DENVER — On paper, this is a high-stakes election year for Colorado Republicans. Jared Polis, the two-term incumbent Democratic governor, is term-limited, and three-term Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet is running for governor, taking on state Attorney General Phil Weiser.
A bit more than a decade ago, this state seemed purplish-blue: Republican Cory Gardner won a U.S. Senate race and former congressman Bob Beauprez at least made Democrats sweat in a gubernatorial race. But since his arrival on the national stage, President Donald Trump has been an albatross for the Colorado GOP. The last time a Republican candidate won a statewide race was 2016. Four years ago, Colorado Democrats romped, winning every statewide race by double-digit percentages.
In three tries, Trump’s share of the vote here has been remarkably consistent — 43.3 percent in 2016, 41.9 percent in 2020 and 43.1 percent in 2024. A Civiqs survey released this week found that just 36 percent of registered voters in the state approve of Trump’s handling of his job, while 60 percent disapprove.
Those open-seat races for governor and U.S. Senate mean that the state will elect a new senator, a new governor and lieutenant governor, a new attorney general, a new state treasurer and a new secretary of state. And that’s in addition to voting on its U.S. House delegation, the state House and more than half the state Senate, three seats on the state board of education, three more on the University of Colorado board of regents, a retention election for one state supreme court justice, retention elections for six intermediate appellate court judges, and at least two statewide ballot initiatives, probably with more to come. Whew!
So yes, on paper, this year’s elections are a big opportunity for the state GOP. In reality, just being competitive would be a big step forward.
If Colorado Republicans botch this election, they’ll be stuck living with the consequences for a long while. Members of the board of education and board of regents are elected to six-year terms, appellate court judges face a retention election two years after appointment and subsequent terms last eight years, and state supreme court justices face retention elections every 10 years.
That’s why, with primaries just four months away, Colorado Republicans naturally are closing ranks around a serious slate of candidates with an ability to attract voters in a blue year in a trending-blue state, right? Okay, no. What they’re actually doing is engaging in a favorite pastime: spectacular infighting.
This month, Trump rescinded his endorsement of GOP Rep. Jeff Hurd, over Hurd’s vote supporting the repeal of Trump’s tariffs on Canada, and backed primary rival Hope Scheppelman. Hurd’s district, covering much of the west and south of the state, is GOP-leaning but not overwhelmingly so. In 2024, Hurd won 50.8 to 45.8 percent, and his district went for Trump 54 to 44 percent.
The primary promises to be messy, with Scheppelman calling Hurd“just another liberal elitist who is dead set against President Trump and the millions of MAGA citizens.” The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee was already targeting Jeff Crank in the adjacent 5th District, around Colorado Springs. A weakened winner of the 3rd District primary could create another tempting DCCC target.
State Republicans’ fundraising is abysmal, with just $63,978 in cash on hand as of Jan. 31. This month, the party’s vice chair, Richard Holtorf, announced that he was resigning, saying that he “found it impossible to work with the chair,” Brita Horn. This past weekend, members of the party’s state central committee approved a resolution expressing “no confidence” in her leadership. Horn said the meeting was invalid and the no-confidence resolution had no meaning.
Meanwhile, 22 Republicans have filed to run for governor. The top candidates, at least based on fundraising, are state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, who has actually done things in state government, motivational speaker and former Marine Victor Marx, and Army veteran and business executive Bob Moore.
In the fourth spot is state Rep. Scott Bottoms, who claims pedophilia rings are being run out of the state House, Senate and governor’s office. He also says that he doesn’t trust state police and the local FBI to investigate these crimes. You’ll be shocked to learn that Bottoms has offered no evidence for his claims, but he vows to bring the perpetrators to justice just as soon as the state elects him governor.
Coloradans don’t seem thrilled with their current Democratic leadership. A November poll put Polis’s favorability rating at 45 percent and Bennet’s at 41 percent. Few voters are optimistic about the state’s economy, with 46 percent saying they think it will only get worse and another 43 percent expecting it to remain about the same.
The gloomy mood offers a golden opportunity for the party out of power. To seize it, Colorado Republicans need to nominate serious candidates with concrete plans. After so many years in the wilderness, are they capable of it?
The post Can the Colorado GOP get serious? appeared first on Washington Post.
