Hetal Doshi has centered her campaign on her experience and success as a first-generation American.
Doshi, 47, talks about being the “brown woman with a funny name” in the race to be Colorado’s next Attorney General — borrowing a similar phrase from former President Barack Obama, for whom she worked for as a young attorney.
Doshi’s parents are from India, but the family eventually settled in Birmingham, Alabama. Doshi went to law school in Virginia and she worked in firms in Atlanta and New York City before moving to Colorado in 2012 to work at the U.S. Attorney’s Office. She remained there until being appointed under the Biden administration to a higher-up position working on antitrust cases. That included federal government suits against Google, Apple and Ticketmaster. She resigned from that job when Trump was re-elected in 2024.
On the campaign trail, Doshi often points out that she is the only candidate in the race thick with Democrats who has both civil and criminal legal experience.
“When we’re in a moment of crisis, that attorney general who steps into that job does not have room to learn on the job,” she said at a debate earlier this year. “I’m not going to ask anyone there to do anything that I have not done before and that I won’t be there with you.”
The candidate responded in writing to the following questions. They are shared verbatim below.
Affordability: Colorado voters cite affordability and high costs as a top concern, from gas and food prices to housing and childcare costs. What policies would you implement to address this?
“Prices skyrocket when those with power lie, cheat, and rig the game. I’ve spent more than a decade as a federal prosecutor fighting exactly this abuse of power. I haven’t just talked about corporate misconduct; I’ve actually criminally prosecuted corporations and executives. I’m the only candidate who’s stopped billion-dollar mergers. The only one who’s already won huge national cases against Big Tech for abusing their power and led first-of-their-kind criminal cases against executives illegally suppressing wages.
I hold cheaters accountable. As Attorney General, I’ll use every legal tool to protect Colorado families and fight those who rip us off.”
Democracy: What is the state of our democracy? What is working and what isn’t working? What would you do to address those problems?
“I am the daughter of immigrants who became a lawyer to hold wrongdoers accountable and fight for working families like mine. Corruption, greed, and cheating are everywhere today. And it’s those with least who pay the price as our democracy crumbles.
But we can do something about it. Courtrooms are where we stop Trump and his cronies. It’s where we fight for our rights and against ICE. It’s where truth still matters.
We deserve a lawyer with experience, judgment, and grit to fight in court for Coloradans — and win. I’ll be ready to lead these battles from Day One.”
Immigration: What needs to be done about federal immigration enforcement? Including border security and tactics by federal officers?
“The government works for us, not the other way around. Coloradans want sensible, just immigration policy, not lawlessness masquerading as safety. As an experienced prosecutor, I know how to prosecute ICE agents who violate the law. How to fight back — and win — against a federal government when it terrorizes and divides us.
This fight is personal. As a first-generation American, I’m the only person of color in this race. For our immigrant communities, I see you and stand by you. When Trump comes for Coloradans and our communities, we will hold the line and tell him: see you in court.”
