Gov. Jared Polis is losing steam among members of his party, particularly progressive Democrats, according to a recent poll.

Other statewide Democrats also saw their favorability ratings drop, though relatively stable compared to the governor’s numbers, the poll conducted by the Colorado Polling Institute in late March said.

Forty-four percent of respondents said they view Polis favorably, down seven percentage points from last March. Nearly 50% of respondents said they had a negative view of the governor, whose final term ends this year.

Polis’ favorability was strong within the Democratic Party last year, with 84% of members saying they viewed him favorably. That number has dropped to 72%, while Polis’ approval among Democrats who identify as “liberal or socialist” decreased 23 percentage points in the past year.

Other elected officials’ approval ratings remained relatively stable.

An even split of respondents said they view U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper favorably and unfavorably, decreasing his favorability rating by 6 percentage points and increasing his unfavorability rating by 7 percentage points from last year.

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, who is running for governor in this year’s election, received a 40% favorability rating, down 5 percentage points from last year. His unfavorability rating increased by 8 percentage points.

Attorney General Phil Weiser — Bennet’s biggest opponent in the gubernatorial race — remains relatively unknown among Colorado voters, with 51% saying they haven’t heard of him.

That’s a improvement from last March, when 60% of respondents said they didn’t know who he was.

President Donald Trump’s approval rating among Coloradans has also remained steady, but pollsters noted he is starting to lose favor among some Republicans in the state, with nearly 20% of the members of his own party saying they view him unfavorably.

Cost of living remains biggest worry

Voters are torn between whether the state is headed in the right direction or not, but wealthier Coloradans are more likely to say things are going well, according to the poll.

Voters seemed to be more aware of the state’s budget shortfall than last year, with 42% saying they believe the budget is in crisis, up 12 percentage points from March of 2025. An additional 42% of respondents said the state’s budget has some problems but is not in crisis; only 5 percent said the budget is in good shape.

The majority of voters said they believe the state’s economy will get worse in the next year, up 8 percentage points from the previous March. Thirty-five percent said they believe it will stay the same, and 10% said they think it will improve.

More than 90% of respondents agree that the cost of housing, health care, and home and car insurance, respectively, are all serious problems in Colorado.

The price of gas was also top of mind for voters amid the escalating conflict in Iran: 89% of respondents said they are worried about gas prices, which is up 24 percentage points from last March.

“Coloradans are increasingly frustrated with the price of everything — gas prices were the one area of respite in our survey last November and now that’s gone,” said Lori Weigel, Principal of New Bridge Strategies, which polled Republican voters. “Fewer than one-in-five voters (18%) characterize their family as comfortable and increasing savings. Everyone else is either treading water or in fear of sinking.”

“While voters still worry about the availability of jobs, their economic concerns are being driven much more by costs than by employment — highlighting how affordability has become the central issue,” said Kevin Ingham, Principal of Aspect Strategic, which polled Democratic voters. “Voters are sending a clear signal: the cost of living is overwhelming household budgets and driving growing pessimism about where the economy is headed.”

The poll, which was conducted on March 20-25, interviewed about 600 people online. It has a margin of error of plus-minus 3.96 points.