July 28, 2010 09:45 PM UTC

BREAKING: Karen Middleton Won't Run for Re-Election

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• by: Colorado Pols

From The Colorado Statesman:

State Rep. Karen Middleton, D-Aurora, is announcing today she is halting her re-election campaign to take an out-of-state job running a national political organization.

Middleton plans to commute to the new job until her term ends in January and then leave Colorado, she said in an e-mail sent to Democratic legislators.

“This was a difficult decision for me but is primarily based on my family and personal needs and many of you know I had a difficult year with family issues,” Middleton wrote in the e-mail.

“I have accepted a wonderful new position as president of a national political organization,” Middleton wrote. “This is hot off the press, so they have to notify some folks before I publicize where I am headed.”

Middleton’s seat will likely be retained by Democrats, but the bigger impact could come after the election. Middleton was likely to push for the role of Speaker of the House — though there are questions about how far she would have gotten after often siding against the caucus last session — with the frontrunner still likely to be Rep. Andy Kerr.

Democrat Rhonda Fields has been mentioned already as a potential successor for Middleton.