Colorado Politics

 Gazette, Centennial Institute cosponsoring Republican gubernatorial debate Tuesday

The Gazette and the Centennial Institute are cosponsoring a Republican gubernatorial debate Tuesday at Colorado Christian University, featuring candidates state Rep. Scott Bottoms, a Colorado Springs pastor, and longtime GOP insider state Sen. Barb Kirkmeyer. Candidates will field questions on...

 Tina Peters thanks Polis for shortening her sentence, calls Colorado Democrats’ censure a ‘travesty’

Two days after the Colorado Democratic Party formally condemned Gov. Jared Polis over his decision last week to shorten Tina Peters’ prison sentence for tampering with election equipment, Peters heaped praise on the term-limited Democrat and slammed his party for...

 Attorney general candidate Doshi puts ‘Hetal to the metal’ in Colorado Democrat’s 1st TV ad

Democratic attorney general candidate Hetal Doshi makes clear how to pronounce her first name in the former federal prosecutor’s first TV and digital ad, which launched statewide on Friday, just over two weeks before ballots start going out to Colorado...

 Legal filings escalate tensions in Colorado House District 6 Democratic primary

With the Colorado primary just weeks away, the Democratic race in Denver’s House District 6 has erupted into dueling complaints and legal challenges, underscoring the district’s long‑running divide between moderates and progressives. In Denver’s House District 6, the Democratic primary...

 Colorado Democrats formally rebuke Gov. Jared Polis for shortening Tina Peters’ prison sentence

The Colorado Democratic Party on Wednesday formally censured Democratic Gov. Jared Polis for reducing the prison sentence of Tina Peters, the former Mesa County clerk convicted of election-related felonies, and barred the term-limited governor from speaking or appearing as an...

 Colorado Democrats launch petition to censure Gov. Jared Polis for releasing Tina Peters

Hundreds of Democrats, including party officials and current and former legislators, have signed a petition urging their party to formally censure Gov. Jared Polis over his decision to grant clemency to Tina Peters. The governor’s decision means Peters, the former...

 Democrat John Hickenlooper launches 1st ad in Colorado’s US Senate primary

U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper hits screens Tuesday with his reelection campaign’s first statewide ad, recounting highlights of the Colorado Democrat’s business and political career. The 30-second spot, set to air on digital and streaming platforms, lands six weeks before the...

 Colorado county Republican chair arrested in sting on allegations he tried to pay for sex with a child

Hunter Rivera, the 24-year-old chairman of the Weld County Republican Party, was one of two men arrested Thursday on suspicion of trying to buy sex from Larimer County Sheriff’s Office investigators who posed as minors as part of an operation...

 Colorado Gov. Jared Polis grants clemency to Tina Peters, makes her eligible for release from prison

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Friday granted clemency to Tina Peters and made the former Republican county clerk eligible for release from state prison as soon as early June, capping months of speculation that the Democratic governor would shorten a...

 Grand jury indicts 2 petition circulators in 2024 signature-forgery case

A statewide grand jury has indicted two petition circulators on allegations that they forged signatures while gathering support for a proposed constitutional amendment on the 2024 ballot. The Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser’s office said the circulators — Cherell Long...

 Colorado Democrat John Hickenlooper lands support from trio of local labor unions

Three local labor unions endorsed U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper’s bid for reelection this week, calling the Colorado Democrat a proven champion of the state’s workers and their rights. Hickenlooper’s campaign announced endorsements on Tuesday from SMART Sheet Metal Workers Local...

 Colorado lawmakers pass bill negating road-funding ballot measure

Colorado lawmakers on Wednesday approved a last‑minute amendment to a bill crafted to counter a ballot measure requiring that public funds collected for “road transportation” go to “road transportation,” setting up a high‑stakes clash over street funding and public services....

 Colorado Democrat Jason Crow calls on House leadership to ban trading on prediction markets

U.S. Rep. Jason Crow on Monday joined a bipartisan call asking House Speaker Mike Johnson to adopt new rules banning the chamber’s lawmakers, their families and staff from participating in prediction markets, in a move the Aurora Democrat said can...

 Colorado legislators ask voters to forfeit thousands in TABOR refunds, redirect money to school spending

A Democratic‑backed proposal to direct money to K‑12 schools using Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights dollars is headed to the ballot, setting up a major debate over taxpayer refunds and long‑term education funding. If voters approve it, the average Coloradan would...

 Colorado legislators abandon proposal targeting natural gas initiative

Colorado lawmakers pulled back plans to counter a proposed constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right of consumers to use natural gas. The bill’s backers said the legislation would not have significantly affected the initiative’s impact, even as debate intensifies among environmental...

 Colorado Politics’ 8th CD primary debate canceled after Democrat Shannon Bird withdraws 

Organizers on Tuesday canceled next week’s Democratic primary debate in Colorado’s toss-up 8th Congressional District after former state Rep. Shannon Bird withdrew, leaving just one candidate planning to take the stage. Three Democrats are seeking the nomination in the state’s...

 Ron Hanks, Scott Bottoms sue to stop Colorado’s unaffiliated voters from participating in June primary

Three Republican candidates in Colorado filed a lawsuit in Denver District Court this week seeking to prevent unaffiliated voters from participating in next month’s primary, arguing that the state’s semi-open primary system violates their constitutional rights by forcing Republicans to...

 Latest Pinnacol proposal shifts sponsors and cuts state benefits, triggers union standoff

Colorado’s long‑running bid to let Pinnacol Assurance break away from state control is suddenly in jeopardy, as a newly revised bill — stripped of the payouts and structural changes once central to the deal — has triggered fresh tensions among...

 Victor Marx, Phil Weiser lead Colorado gubernatorial fundraising, as all campaigns’ hauls top $20 million

Colorado gubernatorial candidates and the independent expenditure committees backing them hauled in more than $20 million between them by the end of April, as the primary election approaches, according to campaign finance reports filed this week. Republican Victor Marx and...

 Lone Tree City Council to welcome 2 new members

Lone Tree City Council elections concluded Tuesday, with two new members set to join the council once final results are certified later this month. Michelle Béchamps and Tara Meekma Collins defeated their opponents to serve as District 1 and District...

 Fight over road funding intensifies as Democrats seek to negate citizen initiative

The battle over road funding intensified at the state Capitol this week, where legislators are seeking to negate an initiative that supporters say is sorely needed but which critics insist would divert money from other state priorities. Supporters of the...

 Democrat Jena Griswold holds wide lead in Colorado attorney general primary, her internal poll shows

Democratic attorney general candidate Jena Griswold, Colorado’s term-limited secretary of state, holds a wide lead over her three primary opponents just weeks before ballots are set to go out to voters, a new internal poll released by her campaign on...

 Crank challenger Jessica Killin named to House Democrats’ ‘Red to Blue’ program in Colorado’s 5th CD

The House Democrats’ campaign arm on Monday added Jessica Killin to its nationwide “Red to Blue” program in Colorado’s Republican-leaning 5th Congressional District, calling the first-time candidate a “top-tier” challenger in a seat the party is aiming to flip in...

 Colorado bill prohibits credit card companies from charging ‘swipe fees’ on sales taxes

Colorado senators on Wednesday voted to advance a proposal to eliminate credit card “swipe fees” on sales taxes. Proponents say the move would save businesses tens of thousands of dollars annually, while critics have countered those fees are needed to...

 Colorado GOP request to block unaffiliated voters from receiving Republican primary ballots denied by judge

A federal judge on Tuesday denied the Colorado Republican Party’s request for an emergency injunction barring unaffiliated voters from participating in the state’s upcoming Republican primary election. U.S. District Court Judge Philip A. Brimmer said that preventing unaffiliated voters from...

 Colorado taxpayers would lose thousands in TABOR refunds under Democrats’ proposed ballot measure

A nonpartisan analysis of a proposed ballot measure that seeks to increase public education spending by tapping Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights refunds shows that about 75% of what would otherwise go to Colorado residents wouldn’t actually go to K-12 schools....

 Boebert challenger Eileen Laubacher, Republican Gabe Evans lead Colorado’s quarterly House fundraising

The Democrat challenging U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert in Colorado’s most solidly Republican congressional district again posted the state’s biggest fundraising numbers for the most recent quarter, while Republican U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans, who is defending the state’s lone toss-up seat,...

 Colorado data‑privacy bill fails after sponsors shift it to a ballot measure

A Colorado bill aimed at restricting law enforcement and private companies from purchasing personal data without a warrant failed to advance Wednesday after a 6–5 vote in the House Judiciary Committee. The proposal, originally titled the “Fourth Amendment Is Not...

 Colorado congressional elections see over $9M in ad reserves from House Democrats’ super PAC

Meanwhile, Republican group reserves $5.5 million in Denver market The leading House Democratic super PAC is booking more than $9 million in fall TV and digital advertising across three Colorado media markets as part of an aggressive move to win...

 Colorado GOP asks judge to bar state from sending Republican primary ballots to unaffiliated voters

The Colorado Republican Party on Monday asked a federal judge to issue an emergency injunction to prevent the state’s unaffiliated voters from being able to cast ballots in the GOP’s upcoming primary election. Lawyers for the party argue in a...