Colorado state Rep. Said Sharbini on Monday announced he will resign from the House of Representatives at the end of the year, saying his family could “no longer endure” the financial strain of serving in the state legislature.
Sharbini, a first-term Democrat from Brighton, wrote in a letter to the chief clerk of the House that he would resign his seat effective Dec. 31.
“This is a common problem for many legislators and creates a prohibitive environment for voices to be heard,” wrote Sharbini, who is a lawyer. “Representation is held by those with the means to sustain themselves, and that has quickly become something I can no longer do.”
Colorado lawmakers are paid less than $44,000 a year. Sharbini is a former public defender who now works in private practice.
He’s the second first-year House member to resign this month. State Rep. Ruby Dickson, D-Greenwood Village, quit effective Dec. 11 citing the “sensationalistic and vitriolic nature of the current political environment.” Sharbini and Dickson were among 30 new House members who took office in January who had never served in the legislature before.
Like Dickson, Sharbini said a vitriolic environment at the Capitol contributed to his resignation, which was first reported by Colorado Politics. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“The polarized and contentious atmosphere has hindered constructive dialogue,” Sharbini wrote. “I truly hope those that continue on with this work take notice and begin to have more open and honest dialogue about future legislation and decorum in the chamber.”
In a statement, House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, called Sharbini a “champion” for his district who “always stayed true to his values.”
House Majority Leader Monica Duran said she was grateful for his “kindness of character.”
“Representative Sharbini understood how tough our work could be, and his good humor made many days better,” Duran, D-Wheat Ridge, said in a statement. “I’ll miss his presence very much.”
Sharbini was unopposed in his 2022 primary and won 59% of the vote in the general election in his heavily Democratic Adams County district.
Dickson’s replacement will be selected at a Jan. 3 vacancy committee meeting, with four candidates vying for the seat thus far. Sharbini’s replacement in House District 31 will be the 29th lawmaker in the 100-member General Assembly who at some point was appointed to a position in the Capitol by a vacancy committee.
Vacancy committees have been criticized because they let only a few dozen party activists select lawmakers who will represent tens of thousands of Coloradans. In 2022, the legislature enacted a law to make the committees include more participants. It was sponsored by former state lawmaker and now Colorado GOP Chairman Dave Williams.
A 2024 ballot measure being pursued by Kent Thiry, the wealthy former CEO of the Denver-based dialysis giant DaVita, would eliminate legislative vacancy committees starting in 2026 and require that special elections be called to replace state lawmakers who resign, are expelled or die in the middle of their terms.