Mike Coffman is poised to secure a second term as Aurora’s mayor.

Coffman is leading his challengers, Juan Marcano, a councilmember, and Jeffrey Sanford, by a wide margin after polls closed on Tuesday night, the unofficial results showed.

“This race was really about issues,” Cofffman said. “It was about a tough-on-crime approach. Everyone in this city has a right to live without fear of being victim to a crime.”

Coffman led Marcano, 54% to 39%, with about 61,000 votes tallied so far.     

Sanford, who refused political contributions or endorsements, trailed with 7% of the vote.

While the city’s political races are nonpartisan, a conservative majority hold sway over the City Council.

Coffman, 68, first won the mayor’s seat in 2019, when he narrowly defeated his progressive challenger, Omar Montgomery. 

Coffman grew up in Aurora, attended Aurora Public Schools and graduated from the University of Colorado. He served 21 years in the Army, the Army Reserve, the U.S. Marine Corps and the Marine Corps Reserve. 

He has also served in Colorado’s State House of Representatives, State Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, and was elected Colorado State Treasurer and Secretary of State.

Sterling Ranch founders Diane and Harold Smethills said Tuesday that, while they don’t live under Aurora’s jurisdiction, they care deeply about the city’s leadership because of how it affects the entire state.

They were happy to hear about Coffman’s lead over his competitors, saying he’s a great mayor and the right candidate who “knows what he’s doing.”

“Leadership is so important and Coffman is such a great candidate and person,” Diane Smethills said. “Who else would take Spanish classes just to be able to talk to his residents in another language?”

Especially when it comes to water, Harold Smethills said, the decisions made in Aurora affect Sterling Ranch and all of the surrounding communities.

Marcano, who is currently Aurora’s Ward IV councilmember, has held the seat since 2019. His professional career outside of politics revolves around building, construction and design. He has been a BIM manager and architectural designer for several architecture firms in Colorado and Texas.

Marcano’s platform revolved around safety for communities and focused on what he described as underserved and neglected communities.

Sanford is also a military veteran, with background in military service and public administration. He refused to accept political contributions or endorsements, calling himself a “leader not a politician.” 

Coffman has led the fundraising race against his two challengers, raising more than twice what Marcano secured. Sanford reported raising zero dollars.

Coffman took in almost $250,000, while Marcano secured a little more than $100,000. 

Coffman’s top contributors included top business people, such as the president and CEO of HRM Resources, an oil and gas exploration and production company out of Denver; the CEO of Shortline Auto Group; the CEO of AMG National Trust Bank; a Mark West Energy Partners partner; and, the First American State Bank.

All three candidates offered varying ideas of how to handle some of Aurora’s biggest challenges, such as homelessness and public safety.

On homelessness, Coffman favors enforcement and a “treatment-first” and “work first” type approach. Marcano leans more toward “housing-first.” 

On public safety, Coffman said the city’s police force needs to be fully staffed, while Marcano emphasized the importance of addressing root causes of crime.