Incumbent Republican Commissioner Kristen “Kris” Manguso will retain her seat in local government thanks to the support of Grand County voters this fall.

Manguso defeated her Democratic challenger, William “Bill” Thompson, by a margin of 743 votes in the 2018 election. Overall a total of 3,960 voters cast ballots for Manguso while 3,207 voters cast their ballots in favor of Thompson.

“I am humbled and thankful that the people have chosen to let me serve another four years as their county commissioner,” Manguso said. ”I just want to say thank you to everybody.”

Looking ahead Manguso highlighted protection of water rights, transportation infrastructure, and a potential future expansion of the Kremmling Airport as areas she hopes to focus on in her next term as commissioner.

Originally from Littleton, Manguso spent six years in the US Air Force in the 1980s. She has lived in Grand County for two decades and was first elected Grand County Commissioner in 2014 when she replaced former commissioner Gary Bumgarner. That campaign in 2014 marked Manguso’s first official foray into politics.

Prior to becoming Grand County Commissioner Manguso spent roughly eight years working as Grand County’s planning director. Manguso currently serves on the regional transportation and planning board that helps determine where CDOT funds will be spent in the state’s northwest region.

Manguso said she sees issues connected to the Grand County Jail as the biggest issue facing Grand County government over the near to medium term. She noted the county recently signed a contract to have a needs assessment conducted for a potential future jail. Manguso said she has deep concerns about where such a facility might be built and how construction would be funded.

For his part Democratic challenger Bill Thompson said he hopes Manguso and the other commissioners will focus on issues he said were core concerns to the voters who supported him.

“I am very grateful for all the support I got from the voters,” Thompson said. “I just hope that Kris Manguso sees how close it was and the values I ran on. The water resources and natural resources in this county have to be protected. That is the main thing my voters were concerned about.”