Denver has not had a Republican mayor in decades.
Andy Rougeot, a registered Republican and one of 17 others vying for the seat, seeks to buck that trend. With a solid 10% base of registered Republicans in Denver, there's a solid chance Rougoet makes the June runoff, according to published reports.
His campaign is one focusing on accountability, law and order. He is one of the few candidates that supports enforcing the urban camping ban, wants to expand Denver's police force and believes he is the best candidate to "fight for Denver's future."
Rougeot doesn't think his party affiliation matters. Denverites are fed up with Denver's conditions and years of empty promises, he said.
"They do not want another politician who will make promise after promise, who's maybe been doing that for 30 years, and not actually get things done," he said. "(Denver voters) do not care about the political background of the person if they can credibly promise to deliver for Denver."
Rougeot came to Colorado in 2011 due to an Army posting that saw him stationed at Fort Carson. As an intelligence officer, he was attached to a Ranger unit that deployed to Afghanistan in 2013. After that, Rougeot got his MBA from Harvard and took over a business fixing self storage gates, a very "niche commercial maintenance business." It's a job that typically results in Rougeot returning home covered in grease and sweat.
In the Denver mayor's race, Rougeot has made a name for himself due to his staunch commitment to enforce the camping ban.
"We are not being compassionate by stepping over somebody in a tent. We are not being compassionate by seeing someone overdose in a tent on our streets," he said. "The right thing to do is to enforce our camping ban to get people into the mental health and addiction services."
Sometimes this must be done against their will, he added.
Rougeot also knows this is something residents want. In 2019, Ordinance 300 asked Denver residents to overturn the camping ban. They overwhelmingly (81%) voted for the camping ban. In November 2021, Ordinance 303 found its way on to a Denver ballot. This ordinance asked Denverites to approve an amendment to the camping ban that required the city to enforce the ban, but also establish four authorized camping locations.
Voters rejected the amendment.
Residents camping are also far more likely to become the victims of assault, robbery or sexual assault, Rougeot said. Getting people off the streets and into a shelter or permanent, supportive housing is one of the proven ways to keep people safe.
But not everyone approves of shelters. Advocates consistently share stories of violence and disease at Denver area shelters with the Denver Gazette. But Rougeot says the issue is not the shelters.
"The issue right now is getting people who are service resistant to use the services, not the amount of services we have," he said. "If you look at the statistics, you are much more likely to have a poor life outcome if you are camping versus staying in a shelter."
Denver has made strides in supportive housing, which offer mental health, medical and other services in addition to a permanent home. These are a resounding success, according to a 2021 study from the Denver Urban Renewal Authority.
Denver and surrounding areas have struggled to address homelessness recently. Homelessness jumped by nearly a quarter — from 5,530 in 2021 to 6,884 in 2022 — according to previous Denver Gazette reporting.
Part of the problem is affordability. Housing prices in Denver have skyrocketed, and the city is unaffordable for many to work, play and live in. Rougeot points to the dysfunctional permitting department, which he says is "broken." Fixing it requires a culture shift away from proving an understanding of regulation.
"This department should be a culture around how are we building safe affordable housing instead of one of how are we showing how well we know regulations," he said.
Fixing the permitting department can free up developers' time, keeping their projects on time and lowering costs.
Another key is relaxing certain regulations, especially around accessory dwelling units, he said. Commonly known as "mother-in-law" units, accessory dwelling units have a regulation limiting their height to one and a half stories.
"That means you have to have an angled roof instead of a flat roof, which increases the cost," he said. "If we don't solve this problem, we will price out blue collar workers and young homebuyers."
One aspect of Denver that stands out to Rougeot is rising levels of crime in the city. He has committed to hiring 400 sworn police officers. But hiring more officers has been difficult and Denver still has a number of vacancies in its ranks. This is not related to salary, he said.
"The issue is a lack of support from our current mayor. Police believe they'll be thrown under the bus if the mayor has a chance," Rougeot said. "They also don't think they can do their job. Having a mayor who will hold our police to a high standard but make sure they're properly supported and funded will allow us to get those 400 additional police officers."
While there are national attempts seeking to reduce police spending and the number of officers, or both, Rougoet rallies against this approach. More officers leads to better policing, he argues, since police won't be required to work mandatory overtime. An officer who is on hour six of an eight-hour shift is far more likely to respond better than one who is on hour 12 of an eight-hour shift.
In Mayor Michael Hancock's final municipal budget, he requested additional funding for the police patrol budget, which totaled $135.8 million as approved by the Denver City Council. This provides for 188 additional police officers, less than half of what Rougeot would like to see.
He also said increasing funding for de-escalation training and programs like the Support Team Assisted Response (STAR) program will lead to better outcomes for the city. Rougeot supports STAR and said it's part of his solution.
"It is not an 'or' question," he said. "It's a both question."
Crime in Denver has yet to fall below pre-pandemic levels. The city saw the third highest rate of car theft and sixth highest rate of property crime, nationally, according to previous Denver Gazette reporting.
Denver's general election is April 4. If needed, a runoff election will take place in June.
