VICTORY: Gun safety champion Manny Rutinel elected to U.S. House

WASHINGTON —GIFFORDS PAC, the national gun violence prevention organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, congratulated Manny Rutinel on his election to represent Colorado’s 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“Congratulations to my friend Manny Rutinel on his hard-fought victory in flipping this seat. I am thrilled voters in CO-08 made their voices heard and will be sending a gun safety champion to represent them in Washington,” said former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. “The congressman-elect has what it takes to stand up to the gun lobby and I know he will fight to keep guns out of dangerous hands. GIFFORDS looks forward to working with him to pass commonsense gun safety reforms that will save lives.”

In the Colorado Assembly, Rutinel sponsored legislation to keep dangerous weapons out of Colorado schools and restrict semiautomatic weapons and rapid-fire devices. He’s also led efforts to improve collaboration between law enforcement agencies and establish processes to help quickly identify firearms and generate leads for gun-related crimes by requiring each agency in Colorado to register with eTrace.

Former Congresswoman Giffords appeared with Rutinel in Denver in July, and met with the team who powered Rutinel’s campaign to turn CO-08 blue.

Throughout the 2026 cycle, GIFFORDS also convened Accountability Town Halls to highlight Rutinel’s opponent incumbent Congressman Gabe Evans’ ties to the gun lobby and dangerous record on gun safety.