Update: as first reported by Jesse Paul at the Colorado Sun, Kent Thiry gave another $750,000 to Colorado Voters First, filed Monday afternoon, bringing his total to $3.2 million.

The last campaign finance report before Election Day shows millions are being spent on that would upend Colorado’s election system in favor of ranked-choice voting, in which candidates are selected by order of preference.

The Colorado Voters First committee has raised more than $4 million in the past two weeks. The big checks written to Colorado Voters First between Oct. 10 and Oct. 28 included the following: 

• $500,000 from Chevron

• $125,000 from the Colorado Chamber of Commerce, bringing its total contributions to $500,000

• $1 million each from Kent Thiry, the main backer of the proposal known as Proposition 131; Ben Walton, an heir to the Walmart fortune, whose total contributions now totalled $2 million; and $1 million from Unite America, the Thiry-founded organization running ranked-choice voting in multiple states. Unite America has now put almost $6 million into the Colorado committee. Thiry has contributed a total of $2.433 million.

All told, Colorado Voters First has now raised just over $15 million.

Meanwhile, a second and brand-new committee filed to support Proposition 131 — Voters for the American Center — raised $496,000 in the last two weeks from two California contributors: Tom Chavez ($236,736), the founder of SuperSet, an entrepreneur who funds technology startups. The other funder is Harrison Miller, who gave $259,684. Miller is listed as retired but previously worked with Summit Partners.

While Proposition 131 has outpaced all other ballot measure in 2024 for fundraising, it still lags behind other major propositions in the past. In 2016, the No on 72 campaign, a ballot measure to hike tobacco taxes, raised more than $34 million. The measure failed by six percentage points.

The two groups opposed to Proposition 131 have collectively raised less than $500,000.

• First Choice Counts took in $8,548.55, including $412 in the more recent reporting period between Oct. 10 and Oct. 23

• Voter Rights Colorado raised $490,171, including a $40,000 contribution last week from the progressive Working Families Party.

The committee backing Amendment 79, which would ensure the right to an abortion in the state constitution, raised $660,000 in the last week from Cobalt Advocates, which funds abortions. That brings the total contributions from Cobalt Advocates and the Cobalt Foundation to just over $3.1 million, including $1.5 million from in-kind contributions. The committee has now raised $9 million.

The four committees opposed to Amendment 79 have collectively raised less than $550,000, although two groups received their biggest donations this month.

• Coloradans for the Protection of Women and Children got $10,000 last week from Colorado for Life, bringing its total to $82,800.

• Colorado Life Initiative has now raised $15,709.35, increasing its funds by $325 in the recent reporting period.

• The Archdiocese of Denver contributed $175,000 to Pro-Life Colorado Fund, which has now raised a total of $371,507. The committee had its best fundraising in the election cycle in the most recent reporting period, raising more than $216,000. In addition to the Archdiocese, the committee received $10,000 from Denver attorney Dan Caplis.

• The Truth & Liberty Coalition, founded by Andrew Wommack of Woodland Park, was the biggest funder at $15,000 to the Vote No on 79 committee within the last reporting period. The committee has raised $76,230 during this election cycle.

The committee backing Proposition 127, which would ban trophy hunting of mountain lions, bobcats and lynx, has now received more than $811,000 from Animal Wellness Action, whose founder was formerly with the Humane Society of the United States, which pushed a bill to do the same thing in the 2022 legislative session. Trophy hunting is illegal in Colorado under Colorado Revised Statutes 33-6-117 and Colorado Parks and Wildlife regulations; lynx are a federally protected species and cannot be hunted or trapped.

Cats Aren’t Trophies raised more than $237,000 in the last few days, adding to its total of $3.5 million raised through Oct. 28.

The two committees opposing Proposition 127 are behind in fundraising but received significant help this week from groups in Washington, D.C.

Colorado’s Wildlife Deserve Better, which opposes Proposition 127, raised $283,000 in the most recent reporting period, bringing its total fundraising to $1.9 million. This month, the largest donation came from the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation of Washington, D.C., at $190,000. The foundation separately spent $15,000 on media consulting, reported through the 48-hour disclosure webpage on the Secretary of State’s website.

A second committee filed earlier this month, Western Heritage Conservation Alliance, raised $870,937 from Building America’s Future, a group tied to the American Action Network. Building America’s Future does not disclose its funders. 

Western Heritage has raised $945,937; the two groups have collectively raised about $2.9 million.

Meanwhile, All Pets Deserve Vet Care, which supports Proposition 129 — the measure that seeks to create a veterinary professional associate degree — has now raised $1,548,000, including just over $5,000 in the last reporting period.

The opposition committee, Keep Our Pets Safe, is leading in the fundraising, bringing in $11,970 in the last reporting period for $2.45 million.

When it comes to spending on Amendment 80, which seeks to enshrine school choice to the state constitution, including public and charter schools, private schools, and homeschooling, School Choice for Every Child, has yet to report any contributions. The group supports proposal.  

However, Advance Colorado Action and its affiliate Colorado Dawn, a 501(c)(4), under the 48-hour disclosure requirement, have collectively spent $1.32 million on radio, text messages and mailers. Defend Colorado, a group that doesn’t disclose its funders, also reported spending $4,800 on several ballot measures, including Amendment 80.

Public Schools Strong, which opposes the measure, raised more than $1.1 million in the last reporting period, bringing its total to $4.9 million. Almost every contribution came from teachers’ unions, including the National Education Association, the American Federation of Teachers, and various local teachers’ unions.

Here’s the rest of the fundraising landscape.

Freedom to Marry Colorado, which supports Amendment J, a legislative-referred measure, has raised $762,307, including almost $222,000 in the last reporting period. That included $19,000 from Centennial State Prosperity, a progressive 501(c)(4) that does not identify donors.

Another $35,000 came from Out Boulder County, a 501(c)(3) that supports LGBTQ+ causes.

The Marriage Defense Fund of Washington, D.C., affiliated with the Amalgamated Foundation, gave $60,000. The foundation is tied to the Service Employees International Union, affiliated with Colorado WINS, the state employee union. The measure would strike a 2006 voter-approved amendment that banned same-sex marriage.

No opposition committee has been filed against Amendment J.

Another legislatively referred measure, Amendment JJ, would allow the state to retain all sports-betting tax revenue, which would be used in part to fund water projects. The Yes on JJ committee has raised $515,000, including $25,000 from Kent Thiry in the last reporting period.

The committee for Proposition KK, which would require an excise tax on the purchase of firearms and ammunition, has raised $216,565, including almost $50,000 in the last two weeks from Violence Free Colorado and Servicios Sigue, a Latino advocacy group.

Stop Tax Increases, which oppose Proposition KK, has not reported any contributions or expenditures.

Coloradans for Smart Justice, which opposes Propositions 128 and 130, has raised $103,000 to fight the two ballot measures, but it has not raised any funds in the last two weeks. Proposition 128 would require those convicted of the most serious crimes to serve 85% of their sentences, while Proposition 130 would require the General Assembly to appropriate $350 million to the peace officer training and support fund.

No committee is filed to support the two ballot measures, but Colorado Dawn’s 501(c)(4) has spent $83,250 on text messages, and support for those two measures is also part of the $4,800 spent by Defend Colorado.

As of Monday, more than $44 million has been raised to support or oppose the 14 statewide ballot measures.