Joe Shelton has been a member of CC’s Campus Safety team for six years, currently serving as Midnight Shift Officer. In his daytime hours, he serves his community in another way, as an Executive Council Member for the El Paso County Democratic Party. And in August, Shelton was one of Colorado’s delegates to the Democratic National Convention.
“It was an amazing time,” says Shelton of attending the DNC in Chicago. “The convention was a lot bigger than I thought it would be. There is way more to it than what we see on TV.”
Shelton’s involvement in politics began in 2012 when he was in high school and served on President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign.
“That was my first introduction into the political realm. I was probably 14 or 15 years old at the time and I got a call from the Obama campaign asking me if I was going to be voting for Obama,” says Shelton, who told them he wished he could but wasn’t yet old enough. That’s when he learned he could volunteer with the campaign. He spent most of his volunteer hours working the phone banks in a campaign office.
“I really found a knack for talking to people and seeing what issues were important to them,” he says. “And saying, you know, well, this is what President Obama is going to do if he’s reelected, to make sure that you’re supported.”
In 2019, Shelton ran for the Colorado Springs School District 11 Board of Education.
“I was the first openly gay person to run for that office and to run for a local office here in El Paso County,” Shelton says.
Although he didn’t win the race, he knew it was important for him to stay involved. In 2022, he ran for the Colorado State Board of Education. He was the Democratic nominee for Congressional District 5, running against Steve Durham.
“I did not win against him, but I did close the margin more than any other candidate,” says Shelton. And he’s been taking part in politics ever since. Shelton now sits on the El Paso County Democratic Party’s Executive Committee and serves as their LGBTQ+ Outreach Committee Co-chair.
“The thing that got me started running for office and wanting to be elected was the fact that we don’t have very many people in office who are LGBTQ+,” says Shelton. “And, when it’s related to our schools, there’s not many LGBTQ+ people who are represented on our school boards. That’s been my biggest focus – making sure LGBTQ+ youth are getting their best possible representation.”
Shelton sees his time at the DNC as the highlight of his political journey so far. He ran at the Congressional District level to be a representative for District 5 in Colorado and was elected as one of the four delegates.
“You think it’s this big event at night, like you see on TV,” says Shelton. “But it’s amazing. There is so much more to it. There were also congressional caucus meetings, district meetings, and talks with delegates and elected officials. On the first day, Governor Tim Walz actually made a surprise visit at the LGBTQ caucus meeting. He gave a speech about what he and Harris are going to do for LGBTQ people across the nation, and why it’s so important to elect them.”
Shelton met many other political figures during his time at the convention, such as Chasten Buttigieg, Sarah McBride, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Mitch Landrieu, Congressman Joe Neguse, and Colorado Governor Jared Polis.
“I got to have some good conversations with these people,” says Shelton. “I actually spoke with Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen and Congressman Neguse about the possibility of banning conversion therapy nationwide. And much to my surprise, Congressman Negus actually said this is something that’s already in the process. We have a bill we just don’t have enough people signed on to it to get it off the floor and going. And I asked him what we need to do to get this to happen and his response was just simply to contact more US senators and US representatives and tell them support this.”
And then came the biggest moment of the convention – hearing Vice President Kamala Harris speak.
“It was more magical than I thought,” says Shelton. “Up until that moment I was thinking, ‘this was a great experience, but I’m never going to do this again.’ And then after watching her and that balloon drop, I’m like, okay, I need to do this again.”
As for his next steps in politics, Shelton knows that a school board position is in his future, but isn’t sure when. For now, his focus is on his own education and politics might have to wait.
“I’m currently taking part in CC’s Education Assistance Program, going to school to get my political science degree,” he says. “I have to wait and see who the candidates are for District 11 and if any of them will actually stand up for my rights as a queer person. If they are not, then yeah, I’m definitely going to step up to the plate. But my hope is that we can get some other candidates who can do the work. And then I can focus on finishing my education and run for office later.”
