Jenise May has upended Mike Sheeley to represent the newly-redrawn House District 30.

May clenched 54.04 percent of the votes, while Sheeley garnered 41.72 percent based upon results posted at 10:45 p.m. Tuesday. Libertarian candidate Shea Lantz received the remaining 4.24 percent.

House District 30, which was redrawn during reapportionment last year, spans across parts of several cities, including Thornton, Commerce City, Aurora, Brighton and Bennett.

The district previously encompassed central Adams County and will continue to be represented in this form by Republican Rep. Kevin Priola until the end of the year.

As the first order of business on her agenda, May said she will simply do what set out to accomplish in the first place: represent her constituents.

“I ran this race, because I care about my neighborhood and our community,” May said at Joe Palooka’s in Thornton, where Adams County Democrats gathered Tuesday to watch the election results. “I want to go to the state house and represent our district to make sure that we have what we need.”

This is not the first time May has held a public office position. Before she announced her bid to run for House District 30 in January, May served as the Colorado Department of Human Services deputy director for 16 years before stepping down in January 2011, when Gov. John Hickenlooper took office.

“I’ve been on the side of unfunded mandates and people not understanding how the system works, so I want to bring that experience to the other side of the fence,” May said.

Sheeley said the race between him and May was enjoyable, because they both ran “civil and clean” campaigns.

“As far as the results are concerned, I’ve developed a view or philosophy that you don’t count your money until you’ve got the check in your hand and it clears the bank,” Sheeley said on Election Day before the final results came out. “As far as the election or its results go, I’ll worry about that whenever the final vote is counted and certified.”

Sheeley, who is currently retired, said he will continue to be active in the community and push for education reform as the Bennett 29J school district’s vice president and legislative liaison.

Jenise May 12,559

Mike Sheely 9,575