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Congressman Mike Coffman has been studying Spanish for less than two years, but he launches into it with the seeming comfort and ability of a veteran speaker.

The Colorado Republican, who won re-election in 2014 in what was considered the most competitive House race in the country, drew some skepticism when he began taking Spanish and going to Latino neighborhoods and adopting a more moderate view of issues such as comprehensive immigration reform.

His districts boundaries were redrawn in 2011, after the Census came out a year earlier, and suddenly the predominantly white, Republican area was ethnically diverse including 20 percent Latino and was winnable by a Democrat.

That made last year's mid-term election, as Politico put it, "a proxy war for the national Democratic and Republican parties" in the battle for the growing Latino electorate.

Coffman, 60, does not deny that the need to reach out to Latinos, a community he concedes that he knew very little about, was non-negotiable if he was to remain in Congress.

But what began as a survival tactic, Coffman said, developed into a genuine interest and respect for Latinos and the Spanish language.

Where many politicians drop such outreach and nearly vanish from certain communities once an election is over, Coffman, who won re-election in 2012 and 2014, engages with Latinos and studies the language as if he were still campaigning.

Es muy importante para la comunidad, Coffman said in an interview with Fox News Latino where the questions were in English but he often responded in Spanish.

Its a sign of respect for the community, he said, translating his response to why he dove into learning Spanish, a language he continues to study several times a week with his Colombian-born tutor. Its been exciting for me to reach out to Hispanics, Asians, African immigrants and learn.

My district totally, dramatically changed, Coffman said. I lost a lot of my more Republican areas, and got a heavy immigrant population.

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GOP congressman Mike Coffman keeps up Latino outreach long after re-election

The following stories are the first of a four-day series detailing the views of Republican and Democrat candidates for Fayette County commissioner.

Republican voters will choose two of the four candidates seeking the party nod in the Fayette County commission race when they go to the polls next month.

Incumbent Commissioner Angela M. Zimmerlink, Dr. Evelyn Hovanec of North Union Township, David Lohr of South Connellsville and Patrick Lion of Uniontown will square off in the May 19 primary.

The winners will face their two Democratic challengers for the three available seats on the board.

The candidates met with the Herald-Standard editorial board recently to discuss their views on a wide range of topics, including economic development, the operation of departments and their views as to how the county should address overcrowding at its lockup.

While members of the same party, the four had varying opinions as to how to end fees associated with prison overcrowding, or to stem recidivism.

Currently, Zimmerlink and Commissioner Vince Zapotosky are supporting the renovation and expansion of the current lockup, though officials have yet to unveil proposed plans or costs associated with the work.

Zimmerlink said since she took office in 2004, she has been aware of the growing inmate population and has addressed her concerns with the prison board.

Zimmerlink said that after the prison board unanimously agreed not to move ahead with the construction of a new building more than a decade ago, she challenged them to address the growing population.

It was me who said lets address overcrowding; we can either do nothing; we can decide we can do new construction or renovation, said Zimmerlink. At that time, (the vote not to continue with phase two) was unanimous; not just three people, seven people said were going to continue on with the court programs that were just beginning to get started.

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Republican commissioner candidates discuss prison plans

RFRA Republican fix
The clock is ticking for lawmakers working to clarify Indiana #39;s new religious freedom law.

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RFRA Republican fix - Video

Three sitting congressmen and the newly chosen Manhattan GOP chairwoman are on a short list of potential Republican challengers to Sen. Charles Schumer next year, The Post has learned.

Two of the congressman, both from upstate, are pro-choice and pro-gay-marriage, making them exceptions in a socially conservative New York party but also making them promising as statewide contenders, said a knowledgeable Republican activist.

The third congressman, Rep. Peter King of Nassau County, is conservative on social issues but is also a high-profile critic of some of the GOPs most prominent national conservative activists, including Sen. Ted Cruz, an announced presidential candidate.

While King, 71, has toyed with the possibility of mounting a presidential campaign himself, hes demonstrated little popularity with the national GOP base and is widely seen as unlikely to do so. I really think King might be interested in going after Schumer, the GOP activist contended.

Adele Malpass, wife of former New York Senate hopeful and Reagan and George H. W. Bush official David Malpass, took over the long-struggling Manhattan, or New York County, GOP Committee in December, and is touted as having a promising future.

Shes also a social liberal with considerable financial resources, but she told The Post that shes not interested in running next year.

No, no, no, under no circumstances, said Malpass, insisting shes concentrating her energies on the difficult task of rebuilding the near-non-existent city GOP.

The two socially liberal congressmen are Chris Gibson, of Kinderhook, who recently announced that hell leave Congress after next year, and Richard Hanna of Utica, who only narrowly won a primary last year against Tea Party-backed Assemblywoman Claudia Tenney.

Gibson, a retired Army colonel and combat veteran with a Ph.D. in government from Cornell, has declared hes interested in running for governor in 2018. But Malpass and other GOP activists would like to see him challenge Schumer.

I think hed be a very strong statewide candidate. Hes very conservative on everything but on social issues, said Malpass.

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Top Republican candidates to challenge Chuck Schumer

Martin Bashir: Ted Cruz Is The David Koresh of the Republican Party
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Martin Bashir: Ted Cruz Is The David Koresh of the Republican Party - Video