Larry Liston
2021 - Present
2025
3
Larry Liston (Republican Party) is a member of the Colorado State Senate, representing District 10. He assumed office on January 13, 2021. His current term ends on January 8, 2025.
Liston (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Colorado State Senate to represent District 10. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Liston completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Liston previously served in the Colorado House of Representatives, representing District 16 from 2005 to 2013 and 2017 to 2021.
Biography
Larry Liston lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado.[1] Liston earned a B.S. in business administration from Colorado State University in 1975. His career experience includes working as an investment executive.[2] He has been affiliated with the Rotary Club of Colorado Springs.[3]
Committee assignments
2023-2024
Liston was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Appropriations Committee
- Business, Labor, and Technology Committee
- Senate State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee
2021-2022
Liston was assigned to the following committees:
2019-2020
Liston was assigned to the following committees:
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Colorado committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Local Government |
| • Public Health Care and Human Services |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Liston served on these committees:
- Economic and Business Development Committee, Colorado House of Representatives, Chair
- State, Veterans, & Military Affairs Committee, Colorado House of Representatives
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Liston served on these committees:
- Business Affairs and Labor Committee
- Business Affairs and Labor
- Local Government Committee
- Local Government
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 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 10
Incumbent Larry Liston defeated Ryan Lucas and John Hjershman in the general election for Colorado State Senate District 10 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Larry Liston (R) | 56.7 | 32,312 | |
| Ryan Lucas (D) | 40.5 | 23,097 | ||
 | John Hjershman (L) | 2.8 | 1,614 | |
| Total votes: 57,023 | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Colorado State Senate District 10
Incumbent Larry Liston defeated David Stiver and Rex Tonkins in the Republican primary for Colorado State Senate District 10 on June 25, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Larry Liston | 60.7 | 12,478 | |
| David Stiver | 22.1 | 4,538 | ||
| Rex Tonkins | 17.2 | 3,535 | |
| Total votes: 20,551 | ||||
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Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Liston in this election.
2020
See also: Colorado State Senate elections, 2020
General election
General election for Colorado State Senate District 10
Larry Liston defeated Randi McCallian and Heather Johnson in the general election for Colorado State Senate District 10 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Larry Liston (R) | 56.4 | 47,463 | |
| Randi McCallian (D) | 38.1 | 32,114 | ||
| Heather Johnson (L) | 5.5 | 4,620 | |
| Total votes: 84,197 | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Colorado State Senate District 10
Randi McCallian advanced from the Democratic primary for Colorado State Senate District 10 on June 30, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Randi McCallian | 100.0 | 14,822 | |
| Total votes: 14,822 | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Colorado State Senate District 10
Larry Liston advanced from the Republican primary for Colorado State Senate District 10 on June 30, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Larry Liston | 100.0 | 20,258 | |
| Total votes: 20,258 | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- David Stiver (R)
2018
General election
General election for Colorado House of Representatives District 16
Incumbent Larry Liston defeated Andrew Smith and John Hjersman in the general election for Colorado House of Representatives District 16 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Larry Liston (R) | 59.3 | 20,177 | |
| Andrew Smith (D) | 36.7 | 12,484 | |
| John Hjersman (L) | 4.0 | 1,360 | ||
| Total votes: 34,021 | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Kevin Smith (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 16
Andrew Smith advanced from the Democratic primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 16 on June 26, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Andrew Smith | 100.0 | 4,652 |
| Total votes: 4,652 | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 16
Incumbent Larry Liston advanced from the Republican primary for Colorado House of Representatives District 16 on June 26, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Larry Liston | 100.0 | 8,357 | |
| Total votes: 8,357 | ||||
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2016
Elections for the Colorado House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on June 28, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was April 4, 2016.
Larry Liston defeated John Hjersman in the Colorado House of Representatives District 16 general election.[4][5]
| Colorado House of Representatives, District 16 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Larry Liston |
71.87% | 26,225 | |
| Libertarian | John Hjersman | 28.13% | 10,262 | |
| Total Votes | 36,487 | |||
| Source: Colorado Secretary of State | ||||
Larry Liston defeated incumbent Janak Joshi in the Colorado House of Representatives District 16 Republican primary.[6][7]
| Colorado House of Representatives, District 16 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Larry Liston |
60.87% | 5,459 | |
| Republican | Janak Joshi Incumbent | 39.13% | 3,510 | |
| Total Votes | 8,969 | |||
2012
- See also: Colorado State Senate elections, 2012
Liston ran in the 2012 election for Colorado State Senate District 10. He was defeated by Owen Hill in the Republican primary on June 26, 2012.[8]
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Owen Hill |
60.9% | 9,528 |
| Larry Liston | 39.1% | 6,118 |
| Total Votes | 15,646 | |
In mid-May, Hill took issue with a fundraiser where Liston was the guest of honor. According to Hill, the lobbyists who hosted the event included "some of the most ardent supporters of big government, liberal causes, and pay-to-play politics," such as Planned Parenthood, the ACLU, and proponents of Obamacare. Liston brushed off the attack, saying "This just shows how desperate my own opponent is. Two years ago, these very people who he is trying to condemn me for, he was taking money from."[9]
2010
Liston ran for re-election to the 16th District seat in 2010. He had no opposition in the August 10 primary. Liston defeated Janet Tanner (D) in the November 2 general election.
| Colorado House of Representatives, District 16 General election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Larry Liston (R)
|
13,012 | |||
| Janet Tanner (D) | 7,306 | |||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Liston won re-election to the 16th District seat in the Colorado House of Representatives, defeating opponent Richard M. Flores (D).[10]
Liston raised $31,702 for his campaign, while Flores raised $2,195.[11]
| Colorado State House, District 16 (2008) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Larry Liston (R)
|
15,989 | |||
| Richard M. Flores (D) | 11,131 | |||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Larry Liston completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Liston's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
I am Senator Larry Liston and have lived in my district for some 57 years. Before being elected to office, I was employed by the Royal Bank of Canada for 31 years. I was first elected to the state House in 2004 from HD-16 and served off and on for 12 years. I was elected to the Colorado State Senate in 2020. I am a life long Republican in the mold of Ronald Reagan and Barry Goldwater Conservatism. During my tenure in office, I have served as the Chairman of the Businsess and Labor Committee, the ranking member of the State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee and currently serve on the Senate Appropriations Committee and am the ranking member of the Senate Business, Labor and Technology Committee.
I have carried and passed numerous bills in the area of business, Healthcare and Education. I am considered a fiscal conservative and am proud of my current endorsements from the American Conservative Union: 3 times, the Colorado Medical Society, the Colorado Assn. of Homebuilders and the NRA, with an A+ rating. I have also been endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police and the Colorado EMS providers. I have numerous legislative awards over the years, which are too numerous to list here.
I am married to my lovely wife, Mary Ann for 44 years and we have a wonderful daughter, Katie and a beautiful granddaughter.
- I want to defend TABOR and keep it from being raided each year by the majority party.
- I am a strong supporter of our 2nd amendment rights and have voted consistently to uphold the se rights each and every year that I have been in the legislature.
- Legislatively, in 2025, I would like to advance nuclear energy here in Colorado. If we are going to meet the energy demands of our citizens and businesses heading in to the next 20 years, we will need to have nuclear energy in our portfolio. With the technology today, nuclear energy is SAFE, Reliable, CLEAN and emission free. I have nothing against other forms of "clean energy", but there should be a place for nuclear energy for Colorado.
see my answers above
Conscience of a Conservative by Barry Goldwater
As an elected official my self, I believe that honesty is the most important. As an elected officer you have to be honest with the citizens and be able to tell the citizens the truth, even if that is not what the want to hear. I believe that I have been honest and trust worthy to my constituents over the years, which is why I have been elected seven times by the people of my district.
You have to be open, accessible and willing to listen to your constituents.
The first major historical event that I keenly remember was the assassination of President John Kennedy. I was 11 years old and in the 6th grade. I was in class when the principal announced over the speaker that JFK had bee killed. I watched the vents unfold over the next several days; it was sad, but very fascinating. I hope our country never goes through that again.
To me the ideal relationship here in Colorado would be to have a "split" chamber from the governor's party, so that things cannot be rammed through by just one party. Unfortunately here in Colorado, we have one party control over all three branches of government. There is NO BALANCE in government, which is not healthy for Coloradans.
Funding the social services departments of the state government. We spend enormous amounts of money for the social safety net for people here. It is becoming increasingly unaffordable.
no, not necessarily. I think it is best for ALL legislators to have some real life experiences in business, military and practical experiences BEFORE they enter into government.
Yes indeed. I like to get to know my fellow legislators, on both sides of the aisle and I do so. It is important to know and understand the backgrounds and experiences of fellow legislators. We can learn a lot from each other and most of us can teach legislators by sharing their experiences with one another.
There would be several that I admire and know that they were effective legislators. To name a few would be Rep. Bill Sinclair, Senator Keith King, Senator Bob Gardner and Speaker Doug Dean, just to name a few.
There are several, but not to pick one would be difficult. I would say that I greatly admire the men and women of the "Greatest Generation", those who lived through the Great Depression and then fought to save our country in WW II. We owe our freedom and way of life to the men and women who gave their all for us.
Yes, the legislature should be consulted be fore extraordinary powers are grated to just one official.
To expand the development of nuclear energy in Colorado.
Fraternal Order of Police, Colorado Medical Society, The Colorado Homebuilders Assn., the Colorado Chamber of Commerce, the NRA, with an A+ rating. I have been endorsed by former Mayor John Suthers, Sheriff Joe Roybal,, former Governor Bill Owens, former Congressman, Joel Hefley, Former Sheriff Bill Elder and Honorable Bill Cadman
I currently serve on the Business and Labor Committee, the State Veterans and Military Affairs Committee and the Appropriations Committee. I like them all.
Financial openness is paramount in all aspects of society, especially for our government. Citizens need to know and understand where the government gets its revenue, where it is spent and how much is spent in all areas of the government. Here in Colorado, we have the Joint Budget Committee which spends months gathering information on the budget and submitting a budget to the legislature. It is the ONE thing that we are constitutionally mandated to do in Colorado, even if we do nothing else.
I support the right of citizens to bring ballot initiatives to their fellow citizens and have consistently voted to do so. The legislature is not perfect, especially in this current environment. The people have the right o petition their government.
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
Larry Liston did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2016
Liston's campaign website highlighted the following issues:
| “ |
|
” |
| —Larry Liston[13] | ||
2012
Liston's campaign website listed the following issues:[14]
- TABOR and TAXES
- Excerpt: "Supports it! Supports it! Supports it!"
- Economic Growth
- Excerpt: "Emphasizes private sector growth in robust Colorado economy."
- Healthcare
- Excerpt: "Strongly opposes Obamacare"
- Education Choice for Colorado's Children
- Excerpt: "Everyone agrees public funding for K-12 education is important. It is, however, fiscally irresponsible to permanently endow one sector of government with automatic increases in spending to the detriment of all other sectors. That's no way to keep faith with you as taxpayers, parents, and students."
- 2nd Amendment Rights
- Excerpt: "Adamantly supports our right to keep and bear arms!"
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 the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard 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.
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Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Colorado scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Colorado 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, the Colorado 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, the Colorado State Legislature was in session from January 13 to June 8.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Colorado State Legislature was in session from January 8 to June 15.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Colorado State Legislature was in session from January 4 through May 3.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the 72nd Colorado State Legislature was in session from January 10 through May 9.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the 71st Colorado State Legislature was in session from January 11 through May 10. There was also a special session from October 2-3.
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Endorsements
2012
Larry Liston endorsed Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election.[15]
See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Colorado State Senate District 10 |
Officeholder Colorado State Senate District 10 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Facebook, "Larry Liston for HD 16," accessed December 29, 2020
- ↑ Larry Liston, "About," accessed December 29, 2020
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on June 5, 2024
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "General election candidates," accessed August 16, 2016
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2016 General Election results," accessed December 14, 2016
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Election Candidate List," accessed May 3, 2016
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "June 28, 2016 Primary Election," accessed August 22, 2016
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Official 2012 Primary election results," accessed April 14, 2014
- ↑ Colorado Springs Independent, "Hill takes issue with Liston donors," May 18, 2012
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2008 General election results," accessed April 14, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Funds raised by 2008 House candidates," accessed April 14, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Larry Liston, "Larry on the issues," accessed June 21, 2016
- ↑ larryliston.com, "Issues," accessed December 11, 2014
- ↑ Mitt Romney for President, "Mitt Romney Announces Support of Minnesota Leaders," February 4, 2012
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Owen Hill (R) |
Colorado State Senate District 10 2021-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Colorado House of Representatives District 16 2017-2021 |
Succeeded by Andy Pico (R) |
| Preceded by - |
Colorado House of Representatives District 16 2005-2013 |
Succeeded by - |
