The Gazette and the Centennial Institute are cosponsoring a Republican gubernatorial debate Tuesday at Colorado Christian University, featuring candidates state Rep. Scott Bottoms, a Colorado Springs pastor, and longtime GOP insider state Sen. Barb Kirkmeyer.

Candidates will field questions on major issues facing Colorado, including the economy, crime/public safety, state budget/TABOR, energy, infrastructure and affordability.

The debate will be moderated by Shaun Boyd of CBS Colorado; Vince Bzdek, executive editor of The Gazette and The Denver Gazette; and Michael Brown of KOA.

Limited tickets are available at McDonald Performance Hall in Armstrong Center, Colorado Christian University, 8787 W. Alameda Ave. in Lakewood.

The debate will take place 7-8:30 p.m. and will be livestreamed on The Gazette and Colorado Politics websites.

Another Republican candidate, Victor Marx, originally agreed to appear at the debate, but pulled out after complaining about one of the moderators.

“We are disappointed that candidate Victor Marx has chosen to not participate in the candidate debate being hosted by Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University on May 26,” the Centennial Institute said in a statement. “The Marx campaign argued that one of the moderators (Michael Brown) was biased against its candidate. Upon learning this, Michael Brown offered to remove himself as a panelist.”

Centennial Institute Director Greg Schaller told Brown he wanted him to remain on the panel.

Marx spokeswoman Rachel Flick, in a Facebook video, said Marx changed his mind about attending the debate after an exchange with Brown.

“Mr. Brown told an Army veteran on our staff to man up and answer his questions,” Flick said. “He also sent the campaign a demand letter requiring extensive records before the debate, warning that our response our silence would be used against Victor on stage and on air. This is not normal moderator conduct.”

After Marx pulled out, the Centennial Institute tried repeatedly to find a solution that would please the Marx campaign, and never received a call back.

“If the Marx campaign was truly eager to participate in a debate to provide voters with an opportunity to hear the candidates discuss the issues, they would have agreed to an amenable resolution — one that Centennial Institute was eager to find,” the statement read. “Instead, the Marx campaign quickly scheduled another event for the same time and date.”

On Tuesday, Centennial plans to provide a podium for Marx to participate if he decides to show up.

In a post on X, Brown thanked CCU for standing by him.

“CCU has integrity and stood behind the moderators they chose and should be acknowledged for that integrity. That is the CCU that I know and have spoken at before.”

The Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization that does not endorse or oppose any candidate or political party for public office.

Marx also skipped the recent Weld County GOP debate but is still planning to participate in a debate sponsored by 9News, Colorado Politics and the University of Denver on June 2 at DU.

Kirkmeyer has the most political experience of the Republican candidates and the backing of much of Colorado’s conservative establishment. She served five terms as a Weld County commissioner, as an administrator for former Republican Gov. Bill Owens, and has served six years as a state senator, including membership on the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee.

Bottoms is a member of the state House, representing District 15. He has been a pastor at Church at Briargate in Colorado Springs since 2012, and he holds advanced degrees from small Christian schools, including a doctorate in ministry.

Marx runs a ministry nonprofit called All Things Possible for “hunting predators as well as rescuing, restoring and empowering women and children who have been held captive by traffickers and other abusers,” according to its website.

The Republican Party primary takes place on June 30 to determine which candidate will earn the right to run against either Sen. Michael Bennet or Attorney General Phil Weiser in the state’s gubernatorial election on Nov. 3.

A Republican hasn’t won a statewide office in Colorado since 2016, as the state has trended toward Democrats over the past decade. Bill Owens is the only Republican elected governor in the past half-century.