Daniel Kagan

Daniel Kagan (born January 1953) is an American politician in the U.S. state of Colorado. An attorney, Kagan was appointed by a Democratic Party vacancy committee to the Colorado House of Representatives in March 2009 to fill the vacancy caused by Anne McGihon's resignation. Subsequently, elected and re-elected in the 2010, 2012, and 2014 general elections, he represented House District 3, which encompasses south Denver. In the 2016 general election, he was elected to District 26 of the Colorado Senate, beating his Republican opponent with 53.48% of the vote. He resigned from the senate on January 11, 2019.

On 22 January 2018, Kagan used an electronic cigarette in the Colorado State Capitol while presiding as a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Vaping is not illegal in Colorado, except in schools, and Kagan, a long-time smoker, said he does it as a substitute for cigarettes.

Senator Kagan was accused of using the women's restroom on "multiple occasions," prompting the Colorado State Patrol to limit the Senator's access to the women's restroom. In April 2018, Republican Senator Beth Martinez Humenik filed a workplace sexual harassment complaint against Kagan for using the women's bathroom "multiple times." Kagan admitted to being in the women's restroom, but that it only happened once. Female staffers allege he has been in the same restroom multiple times, dating back to 2017. The final 21-page investigative report confirmed Senator Martinez-Humenik's claim, finding that Senator Daniel Kagan (D-3) had repeatedly engaged in this behavior, as reported by Denver CBS4 Reporter Shaun Boyd during a live broadcast on 09/20/2018 and a story posted online entitled "Investigation Reveals Male State Senator Used Women’s Bathroom Repeatedly"

Between November 2017 and April 2018, six Colorado state legislators were accused of sexual harassment covering a range of allegations and circumstances.

During the 2013 session Rep. Kagan sponsored a bill to allow law enforcement to quickly get cell phone location information in emergency situations. He also sponsored legislation creating a Sexual Assault Victim Emergency Payment Program to make sure that a victim of sexual assault does not have a huge hospital bill to pay.

In the 2012 session Rep. Kagan sponsored the Skills for Jobs Act which directs Colorado to create more accurate workforce projections so that workforce development and training programs are teaching skills that are actually in demand in the labor market. During the 2011 session Rep. Kagan supported a bill allowing children on the Basic Children's Health Plan to visit a health clinic in their schools without a copay.

In the 2012 General Election, Representative Kagan faced Republican challenger Brian Watson. Watson is the CEO and Founder of Northstar Commercial Partners. Kagan was reelected by a margin of 50.3% to 45.1%.

Kagan defeated Christine Mastin in the 2010 general election for a term that will run through 2012. He serves on the House Finance, and House Judiciary committees. Among the bills he has sponsored into law are measures to preserve low income housing, and measures to assist Colorado school-based health centers.

Rep. Anne McGihon announced that she would resign from the legislature, effective March 27, 2009 Kagan, who had already filed to run to replace the term-limited McGihon, declared his candidacy for the vacancy appointment.

A vacancy committee, meeting during a spring blizzard, elected Kagan to the seat over ten other candidates after three rounds of voting; Kagan edged out blogger and legislative aide Aaron Silverstein in the final round of voting to win the seat. Kagan had volunteered in McGihon's legislative office earlier during the legislative session. He was sworn into office on March 30, 2009.

The son of Joseph Kagan, Baron Kagan - a man imprisoned in the UK for corruption and stripped of his knighthood - Daniel was educated at Rugby School, the University of East Anglia, George Washington University (BA, 1984), and Yale Law School (JD, 1987).