Patrick Neville (born 1983)[1] is an American politician and a former member of the Colorado House of Representatives from the 45th District, which included much of Douglas County.[2] A Republican, Neville served as the Minority Leader of the House, having been elected to this position at the beginning of his second term in January 2017, until being replaced before the 2021 session.
Patrick Neville | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minority Leader of the Colorado House of Representatives | |
| In office January 11, 2017 – January 13, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Brian DelGrosso |
| Succeeded by | Hugh McKean |
| Member of the Colorado House of Representatives from the 45th district | |
| In office January 7, 2015 – January 9, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Carole Murray |
| Succeeded by | Lisa Frizell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1983 (age 40–41) Littleton, Colorado, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Relatives | Tim Neville (father) |
| Education | University of Colorado, Denver (BA) |
| Website | Campaign website |
His father Tim Neville is a former Colorado State Senator.
Education
editNeville earned a BA in economics from the University of Colorado Denver.[3] Neville went to Columbine High School, surviving its 1999 massacre.[4]
Political career
editNeville was first elected to the State House in 2014, winning 69% of the vote. Running for reelection in 2016, he beat his Democratic challenger, winning 70% of the vote. He won reelection again in 2018 with 62% of the vote.[5]
Neville has raised doubts about the 2020 presidential election results, once claiming that there may have been significant voter fraud sufficient to overturn the election in multiple states that Biden won.[6] Although Neville acknowledged that he has seen no evidence of fraud, he has promoted other unsubstantiated allegations of election fraud.[6]
In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, on December 7, 2020, Neville and 7 other Republicans requested to the Speaker of the House KC Becker that a committee be formed on "election integrity" to conduct an audit of the Dominion Voting Systems used in Colorado's 2020 elections in spite of no evidence of issues.[7][8] The request was rejected, with Becker criticizing it as a promotion of "debunked conspiracy theories."[8]
During the 2021 legislative session, Neville was the lead sponsor of an anti-abortion measure that would virtually ban abortion under any circumstances. The measure was defeated in the House.[9] Early in the 2022 legislative session, Neville sponsored another bill that would have only allowed abortion under limited circumstances, making it otherwise a felony crime.[10]
Controversies
editIn 2016, Neville became the House minority leader and given control of the House Republican Caucus Fund, a fund meant to support Republicans in House elections. It was reported that Neville modified the fund by renaming it “Values First Colorado,” registering the account to his brother, and hiring his brother's media company, Rearden Strategic. Since 2017, the fund and committees run by Neville's brother has given Rearden Strategic over $1 million from the funds.[11] Corporations co-founded by Neville also received money from the fund.[11]
In December 2020, Neville doxxed a Denver Post reporter that wrote an article detailing Neville's management of the House funds by sharing their home address and voter information on Facebook.[12] Neville removed the address and responded by saying that the reporter's information was "a matter of public record".[12]
References
edit- ^ Bartells, Lynn. Colorado’s Neville family is growing into a political dynasty. The Denver Post, December 28, 2013. Viewed: 2017-01-13.
- ^ Legislative District Information after 2011 Reapportionment: House District 45. Viewed: 2017-01-13.
- ^ Neville, Patrick. This is my life. Viewed 2017-01-13.
- ^ Relman, Eliza (2018-02-20). "A Columbine survivor turned lawmaker is pushing the opposite of what many people think is the solution to end school shootings". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-12-30.
- ^ Ballotpedia. Colorado House of Representatives District 45. Viewed 2017-01-13.
- ^ a b Maulbetsch, Erik (2022-02-02). "Conservative Radio Host Urges CO Legislator to Quit Promoting 'Big Lie'". Colorado Times Recorder. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
- ^ Birkeland, Bente (7 December 2020). "GOP State Reps Ask For Election Investigation In Spite Of Audit That Uncovered No Problems". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
- ^ a b Hindi, Saja (2020-12-08). "GOP demand for probe of Colorado's Dominion voting system part of "debunked conspiracy theories," House speaker says". The Denver Post. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
- ^ Schmidt, Madeleine (2021-03-26). "Dem Lawmakers Again Block GOP's Attempts to Ban Abortion in CO". Colorado Times Recorder. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
- ^ Paul, Jesse; Ducassi, Daniel (2022-01-13). ""A fighting tone": Colorado Republicans are heading into the 2022 legislative session on the offensive". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved 2022-01-13.
- ^ a b "What happened to the Colorado Republican Party?". The Denver Post. 2020-12-20. Retrieved 2021-08-02.
- ^ a b "Colorado's outgoing House minority leader doxes Denver Post reporter". 9news.com. 22 December 2020. Retrieved 2021-08-02.