Cory Gardner | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2015 | |
| United States Senator fromColorado | |
| In office January 3, 2015 – January 3, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Mark Udall |
| Succeeded by | John Hickenlooper |
| Chair of theNational Republican Senatorial Committee | |
| In office January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2019 | |
| Leader | Mitch McConnell |
| Preceded by | Roger Wicker |
| Succeeded by | Todd Young |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromColorado's4th district | |
| In office January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Betsy Markey |
| Succeeded by | Ken Buck |
| Member of theColorado House of Representatives from the 63rd district | |
| In office June 23, 2005 – January 2, 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Greg Brophy |
| Succeeded by | Jon Becker |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Cory Scott Gardner (1974-08-22)August 22, 1974 (age 51) Yuma, Colorado, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Jaime Gardner |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | |
| Signature |  |
Cory Scott Gardner[1] (born August 22, 1974) is an American attorney and politician who served as aUnited States senator fromColorado from 2015 to 2021. ARepublican, he was theU.S. representative forColorado's 4th congressional district from 2011 to 2015 and a member of theColorado House of Representatives from 2005 to 2011. As of 2025, he is the last Republican to serve Colorado in the U.S. Senate.
Gardner narrowly defeated Democratic incumbentMark Udall in the2014 Senate race.[2] Gardner was chair of theNational Republican Senatorial Committee from 2017 to 2019. After the2018 midterm elections, he andUniversity of Colorado RegentHeidi Ganahl became the only Republicans to hold statewide elected office in Colorado. Gardner ran for re-election in2020, but lost to former GovernorJohn Hickenlooper.[3]
Since leaving the Senate, Gardner has remained active in politics and policy. He sits on the board of Michael Best Strategies, is the Chief Political Affairs Strategist for the Crypto Council for Innovation, and has remained active in fundraising for Republican candidates.[4][5]
Gardner was born on August 22, 1974, inYuma, Colorado,[6] the son of Cindy L. (née Pagel) and John W. Gardner. He is of Irish, German, Austrian, and English descent.[7] He graduatedsumma cum laude with aBachelor of Arts inpolitical science in 1997 fromColorado State University, where he was a member of theFarmHouse fraternity.[8]
In college, Gardner switched from theDemocratic Party to the Republican Party[9] and interned at theColorado State Capitol.[10] He went to law school at theUniversity of Colorado to earn hisJuris Doctor in 2001.[8]
Prior to public office, Gardner worked at his family's implement business and served as spokesman for theNational Corn Growers Association. Gardner later served asgeneral counsel and legislative director for former U.S. SenatorWayne Allard of Colorado from 2002 to 2005.[11]
Gardner was appointed to theColorado House of Representatives in 2005 and elected to a full term in 2006. He represented District 63 in the Colorado House of Representatives from 2005 through 2011.[12]
In 2006, Gardner proposed legislation to create a rainy-day fund to help protect the state from future economic downturns. His proposal relied on money made available by Referendum C—which allowed state revenue caps to be exceeded for five years[13]—for future budget emergencies.[14] He staunchly opposed any tax increases. He helped create the Colorado Clean Energy Development Authority which issued bonds to finance projects that involve the production, transportation and storage of clean energy until it was repealed in 2012.[15][16]
Committee assignments
Gardner won the Republican primary in the 4th Congressional District to challenge Democratic incumbentBetsy Markey. Also running were American Constitution Party nominee Doug Aden and Independent Ken "Wasko" Waszkiewicz. In an early September poll, Gardner was up 50% to 39% over Markey.[20] Gardner was endorsed by former U.S. CongressmanTom Tancredo.[21] On November 2, 2010, Gardner defeated Markey, 52%–41%.
Gardner ran unopposed in the Republican primary before defeating Democratic nomineeBrandon Shaffer 59%–37% in the general election.[22] He was helped by the 2010 redistricting, which cutFort Collins andLarimer County out of the district. Fort Collins had long been the 4th's largest city. For years, Larimer and the district's second-largest county,Weld County, home toGreeley, accounted for 85 percent of the district's population even though they only took up 15 percent of its land.
Gardner was the Republican nominee for Senate, and narrowly defeated incumbent SenatorMark Udall in the general election receiving 965,974 (48%) votes to Udall's 916,245 (46%),.[2][23]No Labels performed independent get-out-the-vote efforts on behalf of its Problem Solvers, including Gardner.[24]
Gardner ran for reelection in 2020. During his tenure as a Senator, he notably did not hold many public town halls.[25][26] At a February 2017 public town hall at Denver’s Byers Middle School, Gardner was represented instead by a cardboard cutout, dubbed "Cardboard Cory",[27] created by Katie Farnan and friends.[28] The concept developed staying power, and become an iconic four year protest campaign, showing up at protests and events around the state.[29] Liberal groups includingProgressNow andIndivisible Colorado launched a 14-stop, statewide bus tour featuring Cardboard Cory and Coloradan constituents includingLaura Packard during summer 2019.[30] A short documentary film byNick Rosen ofSender Films[31] about Cardboard Cory's journey sponsored by Indivisible was released July 28, 2020.[32] One of the Cardboard Cory cutouts was eventually given to SenatorJohn Hickenlooper after his defeat of Gardner.[33] According toThe Colorado Sun, Gardner "decisively tied his reelection bid to President Donald Trump." He lost to the Democratic nominee, former governorJohn Hickenlooper by 301,622 votes.[34]
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After leaving the Senate, Gardner was considered a potential candidate forgovernor of Colorado or in the2022 Colorado Senate race against his former colleague,Michael Bennet, though he ultimately opted not to run.[37][38][39] In February 2021, Gardner became the chair of the National Action Victory Fund, a PAC that raises money for Republican candidates.[5] In June 2021, five months after leaving office, he joined the board of advisers of Michael Best Strategies, a national lobbying firm.[40] In April 2022, he joined a trade association, the Crypto Council for Innovation as its chief political affairs strategist.[41] In February 2023, Gardner was hired to co-chair a super PAC alongside longtime GOP operative Rob Collins by South Carolina SenatorTim Scott, which would later support his run for President in the2024 United States presidential election.[42][43]
In March 2019, Gardner was ranked the 5th most bipartisan senator of the115th Congress byThe Lugar Center andGeorgetown'sMcCourt School of Public Policy, and was also ranked the 4th most bipartisan senator of the116th Congress in May 2021.[44][45]GovTrack noted that of the 157 bills Gardner cosponsored in 2017, 41% were introduced by legislators who were not Republican.[46]
Gardner identifies aspro-life and opposes legalabortions in most circumstances. He has also stated that he believes that abortion laws should be left up to the states.[47] In 2006, Gardner opposed legislation that would allowpharmacists to prescribeemergency contraception[48] and proposed an amendment to the Colorado state budget to prohibit the stateMedicaid plan from purchasingPlan B emergency contraception.[49] In 2007, he voted against a bill that would require hospitals to inform survivors of asexual assault of the availability of emergency contraception.[50][51]
In 2012, Gardner co-sponsored the controversial so-called "personhood" legislation titled theLife Begins at Conception Act.[52] Gardner later said that he changed his mind on personhood after listening to voters.[53] According toThe Denver Post, "Gardner conceded that with his new position on personhood, he might be accused offlip-flopping simply to make himself more palatable to statewide voters."[54] The nonpartisanFactcheck.org said "It would be clearer to say that Gardner supports efforts to ban abortion that could also ban some forms of birth control. As for his change of position, voters in Colorado should know Gardner still supports a federal bill that would prompt the same concerns over birth control as the state measure he says he rejects on the same grounds."[55] In 2014, Gardner called forover-the-counter access tooral contraceptives and said thebirth control pill would be safer and cheaper if it was available over the counter.[56][57]
In the2016 presidential election, Gardner initially endorsedDonald Trump.[58] In October, however, after the release of theAccess Hollywood tape, Gardner said he would not vote for him, whom he called "a candidate whose flaws are beyond mere moral shortcomings and who shows a disgust for American character and a disdain for dignity unbecoming of the Presidency. I cannot and will not support someone who brags about degrading andassaulting women."[59] Nevertheless, in the2020 presidential election, Gardner endorsed Trump.[60] Gardner voted with Trump 89% of the time during Trump's tenure as president. Gardner tied his 2020 reelection bid to the president.[61][34] Trump's role was seen as posing a dilemma for Gardner; distancing himself from Trump risked angering some Republican voters and donors, but Trump was very unpopular with Democrats and independents.[62][63] A Gardner advertisement onFacebook touting his close relationship with Trump did not run in the state.[63]
In 2017, Gardner criticized Trump's response to theUnite the Right rally, writing, "Mr. President—we must call evil by its name. These werewhite supremacists and this wasdomestic terrorism." He also differed with Trump on some trade and foreign policy issues.[64][65] In January 2018, he signed a letter urging the president to preserve and modernize theNorth American Free Trade Agreement.[66] In March 2018, he criticized Trump for imposing a 10%tariff on aluminum imports and a 25% tariff on steel imports, arguing that they would lead to a trade war that would threaten the American economy, particularlyagriculture. "I am concerned that a tariff can result in a tax on the very same people that we are trying to help in this economy," he said.[67] In June 2019 Gardner again expressed concern over Trump's threats to impose tariffs on goods entering the United States from overseas. He argued that such tariffs would result in "a 1.1% tax increase for the lowest 20% of income earners; a 0.3% increase for those in the middle; and a zero net change for the upper middle class." Gardner said that by implementing harsh tariff policies America would be "turning [its] backs on American workers and consumers."[65]
In January 2019, Gardner was one of 11 Republican senators to vote to advance legislation intended to prevent Trump from lifting sanctions against 3 Russian companies.[68] In January 2019, following a report that Trump had expressed interest in withdrawing fromNATO several times during the previous year, Gardner was one of eight senators to reintroduce legislation to prevent Trump from withdrawing the United States from NATO by imposing a requirement of a two-thirds approval from the Senate for a president to suspend, terminate or withdraw American involvement with it.[69] Gardner criticized Trump for perceived softness in dealing with North Korea. "The president has, I'm afraid, taken pressure off of North Korea. He believes it's a way for him to negotiate withKim Jong Un. I believe it's a rope-a-dope."[64] In April 2019, Gardner was one of 12 senators to sign a bipartisan letter to top senators on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development advocating that the Energy Department be granted maximum funding for carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), arguing that American job growth could be stimulated by investment in capturing carbon emissions and expressing disagreement with Trump's 2020 budget request to combine the two federal programs that do carbon capture research.[70]
Gardner signed theAmericans for Tax Reform'sTaxpayer Protection Pledge.[71] He supports legislation to require that theFederal Reserve be audited.[72] In July 2014, Gardner introduced legislation to reform theEarned Income Tax Credit program. The legislation seeks to reduce fraud in the program and dedicate the savings to increasing the credit for working families.[73]
In February 2019, Gardner was one of 20 senators to sponsor the Employer Participation in Repayment Act, enabling employers to contribute up to $5,250 to the student loans of their employees.[74]
Gardner has acknowledged the existence ofclimate change while downplaying thecontribution of human activity.[75] He has repeatedly voted against measures to reduce or regulategreenhouse gas emissions, including theClean Power Plan,[75][76] and has received over $1 million in donations from theoil and gas industry.[77][76][78] He holds an 11% lifetime score from theLeague of Conservation Voters.[76][79] Gardner supports construction of theKeystone Pipeline and is pro-fracking.[80][81]
Shortly after taking office in the House of Representatives, Gardner passed legislation to speed up clean-air permits for companies engaged in offshore drilling inAlaska, saying it would create jobs and reduce dependence on foreign oil.[82][83] In 2013, he introduced a bill to allow theEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA) to review solid waste regulations at its discretion, rather than automatically every 3 years.[84][85] It would also grant precedence to state requirements for solid waste disposal when creating new federal requirements.[84]
In 2018, Gardner and SenatorMichael Bennet introduced bills requiring theU.S. Energy Department to identify vulnerabilities tocyberattacks in the nation's electrical power grid and assigning $90 million to be distributed to states to develop energy security plans.[86] In 2020, Gardner introduced the bipartisanGreat American Outdoors Act, which passed with 58 co-sponsors,[87] providing full and permanent funding of $900 million a year for theLand and Water Conservation Fund to aid national parks and public lands.[88]
In September 2016, Gardner was one of 34 senators to sign a letter toSecretary of StateJohn Kerry advocating that the United States clearly enforce "a legally binding Security Council Resolution" by using "all available tools to dissuadeRussia from continuing its airstrikes inSyria that are clearly not in our interest".[89] In September 2017, Gardner co-sponsored theIsrael Anti-Boycott Act (S.270), which made it a federal crime, punishable by a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment,[90] for Americans to encourage or participate in boycotts against Israel andIsraeli settlements in the occupiedPalestinian territories if protesting actions by the Israeli government.[91] In April 2018, Gardner was one of eight Republican senators to sign a letter toTreasury SecretarySteve Mnuchin and acting Secretary of StateJohn Sullivan expressing "deep concern" over aUnited Nations report that exposed "North Korean sanctions evasion involvingRussia andChina", saying that the findings "demonstrate an elaborate and alarming military-venture between rogue, tyrannical states to avoid United States and international sanctions and inflict terror and death upon thousands of innocent people", and calling it "imperative that the United States provides a swift and appropriate response to the continued use of chemical weapons used byPresident Assad and his forces, and works to address the shortcomings in sanctions enforcement."[92]
In September 2018, Gardner was one of five senators to sign a letter to Secretary of StateMike Pompeo urging him to employ more multifactor authentication measures to secure the State Department's information systems and seeking answers on how the department would boost its security following the Office of Management and Budget's designation of the department's cyber-readiness as "high risk", what the department would do to address the lack of multifactor authentication required by law, and statistics on the department's cyber incidents over the last 3 years.[93] In December 2018, Gardner voted against ending U.S. military support to theSaudi Arabian-led coalition in theYemen war.[94] He said thatSaudi Arabia "is a country in a critical part of the region that has played a key role in our work protecting Israel."[95] In March 2019, Gardner voted against the resolution again, saying it would have empowered Iran.[96] In January 2019, Gardner joined Rubio,Jim Risch, and Senate Majority LeaderMitch McConnell in introducing legislation that would impose sanctions on the government ofPresident of SyriaBashar al-Assad and bolster American cooperation with Israel and Jordan.[97]
Gardner has said that he opposes gun control and that action to prevent gun violence cannot violate constitutional protections.[98][99] In 2016, Gardner voted against the Feinstein Amendment, which sought to ban gun sales to anyone who had been placed on the terrorist watch list for the last five years. He also opposed an amendment making it necessary for background checks to take place for guns bought atgun shows and online.[100]
Gardner opposes theAffordable Care Act and has voted to repeal it.[64] Gardner was among 13 Republican senators drafting theSenate version of theAmerican Health Care Act, which would have repealed and replaced the Affordable Care Act.[101] He voted for all variations of AHCA that came up for a vote in the Senate.[102]The New York Times reported that in September 2017, when the GOP made another attempt to pass legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Gardner warned Republican legislators at a closed luncheon that failure to pass any repeal legislation would lead to a backlash by big donors to Republicans, as well as the grassroots.[103] In January 2019, Gardner was among six senators to cosponsor the Health Insurance Tax Relief Act, delaying the Health Insurance Tax for two years.[104] In 2011, Gardner voted for theRespect for Rights of Conscience Act, which states that "nothing in the Affordable Care Act shall be construed to authorize a health plan to require a provider to provide, participate in, or refer for a specific item or service contrary to the provider's religious beliefs or moral convictions."[105]
Gardner voted for the 2012Ryan budget plan which would have begun the process of privatizingMedicare.[106][107] In October 2019, Gardner was among 27 senators to sign a letter to Senate Majority LeaderMitch McConnell and Senate Minority LeaderChuck Schumer advocating the passage of theCommunity Health Investment, Modernization, and Excellence (CHIME)Act, which was set to expire the following month. The senators warned that if the funding for the Community Health Center Fund (CHCF) was allowed to expire, it "would cause an estimated 2,400 site closures, 47,000 lost jobs, and threaten the health care of approximately 9 million Americans."[108] In 2013, Gardner announced that he would introduce a bill to prohibit executives ofstate healthcare exchanges from getting bonuses.[109]
In 2019, Gardner was described byPolitico as "reliably conservative on most issues other than immigration."[64] Gardner is typically moderate on immigration policy; in 2019 theNational Immigration Forum, an immigrant advocacy group, honored him and SenatorDick Durbin for their bipartisan immigration work.[110] In August 2014, Gardner voted against a bill that would have dismantled theDeferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.[111] He has said that he supports immigration reform in the form of a guest worker program and increased border security.[112] Gardner criticized Trump's 2017executive order to impose a ban on travel to the U.S. by citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, saying: "While I am supportive of strengthening our screening processes and securing our borders, a blanket travel ban goes too far. I also believe that lawful residents of the United States should be permitted to enter the country. I urge the Administration to take the appropriate steps to fix this overly broad executive order."[113]
In June 2018, Gardner was among 13 Republican senators to sign a letter toAttorney GeneralJeff Sessions requesting a moratorium on theTrump administration family separation policy while Congress drafted legislation.[114] In March 2019, Gardner voted for Trump'snational emergency declaration on the creation of a southern border wall (which allows Trump to take funding from other government functions in order to spend them on a border wall). Majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate (where 12 Republican senators joined with Democrats) voted to overturn Trump's national emergency declaration.[115][116]The Denver Post rescinded its 2014 endorsement of Gardner, citing his vote on Trump's national emergency declaration.[117][118]
Gardner opposesnet neutrality, calling the regulations "brazen abuse of power and overreach."[119] On May 16, 2018, he voted againstThe Congressional Review Act, a bill to reinstate net neutrality.[120][121] In March 2017, Gardner voted for theBroadband Consumer Privacy Proposal, which repealed the FCC's internet privacy rules and allowedinternet service providers to sell customers' browsing history without their permission.[122][123] In May 2020, Gardner voted for an amendment co-sponsored by SenatorsSteve Daines andRon Wyden that would have required federal intelligence and law enforcement agencies to obtain federal court warrants when collectingweb search engine data from American citizens, nationals, or residents under theForeign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).[124][125]
Gardner opposessame-sex marriage. In response to theJune 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision enshrining a constitutional right to marriage, Gardner reaffirmed his position that marriage should only be between a man and a woman, but conceded "this issue is in the hands of the courts and we must honor their legal decisions."[126] In 2007, then a state representative, Gardner voted against legislation to allow Colorado gay and lesbian couples to adopt children.[127][128] In 2012, Gardner voted to renew theViolence Against Women Act of 1994 (VAWA), which reauthorized the bill and expanded protections for Native Americans, immigrants, and gays and lesbians.[129] In 2015, Gardner voted against giving same-sex partners access to theSocial Security and veterans benefits earned by their spouses.
After the death of Supreme Court JusticeRuth Bader Ginsburg in September 2020, Gardner said he would vote to confirm a "qualified" nominee to replace her.[130] He did not say whether he supported holding a confirmation vote before the November presidential election. In 2016, after the death of JusticeAntonin Scalia, Gardner said the Senate should delay confirming justices so close to a presidential election.[131]
In 2012, Gardner opposedColorado Amendment 64, which legalized recreationalmarijuana.[132] Since that time, he has come to supportlegalizing marijuana. In 2019,Playboy called him "the potential cannabis power broker in this Congress."[133] In January 2018, Gardner criticized Attorney GeneralJeff Sessions for announcing a crackdown on marijuana dispensaries around the country, which he said was contrary to what Sessions had told him during his confirmation hearing. In response, Gardner placed a temporary hold on some of Trump's judicial nominees.[64][134] In 2020,Politico described Gardner as "a champion of thecannabis industry" and "the GOP's most ardent promoter of cannabis in Congress." He has sponsored a bill that would increase the marijuana industry's access to banking and capital and another that would codify federal protections for states that have legalized marijuana.[135]
In 2019, Gardner introduced the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act, which creates a new nationwide three-digit phone number (988) to connect to a suicide prevention hotline. In addition to funding the new number, the bill requires a strategy report for suicide prevention services for LGBTQ youth, minorities, and rural individuals, among other high-risk groups. The bill unanimously passed the U.S. Senate and was signed into law by Trump in October 2020.[136]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Cory Gardner | 15,736 | 73% | −1% | |
| Democratic | Pauline Artery | 5,732 | 27% | +1% | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Cory Gardner (incumbent) | 22,847 | 100% | +27% | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Cory Gardner | 138,634 | 52.48 | |||
| Democratic | Betsy Markey (incumbent) | 109,249 | 41.35 | |||
| Constitution | Doug Aden | 12,312 | 4.66 | |||
| Independent | Ken Waskiewicz | 3,986 | 1.51 | |||
| Total votes | 264,181 | 100.00 | ||||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | ||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Cory Gardner (incumbent) | 200,006 | 58.4 | |
| Democratic | Brandon Shaffer | 125,800 | 36.8 | |
| Libertarian | Josh Gilliland | 10,682 | 3.1 | |
| Constitution | Doug Aden | 5,848 | 1.7 | |
| Total votes | 342,336 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Cory Gardner | 983,891 | 48.21% | ||
| Democratic | Mark Udall (incumbent) | 944,203 | 46.26% | ||
| Libertarian | Gaylon Kent | 52,876 | 2.59% | ||
| Independent | Steve Shogan | 29,472 | 1.44% | ||
| Independent | Raúl Acosta | 24,151 | 1.18% | ||
| Unity | Bill Hammons | 6,427 | 0.32% | ||
| Total votes | 2,041,020 | 100.0% | |||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | John Hickenlooper | 1,730,722 | 53.5% | ||
| Republican | Cory Gardner (incumbent) | 1,429,085 | 44.2% | ||
| Libertarian | Raymon Doane | 56,219 | 1.7% | ||
| Approval Voting | Daniel Doyle | 9,817 | 0.3% | ||
| Unity | Stephen Evans | 8,965 | 0.3% | ||
| Write-in | 0 | 0.0% | |||
| Total votes | 3,234,808 | 100.00% | |||
| Democraticgain fromRepublican | |||||
He entered Colorado State University as a Democrat and switched to the Republican Party in college.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromColorado's 4th congressional district 2011–2015 | Succeeded by |
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| Preceded by | Republican nominee forU.S. Senator fromColorado (Class 2) 2014,2020 | Most recent |
| Preceded by | Chair of theNational Republican Senatorial Committee 2017–2019 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. Senator (Class 2) from Colorado 2015–2021 Served alongside:Michael Bennet | Succeeded by |
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