Here are some of our favorite trivia questions about Colorado and its political history. Questions are below, with answers following at the bottom in italics:

1. What is the average elevation for all of Colorado?

A. 10,000 feet

B. 9,385 feet

C. 6,800 feet

D. 5,500 feet

2. What is the average yearly rainfall in Colorado?

A. 17 inches

B. 23 inches

C. 25 inches

D. 32 inches

3. What percent of Colorado is U.S. government owned land?

A. 25.2%

B. 35.9%

C. 42.1%

D. 44%

4. What is the number of ski resorts in Colorado?

A. 10

B. 14

C. 22

D. 32

5. Which Colorado governor was an active member of the Ku Klux Klan?

A. Clarence Morley

B. Edward Evans

C. Samuel Colfax

D. William Breckinridge

6. Which former Colorado governor spent five years in the U.S. Government penitentiary at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas?

A. Clarence Morley

B. Edward Evans

C. Samuel Colfax

D. William Breckinridge

7. What national political party (not the Democrats or the Republicans) was founded in Colorado?

A. Whig Party

B. Libertarian Party

C. Constitution First Party

D. Constitutional Union Party

8. At its peak, how many Japanese-Americans lived in a World War II internment camp in Colorado (Camp Amache)?

A. 7,300

B. 10,332

C. 13,000

D. 28, 552

9. Name the three Colorado towns where Tom Cruise, Kevin Costner, and Ralph Lauren have getaway ranches?

A. Cruise, Kremmling; Costner, Vail; Lauren, Winter Park

B. Cruise, Glenwood Springs; Costner, Craig; Lauren, Salida

C. Cruise, Telluride; Costner, Aspen; Lauren, Ridgway

D. Cruise, Montrose; Costner, Creede; Lauren, San Luis

10. What American president liked to spend time in Colorado going fishing?

A. Teddy Roosevelt

B. Gerald Ford

C. Franklin D. Roosevelt

D. Dwight D. Eisenhower

11. How many counties are there in Colorado?

A. 63

B. 64

C. 65

D. 46

12. How many Colorado counties have Spanish names?

A. 8

B. 11

C. 12

D. 18

13. How many Colorado counties are named for American presidents?

A. 11

B. 9

C. 5

D. 3

14. What percentage of the Colorado population lives within 50 miles (either side) of the state’s three interstate highways (I-25, I-70, and I-76)?

A. About 85%

B. About 95%

C. About 75%

D. About 65%

15. What is the name of Colorado’s highest Rocky Mountain peak?

A. Mount Esther

B. Mount Princeton

C. Mount Elbert

D. Longs Peak

16. Where is the lowest point of elevation in Colorado?

A. Arkansas River at Kansas border

B. Arickaree River at Kansas border

C. Rio Grande River at New Mexico border

D. North Platte River at Wyoming border

17. What is the governor’s annual salary in Colorado?

A. $90,000

B. $149,000

C. $180,000

D. $123,193

18. Can you name the six major headwater rivers that flow out of Colorado?

A. Arkansas, Rio Grande, Colorado, Yampa, North Platte, South Platte

B. Arkansas, Rio Grande, Colorado, Columbia, North Platte, South Platte

C. Arkansas, Missouri, Colorado, Columbia, North Platte, South Platte

D. Arickaree, Republican, Colorado, Yampa, North Platte, South Platte

19. What is the mandatory retirement age for Colorado justices and judges?

A. 65

B. 70

C. 72

D. 75

20. Which major political party has won the Colorado governorship the most over the past 50 years (1970-2018)?

A. Democratic

B. Republican

21. Which major political party (Democratic or Republican) has won Colorado in US presidential elections the most times in the past 50 years (1972-2020)?

A. Democratic

B. Republican

22. When was the last time the Broncos won the Super bowl?

A. 2018

B. 2016

C. 2014

D. 2012

23. Name the location of three major pedestrian (walking) malls in Colorado?

A. Mile High Mall (Denver), Pearl Street Mall (Boulder), Tejon Street Mall (Colorado Springs)

B. 16th Street Mall (Denver), Tejon Street Mall (Colorado Springs), Mill Street Mall (Aspen)

C. 16th Street Mall (Denver), Pearl Street Mall (Boulder), Mill Street Mall (Aspen).

D. 16th Street Mall (Denver), Buffalo Mall (Boulder), Skiers’ Walk (Aspen)

24. What town is closest to the exact geographical center of the state of Colorado?

A. Leadville

B. Fairplay

C. Buena Vista

D. Tarryall

25. True or false? Colorado has the tallest sand dunes in the United States.

A. True

B. False

26. True or false? John Denver’s hit song Rocky Mountain High is one of Colorado’s official state songs.

A. True

B. False

27. What is the total number of state legislators (state Senate and State House combined) in Colorado?

A. 65

B. 100

C. 35

D. 75

28. According to the Colorado Constitution, what is the total number of days the legislature can be in session each year?

A. 250

B. 150

C. 120

D. 90

29. Who was the leader of the exploration group that discovered gold in Colorado and started the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush?

A. William G. Russell

B. Molly Brown

C. John Evans

D. William Gilpin

30. What year was gold discovered in Colorado? Where was the discovery made in Colorado?

A. 1851 in San Luis

B. 1858 in Cripple Creek

C. 1858 at Dry Creek near Denver

D. 1891 at Cripple Creek

ANSWERS:

1. C, 2. A, 3. B, 4. D, 5. A, 6. A, 7. B, 8. A, 9. C, 10. D, 11. B

12. D. Baca, Otero, Las Animas, Huerfano, Costilla, Alamosa, Conejos, Rio Grande, Saguache, Archuleta, San Juan, La Plata, Dolores, San Miguel, Mesa, Rio Blanco, Pueblo, El Paso.

13. C. Garfield, Jackson, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Washington counties; Adams County is named for Colorado Governor Alva Adams.

14. A, 15. C, 16. B, 17. D, 18. A, 19. C, 20. A, 21. B, 22. B, 23. C, 24. D, 25. A, 26. A, 27. B, 28. C, 29. A, 30. C

Tom Cronin and Bob Loevy write about Colorado and national politics. Many of these issues or events are treated in Cronin and Loevy’s Colorado Politics: Governing a Purple State.