JENA GRISWOLD
Jena Griswold is from rural Colorado and grew up in a working-class family, which influences her perspective on economic opportunities and the importance of civic participation.
She earned her bachelor's degree from Whitman College and her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she received the Penn Law International Human Rights Fellowship (now called the Global Justice Fellowship), which supports Juris Doctor students in pursuing international public interest internships over the summer. The program is designed to immerse students in the law and legal culture of another part of the world and to work on the most pressing global issues, with students working on issues ranging from women's rights, to rule of law development, to criminal law reform, and international prosecution of human rights violations.
Before being elected as Secretary of State, she worked as an attorney and served in the Obama administration as a liaison in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Elected in 2018, she became the youngest Secretary of State in the U.S. at that time and the first Democratic woman to hold this office in Colorado. In this role, she has prioritized campaign finance reform, expanded voter registration and mail-in voting access, enhanced election security through robust cybersecurity protocols, and increased transparency in government.
Jena has also worked closely with federal agencies to identify and counter foreign interference attempts in Colorado's elections. As chair of the Democratic Association of Secretaries of State, she has led national efforts to coordinate election security measures across states and has been a vocal advocate for federal voting rights legislation. She has consistently defended Colorado's election systems against false claims of fraud and has worked to counter disinformation campaigns that undermine public confidence in democratic processes, while also championing measures to protect election workers from harassment and threats.
Jena gained national attention when she defended a lawsuit filed by six Colorado voters seeking to prevent Trump from appearing on the state's Republican presidential primary ballot. The lawsuit contended that Trump should be disqualified from running in future elections because he violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment with his role in the January 6 insurrection. The Colorado Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, but the U.S. Supreme Court reversed that decision.
Most recently, Jena has stood firm against federal overreach, refusing to comply with the Trump administration's Department of Justice demands for Colorado voters' sensitive personal information, including full names, dates of birth, addresses, and driver's license or Social Security numbers.
She has led a coalition of secretaries of state in demanding transparency from the Department of Justice regarding its voter data collection practices. Throughout her tenure, Jena Griswold has remained an unwavering defender of election integrity, voter privacy, and democratic principles, demonstrating that protecting democracy sometimes requires the courage to say no to federal pressure.
In April 2025, she announced her candidacy for Colorado Attorney General, where she aims to continue her commitment to protecting the rights and voices of all Coloradans.
