Ethics allegations in Colorado have forced a Democratic state senator to resign her seat and the Republican House minority leader to step aside.

• Position: People & Politics - Senator Deanna Hanna and House Minority Leader Joe Stengel - Brief article

Ethics allegations in Colorado have forced a Democratic state senator to resign her seat and the Republican House minority leader to step aside. Senator Deanna Hanna sparked an ethics scandal when she demanded "reparations" from a group who had supported her opponent in the 2004 campaign. She heeded calls for her resignation, but it threw the Senate into a 17-17 tie for two days. That's how long her seat had to sit empty according the secretary of state's interpretation of a law governing reappointments. Representative Betty Boyd was appointed to fill Hanna's seat. The two-day delay filling Boyd's seat was not as critical in the House, where the Democrats have a 5-seat margin.

Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Joe Stengel stepped down the day an ethics investigation was...