State Senate District 10 opened up this year with the forced retirement of Sen. Keith King, R-Colorado Springs, after state Democrats redrew legislative district boundaries.

And when they did, they created a vicious primary between a term-limited representative and an articulate upstart for the June 26 primary.

Rep. Larry Liston, who has served in the statehouse since 2005, is battling non-profit executive Owen Hill for the GOP nomination in district 10. And though Liston has eight years of experience to draw upon, and Hill has never held office, Hill poses a serious threat to the longtime representative.

At the El Paso County Republican Assembly in March, where district residents cast symbolic votes for Liston or Hill, the newbie crushed Liston by a 2-to-1 margin, 64 percent to 36 percent. That was after Hill highlighted an illegal immigration vote Liston cast just days before, and painted Liston as a traitor to the Republican cause. And that was even though Hill switched races, from House District 16 to Senate District 10, a significant leap from the lower chamber to the upper one. Hill lost in 2010 to Senate Majority Leader John Morse, D-Colorado Springs, in what was then Senate District 10, by 340 votes out of more than 28,000 cast.

Hill thinks he can do better, even against an incumbent in his own party.

“This is going to come down to who’s on the right side of history,” Hill said. “I think that it’s going to be pretty close.”

The assembly vote got Hill top line on the primary ballot, which many politicos think is always a small help.

Liston says Hill has twisted his record in the statehouse. In February, Liston said Hill has been using “lies and smear” against him.

“I have a proven conservative record, as opposed to my opponent, who has no record,” Liston said. “He just rants and raves.”

At the county assembly, Liston defended himself and a vote on a bill that would require all businesses to use the E-verify system to check the legal status of every worker it hires.

He voted to send the measure to another committee, because he said it needed to be more thoroughly vetted. But several other Republicans interpreted it as a vote to kill the bill.

It was perfect timing for Hill, who spoke to assembly-goers after Liston. Where Liston received little applause on the topic, Hill received a rousing ovation when he touted E-verify.

If political contributions are anything to go by, Liston is ahead, having raised $61,000 to Hill’s $43,000. And Liston has $28,000 heading into the final three weeks of the campaign. Hill has $15,000.

Liston has been endorsed by Attorney General John Suthers, the Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce, and the National Rifle Association, along with several other business groups.Hill is backed by Colorado Springs Sen. Kent Lambert and Rep. Janak Joshi, along with former state Sen. Dave Schultheis and former U.S. Sen. Bill Armstrong.

Owen Hill Photo by

Larry Liston Photo by