Judy Amabile
Judy Amabile (Democratic Party) is a member of theColorado State Senate, representingDistrict 18. She assumed office on January 8, 2025. Her current term ends on January 10, 2029.
Amabile (Democratic Party) ran for election to theColorado State Senate to representDistrict 18. She won in the general election onNovember 5, 2024.
Amabile completed Ballotpedia'sCandidate Connection survey in 2024.Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Judy Amabile was born inNew Rochelle, New York. She earned a B.A. in mass communication/media studies and M.B.A. from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Amabile's career experience includes co-founding Product Architects Inc. and working as a senior consultant with Coopers and Lybrand.[1][2][3] She co-founded and served on the board of Good Business Colorado and has been affiliated with The League of American Bicyclists and the Outdoor Industry Association.[2][3]
Committee assignments
2025-2026
Amabile was assigned to the following committees:
2023-2024
Amabile was assigned to the following committees:
- House Appropriations Committee
- House Business Affairs and Labor Committee,Chair
- Public and Behavioral Health and Human Services Committee (decommissioned)
2021-2022
Amabile was assigned to the following committees:
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according toBillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2024
See also: Colorado State Senate elections, 2024
General election
General election for Colorado State Senate District 18
Judy Amabile defeatedGary Swing in the general election for Colorado State Senate District 18 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Judy Amabile (D) ![]() | 90.5 | 73,150 | |
Gary Swing (Unity Party) ![]() | 9.5 | 7,704 | ||
There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 80,854 | |||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Colorado State Senate District 18
Judy Amabile defeatedJovita Schiffer in the Democratic primary for Colorado State Senate District 18 on June 25, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Judy Amabile ![]() | 76.5 | 21,775 | |
| Jovita Schiffer | 23.5 | 6,694 | ||
There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 28,469 | |||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Campaign finance
2022
See also: Colorado House of Representatives elections, 2022
General election
General election for Colorado House of Representatives District 49
IncumbentJudy Amabile defeatedKathryn Lehr andDaniel Lutz in the general election for Colorado House of Representatives District 49 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Judy Amabile (D) ![]() | 64.3 | 33,326 | |
Kathryn Lehr (R) ![]() | 33.2 | 17,186 | ||
Daniel Lutz (L) ![]() | 2.5 | 1,306 | ||
Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 51,818 | |||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 49
IncumbentJudy Amabile advanced from the Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 49 on June 28, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Judy Amabile ![]() | 100.0 | 13,682 | |
Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 13,682 | |||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 49
Kathryn Lehr defeatedJohn Caldwell in the Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 49 on June 28, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Kathryn Lehr ![]() | 56.8 | 5,421 | |
| John Caldwell | 43.2 | 4,125 | ||
There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 9,546 | |||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
To view Amabile's endorsements in the 2022 election, pleaseclick here.
2020
See also: Colorado House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Colorado House of Representatives District 13
Judy Amabile defeatedKevin Sipple andJames Gilman in the general election for Colorado House of Representatives District 13 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Judy Amabile (D) ![]() | 68.2 | 34,652 | |
| Kevin Sipple (R) | 28.4 | 14,418 | ||
| James Gilman (L) | 3.4 | 1,713 | ||
There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 50,783 | |||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 13
Judy Amabile advanced from the Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 13 on June 30, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Judy Amabile ![]() | 100.0 | 18,131 | |
There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 18,131 | |||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Lisa Smith (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 13
Kevin Sipple advanced from the Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 13 on June 30, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Kevin Sipple | 100.0 | 4,736 | |
There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 4,736 | |||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team. | ||||
Libertarian convention
Libertarian convention for Colorado House of Representatives District 13
James Gilman advanced from the Libertarian convention for Colorado House of Representatives District 13 on April 13, 2020.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | James Gilman (L) | |
There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. | ||||
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
To see a list of endorsements forJudith Amabile,click here.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also:Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Judy Amabile completedBallotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Amabile's responses.
Expand all |Collapse all
- We must continue to take action on Climate, energy and environment. I passed a bill in 2023 to study issues faced by oil and gas workers as Colorado transitions to clean energy. I want to pursue legislation based on that study in 2025. I also want to continue working to create greater resiliency for inevitable climate-driven challenges like fire disasters and drought. I have passed several insurance reform bills, and a bill to provide insurance options in communities where carriers have exited.
- Housing availability and affordability is a significant challenge for people in Colorado. This session I passed a bill allowing more ADUs, and I supported the bill to increase density on transit corridors. I also supported protections for renters. If elected I will continue to work on policies to create more affordable housing.
- We must provide adequate treatment for people with serious mental illness. Too many people are suffering in our streets in homelessness, psychosis, and addiction. We have to create adequate infrastructure to stop this cycle before it starts. I passed a bill to consider involuntary care in the most extreme cases, similar to California’s CARE courts. That study was recently completed. I plan to build on this progress through legislation in the Senate.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2022
Judy Amabile completedBallotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Amabile's responses.
Expand all |Collapse all
- I am working to improve access to behavioral health care in Colorado, especially for people with serious mental illnesses and addiction disorders.
- The impacts of climate change are driving devastating wildfires and an unprecedented water crisis in our state. These problems do not distinguish between rural/urban or political divides. We must address them together, with urgency and pragmatism.
- Prohibitively expensive housing, income inequality, and price gouging by bad actors are just some of the complex factors driving economic hardship. We must stay focused on the core tenets of good economic policy: strengthening our middle class, supporting workers, increasing housing, and investing in education.
State, Civic, Military, and Veterans Affairs; Treatment of Persons with Mental Health Disorders in the Criminal Justice System; and I am the Chair of the Jail Standards Commission Legislative Oversight Committee. In 2022, I served on Colorado's Behavioral Health Transformational Task Force.
For example, when I proposed major changes to the insurance claims process for people who lose their homes in a wildfire, I was told it would be impossible to gain the support of the insurance industry, without which the bill could not succeed.
But by bringing all stakeholders to the table early and often, considering all good ideas, and negotiating with both intensity and good faith, we passed HB22-1111 with the support of the insurance industry. The bill provides major improvements for policyholders who lose everything in a wildfire, while ensuring insurance remains affordable and available in our state.
One stakeholder in the process said about my work:
“Your tenacity, commitment, hard work and speed at solving the problem is beyond impressive. When I raised the issues I was seeing on East Troublesome claims at the town hall meeting last summer, I would have never in a million years imagined that legislative change would be legislated in less than a year.”
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2020
Judy Amabile completedBallotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Amabile's responses.
Expand all |Collapse all
- I will take bold action to address climate change. I have a plan to help Colorado transition successfully to a clean energy economy.
- I stand for workers and will fight to bring economic opportunity to ALL Coloradans. As a business owner who advocated passionately for my employees while turning a profit, I bring a high degree of credibility to the discussion.
- The lack of access to mental health treatment parallels staggering increases in homelessness, opioid drug addiction, incarceration, and suicide. I will work to bring better mental health care to our state.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf.Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at theFEC website. Clickhere for more on federal campaign finance law andhere for more on state campaign finance law.
| Year | Office | Status | Contributions | Expenditures |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Colorado State Senate District 18 | Won general | $273,711 | $302,505 |
| 2022 | Colorado House of Representatives District 49 | Won general | $77,984 | $36,185 |
| 2020 | Colorado House of Representatives District 13 | Won general | $99,284 | N/A** |
| Grand total | $450,979 | $338,690 | ||
| Sources:OpenSecrets, Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). | ||||
| ** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle | ||||
| Note: Totals above reflect only available data. | ||||
Scorecards
Ascorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Colorado scorecards, email suggestions toeditor@ballotpedia.org.
2024
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show]. |
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In 2024, theColorado State Legislature was in session from January 10 to May 8.
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2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, theColorado State Legislature was in session from January 9 to May 8.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, theColorado State Legislature was in session from January 12 to May 11.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, theColorado State Legislature was in session from January 13 to June 8.
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See also
2024 Elections
External links
Candidate Colorado State Senate District 18 | Officeholder Colorado State Senate District 18 | Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑Judy Amabile for HD 13, "About," accessed December 28, 2020
- ↑2.02.1Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 3, 2022
- ↑3.03.1LinkedIn, "Judy Amabile," accessed May 8, 2023
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Stephen Fenberg (D) | Colorado State Senate District 18 2025-Present | Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by Michael Lynch (R) | Colorado House of Representatives District 49 2023-2025 | Succeeded by Lesley Smith (D) |
| Preceded by KC Becker (D) | Colorado House of Representatives District 13 2021-2023 | Succeeded by Julie McCluskie (D) |
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