Colorado Governor Jared Polis ’96 participated in a virtual conversation with students at an event hosted by the American Whig-Cliosophic Society and the Princeton College Democrats as student groups ramp up political programming ahead of the election. In the event, titled “The Unpredictable Statesman,” Polis fielded questions about his bipartisanship, identities, and current political issues facing Colorado.
Kyler Zhou ’27, the Director of Programs for Whig-Clio, described Governor Polis as “a trailblazer in many respects,” referencing his success both in and out of politics.
Polis, who graduated from Princeton in 1996 with a degree in Politics, shared that he started his first business, American Information Systems (AIS), while at Princeton. He also touched on his time in Whig-Clio, Princeton Model Congress, and the Princeton Juggling Club. Additionally, Polis was also a member of the Colonial Club.
Zhou introduced Polis as a politician that has “worn many hats throughout his career.” He explained Polis’s career trajectory; following his entrepreneurial work, he engaged in philanthropic work by launching a foundation to donate computers and essential school supplies to schools and nonprofits. In 2008, he was elected to Congress, and ten years later was elected to serve as governor of Colorado.
Zhou noted that Polis is the first Jewish governor of Colorado and is the first openly gay man elected as a state governor in the United States.
When asked about how his identity has played a role in his career, Polis responded, ”American voters are sophisticated enough where they don’t focus on identity, it’s never really been an issue for me.”
“I found his answer quite interesting, he made it clear people see him more for who he is as a person and politician rather than his identity as a Jewish, openly gay man,” Zhou told the ‘Prince’ after the event.
Bipartisanship was frequently discussed at the event. Polis stated that working across the aisle is vital in his position as Colorado governor and claimed that “about 92 percent of the bills I sign are bipartisan.”
Some students from Colorado asked specific policy questions. For instance, Jessica Funk ’26 asked about the Marshall wildfire in 2021, which impacted her family, and what is being done to address the threat of wildfires.
Funk is the assistant business manager of the ‘Prince.’
Polis replied that the threat of wildfires has become the “main effect of climate change seen in Colorado,” and he explained that the state has two of its own firefighting helicopters and is working with the Conservation Corps to remove vegetation in the path of wildfires.
“I wanted to hear about his efforts with fire mitigation and fire prevention,” Funk told the ‘Prince’ in an interview. “I feel like he and the rest of Colorado’s delegation have done a good job with it.”
Another student asked Polis about housing policy in Colorado. Polis described the housing crisis as a result of increased demand with no matching rise in supply due to constraints regarding housing construction.
“Improving public schools and health care can be hard, but housing is pretty easy if you just let it be built,” he said.
Polis was also asked about the reasoning behind his endorsement of Proposition 131, which amended state election law to create a top-four ranked choice system for primary elections.
“If you don’t want to settle for the lesser of two evils, why not have four choices?” he said.
The conversation, hosted in the Whig Hall Senate Chamber, yielded a crowd of approximately 40 students. Alex Cheng ’27 told the ‘Prince’ that he attended out of interest in Polis’s identity and “appreciated his emphasis on bipartisanship, representing the spirit of Whig-Clio well.”
One student asked Polis to do a Yoda impression, and he complied. According to Zhou, Polis “adds a deal of fun that diffuses tension in politics today.”
Cynthia Torres is a News contributor for the ‘Prince.’ She is from New Bedford, Mass.
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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