Veteran Republican lawmaker Bill Cadman of Colorado Springs was selected by a vacancy committee today to replace retiring Sen. Ron May.

Cadman has served in the House of Representatives since 2000 representing Colorado's 15th district.  He was House Majority Whip during the 2003-2004 legislative session and is currently the House Republican Caucus Chair.

"I'm looking forward to serving with my friend, Bill Cadman," said Senate GOP chief and fellow El Paso County legislator Andy McElhany.  "He's a proven leader whose legislative record speaks for itself."

A veteran Republican lawmaker who authored a groundbreaking school choice initiative signed into law in 2003 was honored today for her years of advocating education reform in Colorado.

Assistant  Senate GOP leader Nancy Spence, of Centennial, who is the ranking Republlican on the Senate Education Committee, was recognized with a Charter Friend Award for her contributions to public education policy by the Colorado League of Charter Schools. Spence has been a leader in wide-ranging education reform for years in the General Assembly and before that as a longtime school board member.

Spence has fought against attempts in recent years to roll back key education reforms and has championed the increasingly popular charter-school movement. Charters, which are publicly funded schools independently run and designed by parents and others, now number about 150 in Colorado.