Democratic U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo and her Republican challenger, state Rep. Gabe Evans, faced off Tuesday night in their first debate in the race to represent Colorado’s highly competitive 8th Congressional District.
The toss-up district spans Denver’s northeastern suburbs along U.S. 85 into Greeley. Caraveo beat her Republican opponent in 2022 by roughly 1,600 votes.
The 30-minute debate, hosted by 9News, included discussion on everything from immigration to education policy. Here are the two most memorable moments:
Evans wouldn’t directly answer a question on corporal punishment in schools
9News anchor Kyle Clark pressed Evans on his affiliation with Heritage Defense, an organization that defends Christian homeschoolers who want to use corporal punishment, as well as his vote in the legislature against a bill banning corporal punishment in schools.
“When do you believe it’s acceptable to hit a child at home and at school?” Clark asked.
“That answer is already in the law right now,” Evans said, offering a statutory citation.
The Colorado statute Evans pointed to says “a parent, guardian, or other person entrusted with the care and supervision of a minor or an incompetent person, and a teacher or other person entrusted with the care and supervision of a minor, may use reasonable and appropriate physical force upon the minor or incompetent person when and to the extent it is reasonably necessary and appropriate to maintain discipline or promote the welfare of the minor or incompetent person.”
Clark followed up by asking “when is it appropriate for a child to be hit in public school?”
“We need to ensure we are providing a safe space for our kids to be able to learn in our public schools,” Evans said.
Clark asked again: “When should children be hit in school?”
Evans began responding by pointing to his experience working as a school resource officer in Arvada before Clark cut him off for not directly answering the question.
The measure Evans voted against in the legislature was House Bill 1191. The 2023 bill, which passed and was signed into law, says a person employed by or volunteering in a public school “shall not impose corporal punishment on a child.”
It defines corporal punishment as “the willful infliction of, or willfully causing the infliction of, physical pain on a child.” The measure includes exceptions when there’s a disturbance that threatens injury or property damage, as well as physical pain or discomfort caused by athletic competition or similar activity in which a child is voluntarily engaged.
Evans voted no, joining most of the Republicans in the Colorado House in rejecting the bill. Conservatives opposed the bill because they said it would lead to lawsuits and make it harder for schools to impose discipline.
Caraveo dances around her record on immigration
Caraveo was pressed on how her position on immigration has changed in recent years, from calling for the divestment from federal immigration agencies — as in cut their funding — to condemning the Biden administration’s handling of the U.S.-Mexico border.
“I think the country has changed, and we’ve seen a crisis that both parties have set up and not offered solutions for,” she said. “And so as a member of Congress from a district that is very evenly divided, it is my responsibility to portray the opinions of my constituents.”
Clark asked Caraveo if she still believes the federal government should divest from federal immigration enforcement agencies like U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement and Customs Border Patrol. She called on that to happen in a 2021 letter she signed as a state lawmaker.
“My constituents do not believe that, and so I would vote against that,” Caraveo said.
“Is it still your position? Do you still believe that that’s the right thing to do?” Clark asked.
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“My job is to represent the 8th Congressional District, and that is what I’m doing every time that I vote,” she said.
Caraveo was also asked about her sponsorship in 2019 of a bill in the legislature prohibiting local law enforcement from cooperating with requests from federal immigration officials to keep in custody people who are living in the U.S. illegally solely on the basis of their immigration status.
“Do you still believe that Colorado law enforcement should be barred from working with immigration agents?” Clark asked.
“It shouldn’t be up to local law enforcement to do what the federal government has failed to do,” she said, adding that “local police officers should not be enforcing laws that the federal government has not.”
Watch to the full debate — and when Caraveo and Evans will debate again
You can watch the full 9News debate between Caraveo and Evans below:
The pair will debate next Oct. 18 on CBS Colorado.
For more information on where Caraveo and Evans stand on the issues, check out this guide put together by The Colorado Sun.