The top Republican in the Colorado House, Rose Pugliese, resigned from office Monday following clashes with Democratic lawmakers in a special session and a scandal involving a secret photograph of another lawmaker.

In a letter to her supporters, Pugliese said she was leaving elected office to focus on her children.

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“I have spent the months reflecting on my life choices, especially in relation to my children. As a single mom, I raise my two children on my own. I am all that they have. There is nothing more important in my life than them. They have made so many sacrifices for me to be able to represent you. But they also need their mom right now, and I need to keep them safe,” she wrote. 

She was elected to be the Colorado House Minority Leader in 2024 after former Colorado House Minority Leader Mike Lynch resigned after failing to disclose an arrest for drunk driving and possessing a firearm while intoxicated.

Her resignation comes after she clashed with Democrats on the Colorado House floor during a special session. The clashes followed the abrupt resignation of Republican state Rep. Ryan Armagost, the former House minority whip, who took a picture of a Democratic lawmaker without her knowledge during floor proceedings. 

He then sent that picture of Democratic state Rep. Yara Zokaie to fellow Republican state lawmakers, some of whom compared her outfit to that of a stripper and a prostitute. The photo then became the subject of a social media harassment campaign against Zokaie.

Pugliese was in the group chat where the photo was posted and crudely discussed, but she did not engage in the comments about Zokaie. She removed Armagost from his committee assignments three months after she knew the photo had been sent in the group chat.

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“I take this matter very seriously and do not condone this behavior,” Pugliese told CPR News last month about the posting of the picture to social media. 

The top Republican in the state Senate chamber, Colorado Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen, also resigned this year, citing a new job at a conservative organization.