{{short description|American politician from Colorado}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}} {{Infobox officeholder |name = Alec Garnett |image = Alec Garnett.JPG |office1 = 61st Speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives |term_start1 = January 13, 2021 |term_end1 = January 9, 2023 |predecessor1 = KC Becker |successor1 = Julie McCluskie |office2 = Majority Leader of the Colorado House of Representatives |term_start2 = January 4, 2019 |term_end2 = January 13, 2021 |predecessor2 = KC Becker |successor2 = Daneya Esgar |state_house3 = Colorado |district3 = 2nd |term_start3 = January 7, 2015 |term_end3 = January 9, 2023 |predecessor3 = Mark Ferrandino |successor3 = Steven Woodrow (redistricting) |birth_date = |birth_place = |death_date = |death_place = |party = Democratic |education = College of Wooster (BA)<br>University of Colorado, Denver (MPA) }} '''Alec Garnett''' is an American politician and a former Democratic member of the Colorado House of Representatives and the former Speaker of the House. He represented District 2, which covered a portion of the city of Denver. He was first elected in 2014 to replace retiring House Speaker Mark Ferrandino. In November 2020, Garnett's colleagues elected him to serve as speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives for the two-year term beginning in January 2021.<ref>{{cite news |last=Miller |first=Faith |date=2020-11-06 |title=Colorado Democrats elect Garnett as House speaker |url=https://www.montrosepress.com/news/colorado-democrats-elect-garnett-as-house-speaker/article_e4d8a5aa-2053-11eb-b543-6f7bf70e3e58.html |work=Montrose Press |access-date=2020-11-08}}</ref> From January 2023 to September 2024, he served as Governor Jared Polis' chief of staff.<ref name=Paul>{{cite news |last=Paul |first=Jesse |date=September 3, 2024 |title=Colorado governor's chief of staff is departing, will be replaced by top policy adviser |url=https://coloradosun.com/2024/09/03/jared-polis-chief-of-staff-alec-garnett-david-oppenheim/ |url-status=live |work=The Colorado Sun |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240905162955/https://coloradosun.com/2024/09/03/jared-polis-chief-of-staff-alec-garnett-david-oppenheim/ |archive-date=September 5, 2024 |location= |access-date=September 6, 2024}}</ref>
==Career== Prior to taking office, Garnett was the executive director of the Colorado Democratic Party. He previously worked as a legislative assistant to U.S. Representative Ed Perlmutter and legislative director to U.S. Representative John Adler.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Lee|first1=Kurtis|title=Alec Garnett to run for House District 2 seat being vacated by Speaker Ferrandino|url=http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2013/02/05/alec-garnett-run-house-district-2-seat-vacated-ferrandino/90176/|access-date=July 8, 2017|work=Denver Post|date=February 5, 2013}}</ref> In 2010 Garnett managed the political campaign of his father, who ran for Colorado attorney general that year.<ref>{{cite news |title=CU Denver alumnus a rising star in Colorado politics |url=https://news.ucdenver.edu/cu-denver-alumnus-a-rising-star-in-colorado-politics/ |access-date=10 August 2023 |agency=CU Denver News |publisher=University of Colorado at Denver |date=28 September 2015}}</ref>
Garnett was elected to his seat in 2014 with 72.6% of the vote against Republican Party opponent Jon Roberts. He was reelected in 2016 with 73.28% of the vote against Republican opponent Paul Linton.<ref>{{cite web|title=Alec Garnett|url=https://ballotpedia.org/Alec_Garnett|website=Ballotpedia|access-date=July 8, 2017}}</ref> He was unopposed in 2018<ref>{{cite web |title=2018 General Election |url=https://election.boco.solutions/ElectionResults2018G/ |website=Boulder County Elections |publisher=Boulder County |access-date=10 August 2023 |archive-date=May 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220517043307/https://election.boco.solutions/ElectionResults2018G |url-status=dead }}</ref> and, in 2020, Garnett was reelected with 80.6% of the vote against Republican Victoria Partridge.<ref>{{cite web |title=Alec Garnett |url=https://ballotpedia.org/Alec_Garnett |website=Ballotpedia |access-date=10 August 2023}}</ref>
Garnett served on the House Appropriations Committee, the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee, and the House Education Committee.<ref>{{cite web|title=Representative Alec Garnett|url=https://leg.colorado.gov/legislators/alec-garnett|publisher=Colorado General Assembly|access-date=July 8, 2017}}</ref> After becoming a member of House leadership he served on the General Assembly's executive committee and Legislative Council committee.
Garnett was elected speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives on November 5, 2020.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Miller |first1=Faith |title=Colorado Democrats elect Garnett as House speaker |url=https://coloradonewsline.com/2020/11/05/colorado-democrats-elect-garnett-as-house-speaker/ |access-date=10 August 2023 |agency=Colorado Newsline |publisher=States Newsroom |date=5 November 2020}}</ref>
After leaving the Colorado General Assembly on January 1, 2023, Garnett became Gov. Jared Polis' chief of staff.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Goodland |first1=Marianne |title=Gov. Jared Polis names House Speaker Alec Garnett as new chief of staff |url=https://www.coloradopolitics.com/governor/gov-jared-polis-names-house-speaker-alec-garnett-as-new-chief-of-staff/article_2adf2488-6441-11ed-ad14-539fa6283a7c.html |access-date=10 August 2023 |agency=Colorado Politics |date=14 November 2022}}</ref> He resigned the position on September 13, 2024.<ref name=Paul />
==Personal life== Garnett's father, Stan, is the former district attorney for Boulder County, Colorado.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.dailycamera.com/news/boulder/ci_27276902/alec-garnett-son-boulder-d-marks-first-day|title = Boulder| date=7 March 2024 }}</ref>
Garnett is married to Emily Renwick Garnett. They have three children and live in Denver, Colorado.{{Failed verification|date=February 2024}} Emily is an attorney at Brownstein.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bhfs.com/people/attorneys/g-k/emily-garnett|title= Emily R. Garnett}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
{{s-start}} {{s-par|us-co-hs}} {{s-bef|before=KC Becker}} {{s-ttl|title=Majority Leader of the Colorado House of Representatives|years=2019–2021}} {{s-aft|after=Daneya Esgar}} |- {{s-off}} {{s-bef|before=KC Becker}} {{s-ttl|title=Speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives|years=2021–2023}} {{s-aft|after=Julie McCluskie}} {{s-end}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garnett, Alec}} Category:21st-century members of the Colorado General Assembly Category:Democratic Party members of the Colorado House of Representatives Category:Living people Category:Politicians from Denver Category:Speakers of the Colorado House of Representatives Category:University of Colorado Denver alumni Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
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