DEMOCRAT

John Szemler

Colorado House District 8 2026 · 2026

Policy Positions

45%

Avg Confidence

Issue Areas

Find Your Alignment →

Policy Positions

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Economy

2 positions

Do you support using tariffs as a tool to address trade imbalances with other countries?

Neutral

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found on John Szemler's position on tariffs; position inferred from insufficient public record for this candidate seeking CO-8. Fact-check this →

Would you support raising the federal minimum wage to $17 per hour?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found on this specific policy for John Szemler; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive alignment typical of Colorado District 8 Democratic candidates. Fact-check this →

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Education

1 position

Would you support canceling up to $50,000 in federal student loan debt per borrower?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct statements or voting record found for John Szemler on student loan cancellation; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive policy alignment typical of Democratic candidates in competitive Colorado districts. Fact-check this →

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Environment

3 positions

Would you support legislation to reduce US carbon emissions by 50% by 2035?

Support

Party InferenceJohn Szemler is a Democrat running in CO-8 with no publicly available detailed record on this specific emissions target; position is inferred from party affiliation and the general Democratic platform supporting aggressive climate action, tempered by uncertainty about his specific stance on the 50%-by-2035 timeline. Fact-check this →

Do you support legislation to reduce US carbon emissions by 50% from 2005 levels by 2035?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found on this specific emissions target; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general climate policy alignment typical of Colorado Democratic candidates, with limited publicly available record for this candidate. Fact-check this →

Do you support stopping the issuance of new federal permits for oil and gas drilling on public lands and offshore waters?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct statement or voting record found for John Szemler on this specific issue; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive environmental stances typical of Colorado District 8 Democratic candidates, with limited public record available. Fact-check this →

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Foreign Policy

3 positions

Would you support maintaining or increasing current levels of US foreign assistance to allied and developing nations?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct statements or voting record found for John Szemler on foreign assistance; position inferred from Democratic Party alignment and general progressive foreign policy tendencies, with low confidence due to limited public record for this candidate. Fact-check this →

Would you support increasing the federal defense budget by more than 5% annually?

Oppose

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found on this specific question; position inferred from Democratic Party norms and typical progressive candidate stances in competitive Colorado districts, which generally favor scrutiny of large defense budget increases. Fact-check this →

Would you support increasing the federal defense budget by more than 5% per year above the rate of inflation?

Oppose

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found on this specific issue; position inferred from John Szemler's Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive tendencies, as Democrats typically oppose large defense budget increases above inflation, though Szemler's specific defense views are not well-documented. Fact-check this →

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Gun Policy

3 positions

Would you support universal background checks for all firearm purchases in the US?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct statement or voting record found for John Szemler on universal background checks; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive candidate profile, with limited available evidence for this relatively lower-profile race. Fact-check this →

Would you support requiring background checks for all firearm purchases in the US, including private sales and gun show transactions?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct voting record or explicit statements found for John Szemler on universal background checks; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive lean typical of CO-8 Democratic candidates, with limited candidate-specific evidence available. Fact-check this →

Would you support a federal ban on the manufacture and sale of semi-automatic rifles with detachable magazines to civilian buyers?

Support

Party InferenceJohn Szemler is a Democratic candidate for CO-8 with limited public record; position inferred from party affiliation and general Democratic platform supporting assault weapons restrictions, with no direct statements found on this specific policy. Fact-check this →

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Healthcare

2 positions

Would you support expanding Medicare to cover all Americans regardless of age?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found for Szemler's position on Medicare for All; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive lean typical of Colorado District 8 candidates, with limited public record available for this challenger. Fact-check this →

Do you support federal legislation allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices with pharmaceutical manufacturers?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct statements or voting record found for Szemler on Medicare drug price negotiation; position inferred from his Democratic affiliation and general progressive policy orientation as a challenger candidate in CO-8, where support for this policy is a near-universal Democratic position following passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. Fact-check this →

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Immigration

3 positions

Would you support a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have lived in the US for more than 5 years?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct statements or voting record found for John Szemler on this specific issue; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general platform alignment, as Szemler is a relatively obscure challenger candidate with limited public record. Fact-check this →

Would you support a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have lived and worked continuously in the US for more than 5 years?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct statements or voting record found for John Szemler on immigration pathways; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive leanings typical of Colorado CD-8 Democratic candidates, with limited candidate-specific evidence available. Fact-check this →

Would you support significantly increasing federal funding for border security infrastructure and personnel at the US southern border?

Neutral

Party InferenceJohn Szemler is a relatively obscure Democratic challenger in CO-8 with limited publicly available policy record; position inferred primarily from party affiliation and general Democratic mainstream positioning, which tends to support some border security investment but with conditions and comprehensive reform attached. Fact-check this →

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Taxes

3 positions

Would you support increasing the top marginal income tax rate to 50% for income over $10 million?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found on this specific tax policy for John Szemler; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive tax rhetoric common among 2024 Democratic House candidates, with low confidence due to limited public record. Fact-check this →

Would you support raising the top federal income tax rate to 50% for individual income exceeding $10 million per year?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found for John Szemler's position on a 50% top marginal rate; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive tax rhetoric common among CO-8 district candidates, but confidence is low due to lack of specific record. Fact-check this →

Would you support raising the federal corporate income tax rate from 21% to 28%?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found for Szemler's position on corporate tax rates; position inferred from Democratic Party alignment and general progressive fiscal policy norms for a Colorado House challenger. Fact-check this →

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Voting Rights

1 position

Would you support federal legislation requiring all states to automatically register eligible citizens to vote when they interact with government agencies?

Support

Party InferenceNo direct evidence found on automatic voter registration specifically; position inferred from Democratic Party affiliation and general progressive platform orientation typical of CO-8 Democratic candidates. Fact-check this →