Kent Lambert
Encyclopedia
2004, 2006 legislative campaigns
After retiring from the Air Force at the rank of colonelColonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
in 2004, Lambert entered Colorado politics, challenging Mike Merrifield for the 18th house district seat in central Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. Colorado Springs is located in South-Central Colorado, in the southern portion of the state. It is situated on Fountain Creek and is located south of the Colorado...
, losing with 42 percent of the vote. He served as legislative assistant to representatives Dave Schultheis and Keith King
Keith King
Keith King is the state Senator from Colorado's Senate District 12. He is a Republican.From 1999 to 2006, King represented House District 21 in the Colorado House of Representatives...
and helped found the Republican Study Committee of Colorado, serving as its executive director until 2005.
In 2006, Lambert ran to succeed David Schultheis, who was elected to the Colorado Senate that same year. Lambert faced Colin Mullaney in the Republican primary, in which he garnered the endorsements of the Minutemen
Minutemen
Minutemen were members of teams of select men from the American colonial partisan militia during the American Revolutionary War. They provided a highly mobile, rapidly deployed force that allowed the colonies to respond immediately to war threats, hence the name.The minutemen were among the first...
PAC, the Rocky Mountain Gun Owners
Rocky Mountain Gun Owners
Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, or RMGO, is a Colorado non-profit organization which supports the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the Colorado State Bill of Rights. The promotion of firearm ownership rights, right to carry, and right to self-defense in...
, and a homeschoolers PAC. In the general election, he defeated Democrat Karen Teja with over 68 percent of the popular vote.
2007 legislative session
During the 2007 session of the Colorado General AssemblyColorado General Assembly
The Colorado General Assembly is the state legislature of the State of Colorado.-Constitutional definition:The Colorado Constitution establishes a system of government based on the separation of powers doctrine with power divided among three "departments": executive, legislative and judicial...
, Lambert sat on the House Finance Committee and the House State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee.
In the his first year in the legislature, Lambert was noted for his socially conservative stances on legislation. He was the primary house sponsor of a senate bill that would have criminalized abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
in Colorado —the bill died in the Colorado State Senate — and he spoke out against a measure that would have allowed adoption by homosexual couples. All five bills introduced by Lambert were defeated in House committees, including measures to make Colorado a "right-to-work" state and to prohibit labor unions from deducting fees from government employees' paychecks.
During the legislative session, Lambert filed a formal ethics complaint against the Colorado Education Association
Colorado Education Association
The Colorado Education Association is a statewide federation of teacher and educational workers' labor unions in the state of Colorado in the United States. The CEA is a voluntary membership organization of 40,000 K-12 teachers and education support professionals, higher education faculty and...
, arguing that emails sent by the CEA lobbying in favor of a property tax freeze to bring in additional revenue for public schools included deceptive statements. The complaint was called "frivolous" by the CEA and was dismissed by the Colorado Legislative Council's Executive Committee on a vote that was boycotted by Republican leaders.
For the session, the fiscally conservative Colorado Union of Taxpayers gave Lambert its "Taxpayer Champion" award. Lambert, along with Rep. Douglas Bruce
Douglas Bruce
Douglas Edward Bruce is a conservative activist and former legislator in the U.S. state of Colorado, best known as the author of Colorado's Taxpayer Bill of Rights ....
, was also noted for rarely supporting nonbinding resolutions in the legislature.
2008 legislative session
In the 2008 session of the Colorado General Assembly, Lambert sits on the House Finance Committee, and the House State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee.He has introduced legislation to create a specialty license plate commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
.
In April 2008, Lambert filed a campaign finance complaint against Gov. Bill Ritter
Bill Ritter (politician)
August William "Bill" Ritter is an American politician of the Democratic Party, and was the 41st Governor of the state of Colorado, from 2007 to 2011. Before his election in 2006, he served as the district attorney for Denver...
, alleging that Ritter's 2006 campaign manager, Greg Kolomitz, improperly used inaugural committee funds to pay himself and pay off campaign debts. In August, Lambert's complaint was dismissed by an administrative law judge, and he was ordered to pay Ritter's legal fees.
2008 election
In 2008, won a second term in the Colorado House of Representatives. He was opposed by Democratic nominee Chyrese Exline. Lambert's re-election bid was endorsed by the Denver Post, while the Colorado Springs IndependentColorado Springs Independent
The Colorado Springs Independent is a newsweekly that serves the Pikes Peak region of Southern Colorado It is Colorado Springs' largest locally owned media company...
endorsed his opponent. Lambert won re-election with 71 percent of the popular vote.
Lambert was a delegate to the 2008 Republican National Convention
2008 Republican National Convention
The United States 2008 Republican National Convention took place at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota, from September 1, through September 4, 2008...
in St. Paul, Minnesota.
2009 legislative session
For the 2009 legislative session, Lambert was named to seats on the House State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee and the House Finance Committee, where he was the ranking Republican.In August 2009, Lambert was appointed to the Joint Budget Committee to replace departing member Dan Marostica.