This post has been updated.
Colorado state Sen. Evie Hudak (D), who was facing a potential recall election over her vote in favor of stricter gun control laws, will resign Wednesday, Denver television station KDVR reported.
Hudak’s decision assured that Democrats would hold onto their one-vote majority in the state Senate, according to the TV station, with a Democratic committee being allowed to pick her replacement.
“In the interest of preserving the progress made over the last year, I am resigning as State Senator for District 19, effective immediately,” Hudak wrote in a resignation letter.
Hudak reiterated her support for strengthened gun control laws.
“Most Coloradans believe that the convenience of high-capacity ammunition magazines is less important than saving lives in tragedies like Sandy Hook, Aurora and Columbine,” she wrote. “That’s why I sponsored SB 13-197, a bill that takes guns out of the hands of domestic abusers. … By resigning, I am protecting these important new laws.”
Hudak may have become the third state senator to face a recall over their gun control votes. Colorado Senate President John Morse (D) and state Sen. Angela Giron (D) were both voted out of office in September.
In an interview with TPM last month, Hudak said she suspected that the recall elections were not just about gun laws, but about the Republican party regaining a majority in the state senate.
“I just really think its purpose is to grab the power by the Republicans,” she told TPM. “They didn’t win enough elections to be the majority and so I guess they feel the need to waste our taxpayer dollars on these recalls but I don’t think this is the way our government should function and it’s not how we’ve done business in Colorado.”
Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee Executive Director Michael Sargeant thanked Hudak for her service in a Wednesday statement.
“Today’s decision cannot have been easy, but her constituents elected Evie to follow her conscience and do what’s right, no matter how tough the choice. In return, Evie provided a model for what leadership and public service should be,” he said. “I am confident the Jefferson County Democrats will appoint a new senator every bit as dedicated as Evie to carry on her legacy in the Senate majority caucus, and the DLCC will work closely with Colorado Democrats to defend their majorities next fall.”
