Swing district: What Colorado voters in Jefferson County are thinking about in 2018.

Residents are motivated by issues ranging from housing, transparency to health insurance, schools

Sideways Sports Lounge is a sort of microcosm of Colorado’s electorate.

In Jefferson County, the state’s largest swing district, the pub sits at an intersection of three neighborhoods where voter registration is nearly evenly split between Democrats, Republican and unaffiliated voters. (There’s a slight Democratic lean in two of the neighborhoods.)

There is no shortage of issues on the minds of Coloradans. To better understand what is motivating voters this fall, we stopped by and asked them.

Here is a sample of what we heard from voters who live within blocks of the bar:

Wayne Anderson, Republican: “Housing has always been a challenge. I don’t mean multifamily housing, I mean singlefamily housing. We’re finding that a number of people are having a difficult time finding housing. … Generally, I don’t believe the schools get enough money, period. I generally want a tax increase as it relates to schools … (and) also for transportation. I think that is something we are in dire need of here. We’re growing like crazy. We’re trying to attract more companies into this area. Going to need transportation to move their goods and services.”

James Rose, Democrat: “I’d like to see some anticorruption and some campaign finance changes done. … There’s no tracking of money. Nobody knows where it’s coming from, who’s giving it. … Guns is a biggie. I lean more in the other direction than the typical Democrat. I’m not ‘ban them.’ I’m not ‘mag limits.’ … It’s making sure that we have the backing and the protection for everybody in society. It’s not just making sure the 1 percenters can get their new boat. It’s making sure that the homeless guys have shoes on their feet and they’re getting meals and have a roof over their head. For me, it’s making sure people are taken care of.”

Pat Semantel, Republican: “Growth and how they’re going to handle it. I think that’s the main one. And two, I always say education, education, education. … (The next governor) needs to take care of Nathan Dunlap. The Nathan Dunlap issue was difficult for me because I remember that very well. And in my opinion, what (Gov. John) Hickenlooper did was atrocious. He should have handled it. … (Dunlap) needs to be executed. Do it for the families.”

Anna Fernandes, Democrat: “It’s just really hard to find health insurance for the youth. My daughter is currently 26 years old and she’s having a hard time finding health insurance that you could pay for, that’s not so expensive. … I get angry and upset because I don’t see anything getting better for the lower class.”

Nancy Phipps, unaff iliated: “I think the schools are terrifically underfunded. And the teachers are not paid. In the past couple of years, I’ve seen so many teachers just leave because they cannot make a living doing what they’re doing. And it’s sad, because they love their profession. But they cannot live that way. … Our roads are in very sad shape. Our public transportation is a disgrace. You know, the Arvada GLine is two years behind. It’s just a disgrace, and I think that they really need to make it a priority to make it accessible for more people.”