Routledge runs for 3rd congressional district

DURANGO — Independent Progressive Democrat Root Routledge filed with the Federal Election Commission on February 22 as a candidate for the U.S. Congress in Colorado’s District 3. He publicly announced his candidacy that evening in Durango at the monthly Green Drinks event at Carver’s Brewing with about 40 people in attendance. His campaign committee and Facebook name is “Root For Citizen Congressman”.

Root, 71, a USAF Vietnam veteran, was elected by the 3rd District in 2016 as a Democratic national delegate for Senator Bernie Sanders. Until his filing, he remained engaged in the Democratic Party as an at large member of the La Plata County Dems Executive Committee, which he resigned due to his candidacy; and is still a member of the Colorado State Democratic Party Central Committee.

Root has been a Westerner all his life. Born in British Columbia, he moved to the U.S. with his family at age 7 and has lived in Washington, Montana, Oregon and Colorado. He first moved to Colorado in 1974 and earned his Master’s in Statistics at Colorado State University with an emphasis in rangeland and natural resource management, ecology and environmental science. He later earned an MBA at the University of Montana, and his PhD in Industrial Engineering at Oregon State University, where he taught engineering economics. He has worked for Weyerhaeuser Company Raw Materials R&D as a systems engineer; the U.S. Forest Service as a project leader in forest fire research, and as an operations research analyst in long range forest planning. He has also worked for a Hewlett Packard printer division in quality assurance and manufacturing engineering.

In 1991 Root founded his industrial and environmental “data analytics” consulting firm Alpine Analytics, with his logo-moto “Sound ethical decisions based on data!” He moved back to Colorado in 1994, living in Bayfield for 13 years and now in Durango since 2007. Root has been a local activist and started his own eNewspaper, www.TheUnheardHerald.com, with his first edition “Keep Durango Local” in 2012. His current fourth edition publishes his pdf book titled, “Strategic Vision for a Viable American Future.”

Root notes that there are lots of experienced politicians, legislators, and lawyers in Congress; but apparently not many problem solvers. His vision focuses on “gateway issues.”

“If we don’t address these strategic viability problems first,” he says, “we will not have much of a country or planet from which we can address everything else.” The gateway issues are defined by their strategic threats and measures of outcome: healthy democracy, healthy population, healthy environment, and healthy economy.

For additional information, reach out to Root by email or phone, website and on Facebook:

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 970-403-2007

Web: www.RootForCitizenCongressman.org

Find him on Facebook as: “Root For Citizen Congressman”