Denver councilmember Sarah Parady says she will resign Aug. 5, likely putting seat on November ballot

Denver At-Large Councilmember Sarah Parady said at Monday’s City Council meeting that she plans to resign effective Aug. 5 because of health problems, a move she said is intended to put the vacancy on the Nov. 3 ballot instead of triggering a separate citywide special election.

Parady told colleagues she is "not able to continue on council due to my health." She also said she had spoken with the Clerk’s Office and City Attorney’s Office before settling on the Aug. 5 date, and said she chose that timing because a citywide election is already scheduled for November and because she did not want to impose "the expense of a special election" or risk a low-turnout one-race ballot.

Denver’s charter says an at-large council vacancy is filled by a special election called by council 120 to 130 days after council declares the vacancy exists, unless another citywide election is already scheduled within 160 days of that declaration. If council declares the vacancy after Parady’s resignation takes effect Aug. 5, the Nov. 3 coordinated election would fall within that 160-day window.

Parady’s announcement does not itself create the vacancy. The charter says council must still declare the vacancy by resolution before the election is called. Denver Elections says candidates or ballot issues must file paperwork with the Clerk and Recorder or Secretary of State, and petition signatures must be verified before a candidate is referred to the ballot.

The resignation is also already reshaping council committee leadership. After Parady’s announcement, Council President Amanda Sandoval said during the same meeting that Parady would be removed as chair of the Community Planning and Housing Committee but remain a voting member. Sandoval said Council Pro Tem Diana Romero Campbell will become chair, Councilmember Amanda Sawyer will become vice chair, and Councilmember Kevin Flynn will become vice chair of the South Platte River Committee.

The June 1 council agenda shows the Community Planning and Housing Committee handling immigration legal-defense funding, affordable-housing loans and Proposition 123 homebuyer assistance, among other housing and land-use matters.

Parady said she plans to continue serving until Aug. 5 and to show up for important votes, though she asked for "grace and understanding" around limits on her capacity while dealing with her health.

What remains unclear is how quickly council will adopt the vacancy resolution after Aug. 5, what exact candidate-filing timeline the Elections Division will set for the race, and how crowded the field for one of Denver’s two at-large council seats may become.