Q&A with County Commissioner Marta Loachamin
Marta Loachamin
County Commissioner | Boulder County, CO
Tell us about your background. What are the experiences, including education, that make up the person you currently are?
My background is in banking, finance, mortgage, real estate, teaching and consulting. I have been self-employed for 20 years and raised two kiddos as a single parent.
What was your trigger moment and why this specific office?
After many years of working in community efforts to be heard as part of our local Latino community, I took an opportunity to work in flood recovery in CO to show the data of inequities and barriers of access to government and resources. I realized I needed to help locally in my community at a decision-making table.
What made you feel qualified to run for office?
My background is diverse from an industry standpoint. The experience of working within other systems and confronting barriers of access helps inform my daily decisions and support internal work at the county to make changes.
Do you work full-time or part-time?
Full-time.
Most people don’t know what their elected official does on a daily basis. What’s a typical day looking like for you?
Days are back-to-back meetings with staff, community members, and public land use hearings.
Additionally, they might not know what their elected official is responsible for. What is your role in comparison to other elected offices on your level?
My role is unique as we serve residents throughout our county and most of those residents also live in city boundaries where they have their own local government. It can be confusing about who to ask for help on a resource or enforcement question. Our policies are for the unincorporated areas of the county and we can influence other policies, bill writing, legislative actions with our policy teams.
What do you think people would be surprised to know someone in your position does?
I spent some time a couple of weeks ago crafting interview questions for a new director position.
What are 3-5 skills needed to be successful in the elected office you served in/are currently serving in?
Listener- with the intent to learn, Adaptive-willing to learn new systems, and Ambitious-the hard work is critical and tough.
What’s the best part about serving in elected office?
I was elected in November 2020, installed in 2021 and we are still not in person at our facility- I’ll be able to answer this question 6 months from now. ☺️
What has been the accomplishment you’re most proud of while in office?
Being able to use this platform of an elected official to testify, participate and be present with community groups who may not have had that support previously, makes me proud of this role.
In terms of finances, how much money did you have to raise for your campaign?
I was outraised in my campaign 5×1 so my race was unique to what campaigns typically tell candidates. I had a contested Primary in 2020-in a virtual caucus process.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to someone who’s thinking about running for the position you serve/have served in their community?
You can never start too early in community service and engagement- the path looks different for everyone so get clear on why you want to serve and it will unfold.