麻豆影院

Former CU 麻豆影院 student body president听Joe Neguse听made a name for himself in Colorado. Now he鈥檚 doing it in Washington, D.C.

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There he is with Nancy Pelosi in the House Chamber. There he is making phone calls with Joe Biden. There he is addressing the press, Bernie Sanders behind one shoulder, Cory Booker behind the other.

That鈥檚 him on C-Span, CNN and CBS鈥� 鈥淔ace the Nation.鈥�

Former CU 麻豆影院 student body president Joe Neguse (Econ, PolSci鈥�05; Law鈥�09) made a name for himself in Colorado. Now he鈥檚 doing it in Washington, D.C.

In November the one-time Baker Hall resident was handily elected to Congress from Colorado鈥檚 2nd District, which includes 麻豆影院, becoming the first CU graduate to represent the university鈥檚 hometown in the House of Representatives since 1975 and the first African-American elected to Congress from any part of Colorado.

Neguse, 34, hadn鈥檛 been sworn in yet when he emerged as a prominent member of Congress鈥� incoming class, the most demographically diverse in the nation鈥檚 history. Within weeks of the Nov. 6 election, he was elected to the House Democratic leadership as co-freshman representative. Soon afterward, he was asked to deliver the party鈥檚 final weekly address of 2018.

Since taking office Jan. 3, Neguse has won seats on the House Judiciary and Natural Resources committees, the latter of particular interest to Colorado, given its influence over policy affecting public lands, outdoor recreation and wildlife. As of late January, he had introduced more bills than any freshman member of the 116th Congress.

No one who knows him is surprised.

鈥淵ou never saw him wasting time,鈥� said Steve Fenberg (EnvSt鈥�06), majority leader of the Colorado State Senate, recalling his days with Neguse at CU, where they became close. 鈥淗e was always doing something in service of his goals.鈥�

American Tale听

The son of Eritrean refugees and a self-described 鈥渆ternal optimist,鈥� Neguse has been on an upward trajectory in public life since his teens.

Born in California and raised in Highlands Ranch, Colo., he arrived at CU as a freshman in August 2002 with an impulse toward 鈥渃ivic activism,鈥� he said in a January interview with the Coloradan.
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"I reflect a great deal on their journey," Neguse said of his parents,
who fled Eritrea in the early 1980s.

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He made connections in student government, worked on projects related to diversity, affordability and higher education finance, and eventually became a tri-executive, or co-president. He campaigned for statewide ballot measures and served as a 麻豆影院 Housing Authority commissioner, a city council-appointed post, while earning a reputation as a thorough student with a sense of humor and authentic humility.

听Amid all that, Neguse managed to hold down a job at the CU Rec Center, find time for intramural basketball, write an honors thesis about failing nation-states and graduate from CU a semester early with two majors and summa cum laude honors.

鈥淚 distinctly remember him coming in one week having consulted sources tracing back in African history to the 15th century,鈥� said CU political scientist David S. Brown, who led Neguse鈥檚 honors thesis committee (and whom Neguse credits with 鈥渁 profound impact on my career鈥�). 鈥淗e uncovered pre-colonial trade routes to help explain why certain countries were able to maintain fairly stable exchange rates, a key government responsibility that is usually beyond the ability of most failed states.鈥�

Brown added: 鈥淚 feel honored that Joe regards me as a mentor, but I know better 鈥� I鈥檝e always been the one learning from him.鈥�

Between Neguse鈥檚 December 2005 graduation and his return to CU for law school (where he would be elected class president), he worked for Andrew Romanoff, then speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives, and co-founded New Era Colorado, a nonprofit foundation that promotes civic engagement among young people through voter-registration drives and leadership training.

By 2008, according to the Denver Post, Romanoff was already joking that 鈥渙ne day we will all be working for Joe.鈥�

That was the year Neguse, then 24 and still in law school, won election to the CU Board of Regents, which governs all four CU campuses. Among the youngest Regents ever, he served six years, representing the district he now serves in Congress.

In the years to come, Neguse would join one of Denver鈥檚 oldest law firms, Holland & Hart, run for Colorado Secretary of State, fall short, and join then-Gov. John Hickenlooper鈥檚 cabinet as executive director of the state鈥檚 consumer protection agency.

In June 2017, just after Jared Polis, now governor, announced he would seek that office instead of a sixth term in Congress, Neguse said he would run for the seat. Now he鈥檚 a sitting member of the House of Representatives, serving alongside an unprecedented number of women, the first Muslim and Native American women and the youngest congresswoman, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, 29.

Neguse鈥檚 background gives his arrival as a major Colorado public figure a quintessentially American cast.

Born in the U.S. to immigrant parents who fled chaos in Eritrea in the 1980s, he grew up in Highlands Ranch and attended ThunderRidge High School. His parents, Debesai and Azeib Neguse, put themselves through school and raised Neguse and his sister, Sarah, with an appreciation for opportunity.

鈥淚 reflect a great deal on their journey,鈥� said Neguse, whose parents, wife Andrea (Jour鈥�11) and infant daughter Natalie attended his swearing-in. 鈥淚t鈥檚 never too far from my mind.鈥�

Washington

His early weeks in the capital were predictably busy.

Neguse set up shop in the Longworth House Office Building, began hiring staff, including district director and deputy chief of staff Sally Anderson (IntlAf鈥�12), gave his first speech on the House floor and held town hall meetings in Estes Park, Fort Collins and Broomfield. He participated in efforts to end the 35-day government shutdown, introduced a flurry of bills 鈥� and spent a lot of time in the air. By his count, he took 10 flights in his first month in office.

During a mid-January return to Colorado, he came to CU for a ceremonial second swearing-in at Colorado Law. His former professor Melissa Hart, now a state Supreme Court justice, administered the oath in Wittemyer Courtroom before an assembly that included Polis and former Colorado Law Dean Phil Weiser, now the state attorney general.

In brief remarks, Hart recalled that Neguse鈥檚 first law school class was the opening session of her civil procedure course. When she entered the room, she said, she noticed one student had the attention of most of the others.
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"Exactly the kind of person you might want as your Congressman."

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Describing Neguse as smart, funny, collaborative and 鈥渆xtremely kind,鈥� she called him 鈥渆xactly the kind of person you might want as your Congressman,鈥� regardless of party affiliation.

Neguse鈥檚 early priorities in Washington have included public lands protection, voting rights, climate change, prescription drug costs, gun safety and immigration.

Higher education is on his agenda, too.

Well versed in the challenges facing colleges and universities from his years as a regent, Neguse said he was preparing legislation that would make it easier for students to transfer credits between two- and four-year schools, and is looking at ways to lower textbook costs.

He also plans to advocate, as he has since he was a student, for greater access to financial support for public higher education.

Constituents passing through Washington should feel at ease relaying their priorities in person: Beneath his office nameplate, Neguse has posted a sign that reads, 鈥淭his office belongs to the people of 2nd Congressional district听of Colorado.鈥�

In our print edition, this story appears under the title "The Congressman." Comment on this story? Email editor@colorado.edu.

Top image by Getty Images/AAron Ontiveroz/Contributor