But Alex Beinstein is facing an uphill battle ahead of the June 28 primary, despite making the ballot with 40 percent of the delegate vote at the April district assembly.<\/p>\n
Tipton, 59, is well-established, with powerful supporters along the sprawling district, which includes most of the Western Slope and southern portions of the Eastern Plains.<\/p>\n
Tipton has fought for rural issues, including protecting farmers and ranchers from federal regulations \u2013 such as a water rule that aims to expand oversight over smaller bodies of water \u2013 and holding the Environmental Protection Agency accountable in the wake of last year\u2019s catastrophic Gold King Mine spill.<\/p>\n
He also has the advantage of name recognition.<\/p>\n
Tipton says of his young aspiring opponent, \u201cWe take every election seriously. What differences he\u2019s trying to bring up, people know where we stand on those issues.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beinstein has painted Tipton as a politician who is in the hands of big donors, who has lost his way when it comes to the Constitution and preserving conservative values.<\/p>\n
He attacked Tipton for supporting the Every Student Succeeds Act last year, which replaced the No Child Left Behind Act, and voting in 2013 for the \u201cRyan-Murray\u201d federal budget, which was viewed as a spending compromise.<\/p>\n
Tipton responded, \u201cAs we go down the list, it\u2019s interesting, there seems to be more common ground (with Beinstein).\u201d<\/p>\n
Behind the scenes, the Tipton campaign has not given much credence to Beinstein\u2019s long-shot effort. They\u2019ve been looking ahead to the November election, in which Democrat Gail Schwartz has vowed to unseat the third-term congressman.<\/p>\n
Schwartz is not facing a primary. She reported raising more than $350,000 since announcing her candidacy on April 8.<\/p>\n
Beinstein \u2013 with only about $4,060 in reported contributions compared to Tipton\u2019s $487,074 \u2013 says voters should not count him out.<\/p>\n
He has proved his ability to capture attention in the past, with a University of Chicago community radio show that held interviews with former United Nations ambassador John Bolton, National Security Advisor Susan Rice and Supreme Court historian Jeff Shesol, to name a few.<\/p>\n
He lives in his parent\u2019s home in Carbondale, and he has relied on support from family and friends. But Beinstein\u2019s shoestring budget hasn\u2019t stopped him from traveling the district to speak to voters.<\/p>\n
\u201cTipton gives off this impression that if you\u2019re wealthy, he cares about you, but if you\u2019re down on your luck, he doesn\u2019t,\u201d Beinstein said, referring to the high unemployment rate in pockets of the district.<\/p>\n
Beinstein supports a tariff to create jobs, as well as decreasing corporate taxes.<\/p>\n
Tipton appears to have a sharp focus on jobs.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery one of the bills that we\u2019re putting forward try to have a focus on not expanding the imprint of the federal government\u2026 and to be able to create those opportunities in the private sector for families to be able to live to their highest and best potential.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beinstein has also focused on international issues, specifically the United States\u2019 somewhat friendly relationship with Saudi Arabia, which he believes has led to the growth of violent extremist groups.<\/p>\n
\u201cRussia is right to know that Saudi Arabia is the true sponsor of terror,\u201d Beinstein said. \u201cWe\u2019re never going to solve the problem of Islamic terror until we go after its funding sources.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tipton agrees that terrorism is an important issue, but he said voters in the district are focused on challenges at home.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe issues that the people are bringing up to me in our congressional district are about their families,\u201d Tipton said. \u201cThey\u2019re worried about their jobs, if they have one; they\u2019re worried about getting a job.\u201d<\/p>\n
AGE: 27
\n RESIDENCE: Carbondale
\n EDUCATION: Bachelor\u2019s degree from the University of Chicago; law degree from the University of Main School of Law
\n POLITICAL BACKGROUND: None
\n OCCUPATION: Candidate for 3rd Congressional District
\n FAMILY: Single; two parents; three older sisters
\n FUNDING: $4,060 in reported contributions
\n TOP ISSUE: \u201cIt\u2019s a combination of the tariff and Saudi Arabia. The tariff is the best way to bring back American jobs \u2026 We have to change our relationship with Saudi Arabia.\u201d
\n PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE: Supported Marco Rubio; Never supported Donald Trump and is considering writing in a choice for president
\n ON PRIMARY OPPONENT: \u201cI\u2019ve never seen him (Scott Tipton) do anything that shows he has compassion or a heart for people who are struggling.\u201d
\n ON RURAL COLORADO: \u201cEducation has come up a lot. There\u2019s a lot of people that are furious with Common Core.\u201d
\n ON ABORTION: \u201cI\u2019m pro-life. I\u2019m not one of these people thank thinks it makes sense to alienate the left with the issue. I believe in state rights.\u201d
\n IMMIGRATION: \u201cThe border needs to be secure\u2026 I don\u2019t think amnesty is a guiding principle.\u201d
\n ON HEALTH CARE REFORM: \u201cYou have to be able to buy across state lines \u2026 We need to get away from government waste.\u201d
\n ON MARIJUANA: \u201cI would respect the voters.\u201d
\n ON GUN CONTROL: \u201cThe Second Amendment\u2026 helps protect us from a tyrannical government.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
AGE: 59
\n RESIDENCE: Cortez
\n EDUCATION: Fort Lewis College
\n POLITICAL BACKGROUND: Incumbent representative for the 3rd Congressional District; former state representative
\n OCCUPATION: Small business owner of Mesa Verde Indian Pottery for 30 years
\n FAMILY: Wife, Jean; two daughters; granddaughter
\n FUNDING: $487,074 in contributions
\n TOP ISSUE: \u201cJobs, our economy, are the big issues that we are hearing through our district.\u201d
\n PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE: Never endorsed a candidate; supports Donald Trump: \u201cThe (Hillary) Clinton perspective and prescription is more government, higher taxes, more regulations.\u201d
\n ON PRIMARY OPPONENT: \u201cWe take every election seriously.\u201d
\n ON RURAL COLORADO: \u201cWe\u2019re going to hold the EPA to the same accountability that private sector businesses would be held to.\u201d
\n ON ABORTION: Opposes abortion except in cases of rape, incest and the mother\u2019s life.
\n IMMIGRATION: \u201cWe have an administration that will not work with us\u2026 We do need to be able to secure our borders.\u201d
\n ON HEALTH CARE REFORM: \u201cOur premiums are going up to the tune of double digits, our co-pays are up, our deductibles are up, and we were promised that our premiums would go down.\u201d
\n ON MARIJUANA: \u201cWe\u2019re respectful of the vote of the people of Colorado.\u201d
\n On gun control: \u201cI will support the Second Amendment. These were terrorist attacks, this did not pertain to law-abiding citizens,\u201d referring to recent attacks in Orlando and San Bernardino.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Ballots were mailed recently to those affiliated with a party. Unaffiliated voters can affiliate with a party anytime through primary election day on June 28. However, if they wish to receive a mailed ballot, they must affiliate by Monday.
\n Completed ballots must be received by 7 p.m. June 28, and they can be returned by mail or dropped off at 24-hour drop boxes at:
\n La Plata County Clerk & Recorder, 98 Everett St., Suite C, Durango.
\n Bayfield Town Hall, 1199 Bayfield Parkway, Bayfield.
\n La Plata County Administration Building, 1101 East Second Ave., Durango.
\n For more information about the ballot, places to vote in person or drop off ballots during limited hours, visit
\n http:\/\/bit.ly\/1sxSqz6
\n .
\n The Herald\u2019s election coverage includes the debate between the Democratic candidates in the district attorney contest and Senate candidate stories that can be found at
\n durangoherald.com\/candidates
\n .<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Alex Beinstein is facing an uphill battle ahead of the June 28 primary, despite making the ballot with 40 percent of the delegate vote at the April district assembly. Tipton, 59, is well-established, with powerful supporters along the sprawling district, which includes most of the Western Slope and southern portions of the Eastern Plains. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":104531,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5736,5735],"tags":[21,266,13,23],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-104530","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news","category-news","tag-cortez","tag-election","tag-frontpage-lead","tag-u-s-rep-scott-tipton"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104530","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=104530"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104530\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/104531"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=104530"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=104530"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=104530"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=104530"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}