Jefferson County to the 6th District, and added heavily Republican areas of Arapahoe County to the 7th. That increased George W. Bush's vote here from 49.5% to 54.1%, removed Feeley's home, and reduced the Hispanic share of the district from 20% to 14%, to the consternation of national and local Latino advocates. Beauprez claimed unconvincingly that he knew nothing about the changes and would have gladly run in the existing lines. Although he cannot take reelection for granted, the changes should make his reelection bid far smoother.

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DC Office
511 CHOB 20515, ; Fax: 202-225-5278; Web site: www.house.gov/beauprez

State Offices
Wheat Ridge, 303-940-5821.

Committees

• Small Business (16th of 18 R): Tax, Finance & Exports.
• Transportation & Infrastructure (35th of 41 R): Aviation; Highways, Transit & Pipelines (Vice Chmn.).
• Veterans' Affairs (14th of 17 R): Health.

Election Results (More Info)
	Candidate	Total Votes	Percent	Expenditures
2002 general	Bob Beauprez (R)	81,789	47%	$1,827,119
	Mike Feeley (D)	81,668	47%	$1,147,759
	Other	9,422	3%
2002 primary	Bob Beauprez (R)	10,172	38%
	Rick O'Donnell (R)	8,213	31%
	Sam Zakhem (R)	4,848	18%
	Joe Rogers (R)	3,430	13%

2000 presidential
	Gore (D)	103,592	50%
	Bush (R)	101,632	49%
	Other	2,783	1%
For 1992 and 1996 presidential results in the Seventh District, please see the Almanac 2000 online. Please note that these older returns reflect district lines as they existed prior to 2002 redistricting.

• Cook Partisan Voting Index: D + 0
• District Size: 1,265 square miles
• Population in 2000: 614,465; 97.7% urban; 2.3% rural
• Median Household Income: $46,149; 8.9% are below the poverty line
• Occupation: 23.8% blue collar; 62.6% white collar; 13.6% gray collar; 14.1% military veterans
• Race/Ethnic Origin: 68.9% White, 5.8% Black, 2.9% Asian, 0.6% Amer. Indian, 0.1% Hawaiian, 1.9% Two+ races, 0.1% Other, 19.6% Hispanic origin
• Ancestry: 16.0% German, 8.9% Irish, 8.4% English
• Click here for statewide demographic data.